Jeff T.

I think I know the answer already, NO! My guess is the duster holds particles and continues to leave tiny scratches.

Had a lighter colored GS, Buick variety, and it was hard to notice, but the LeMans Blue C6 is another story. Just curious to here what the opinions are.

Loki 6

You will hear people say they use it and they’ve never had a problem. To that I say, do you own an inspection light…I suspect not.

I’d never use one. There are other safer methods albeit not as fast but in my opinion significantly better.

Esoteric Detail

As mentioned, the possibility of swirling is real. Some more information:

Tiger Joe

I own one, i use it. Do I use it all the time? no. I think one of the biggest issues is that people use it when their car it TOO dirty, then you've trapped the dirt in it and every time there after you scratch the paint. also misuse of the duster. there is a certain way you should wipe the car down to avoid scratches.

typically I only use if my car has been sitting in the garage uncovered for days/week whatever and I want to remove the dust that settled. if I drove the car and got any kind of dirt on it, I dont use it

endus

I'll post the same thing in two threads within 5 minutes - Don't wipe paint that hasn't been washed, period.

Scuba Ghost

I use the smaller version on the interior.

FYRARMS

2000 Vette Guy

I have used them for close to 20 years......Love them, both inside and out.

jiminfresno

Okay I understand that you may not want to use a California Duster on the paint of the car in fear of swirls or scratches. However how about if you have Xpel Protective film on your Car and then went over the whole car with Ceramic coating ?

The dealer that put the XPEL paint film on my car said you could run a wire brush over the film and it would not hurt the film or it would at least self heal. So it seams like you could use a California Duster if its has XPEL film and ceramic coating without fear of damaging the paint ?

Loki 6

My car is ceramic coated and as I've mentioned before, I'd never use one.

Ceramic, while more resilient to scratching than your original clear coat, can still be scratched by dirt particles being dragged across its surface. PPF, would be the most resilient of the 3 (naked clear, Ceramic coating, PPF) although not completely impervious to scratching.

In the scenario you mention above, its a moot point since you have ceramic over the PPF. In essence you have the best product covered by the second best which will scratch. If you took a swirl finder to a PPF car that had been ceramic coated, yet had a California Scratcher Duster used on it for a few months, I guarantee you'd see marring. The good news is that the original clear coat would be "bulletproof" to the likes of a California Scratcher, sorry I mean Duster in that scenario and likely most common scenarios where "love marks" induced by improper care and feeding are the culprit.

Don't take my word for it...I'll just leave this here:

FYRARMS

I have a better question. Why even try to justify using those terrible California Dusters? There are much safer methods for removing dust from your car. Why wouldn't you just use one of them?

FYRARMS

"Smoking cigarettes is bad for your health."
- "Been smoking for 20 years and I love it."
- "That can't be right. My lungs feel fine."
- "Can I smoke if I am healthy otherwise?"
- "Bah. I don't believe you."

Loki 6

I think I just spit my coffee all over my monitors!

LMFAO!!!

macguyver

Only GOD could get me to touch my paint with one of those

Loki 6

Sweet Baby Jesus On Ice Skates....NOOOOOO! LOL

Kenneth Allen

Haha....quick question as I value your expertise on this site.....I watched both videos and have no problem with them both.....the guy from Esoteric says that you can't do much of anything to your vehicle in between proper washes for, say a quick touch up before you head out if there's dust or what not, but what about:

1) Waterless spray/wash using products like OPT no rinse or McKee's 37 N-914 and then a quick microfiber wipe down.

2) He had a feather duster on there, but not the type that I've seen that I've heard was ok to use for dust:

acroy

No. I read the reviews, bought one, followed the instructions to the letter - and it left fine scratches. Gave it away. I do use a wool duster like posted above, very lightly, and no issue as yet. Only for dust that has just settled, not stuck. If it's stuck,. it needs a wash - no way around that I am aware of!

Kenneth Allen

I was reading the comments in the Esoteric video and they indicated not to use waterless carwash on a coated vehicle.

Loki 6

Hi Kenneth, thanks for valuing my incessant and obsessive ramblings....you know you can get help for that...there are professionals who likely will accept your medical coverage!

I don't want to get too nit picky here, but I think it might be necessary if we are going to take this conversation for a deeper dive...

CLIFF NOTES VERSION:
I think in the end, any product (WW or shampoo) with a good amount of lubricity will be the right call - BUT MORE IMPORTANT THAN PRODUCT CHOICE - DO NOT FORGET TO USE THE CORRECT MF TOWELS AND TECHNIQUE - that is where all the scratching will likely come from if you do it incorrectly

LOKI 6 RAMBLING VERSION:
I believe Esoteric says should you "have to" remove dust and such off your car in between proper washes, use a few drops of your car shampoo in a spray bottle with water - in essence this is a waterless wash method. I suspect he recommends a good shampoo because of its lubricity and to a lesser extent, cleaning power.

The waterless washes I use first and foremost have the needed lubricity to do their job without scratching the paint. As an added precaution, if I am using a concentrated product that needs mixing like the Wolfgang, or N-914, or ECH2O, I will double the recommended ratio to make the solution more concentrated with product - hence even more slippery. The Adam's Ceramic Waterless wash is RTU (ready to use, no mixing needed) and it is very slick I must say.

Secondly, waterless washes have the tendency to encapsulate and lift the dirt off the surface do to their chemistry, they are a more "modern" product, different chemistry as compared to traditional shampoos, which have been around forever; and while they definitely clean, they might leave a residue behind if not removed properly. I'm not knocking shampoos at all, I love them, AND presoak snow foam shampoos (if made correctly) are supposed to encapsulate and lift the dirt better than traditional shampoos that are not intended for foam lances. So if I was going to use a "shampoo" instead of a WW, I'd likely use my presoak snow foam, over a common bucket wash shampoo - but honestly, i think we are splitting the finest of hairs here at this point.

Again, more important is using multiple high quality MF towels and the correct amount of pressure on them, and the directionality - don't do circles like you are applying a wax. Straight lines east and west and not so much north and south. I don't think I'd ever put a duster of any kind on my car, I'd rather reach for an Eagle Edgeless 500 (or similar) after doing a safe waterless wash.

Please don't think I speak the absolute and exclusive gospel of detailing. I'm not here to offend anyone who does different than I do; there are a few ways to do a detailing task safely, not just one, BUT - there a many more ways to do the same task that can easily cause some ill effects to the clear coat - and when I see that, I like to opine.

Best to you and safe washing!

Loki6

FYRARMS

Exactly. I use a genuine lambs wool duster that I grabbed from Bed Bath & Beyond. It is only used for pushing (not wiping) off the lightest garage dust from my paint before going for a drive. Literally, just lightly gliding the fibers over the paint kind of pushes off dust using static. And, like you said, ONLY the dust that isn't "stuck" to the paint. Stuck = use a liquid and microfibers to clean it off. The last thing anyone should do is drag a paraffin-soaked dirty mop across their paint. LOL