AF Barrel Blade vs. DF/TRC Wheel Brush Kit

[Setec Astronomy]

There's been a couple threads on this kind of stuff--

https://www.autogeekonline.net/foru...microfiber-barrel-blades.html?highlight=blade

https://www.autogeekonline.net/foru...reach-wheel-barrel-tools.html?highlight=blade

The main difference I see is that the DF/TRC brush is flexible, but doesn't stay bent, while the AF Barrel Blade is bendable and stays that way, and also seems to have a few more cover options.

Also the Barrel Blade has a handle that unscrews, I really don't understand the purpose of that--unless it's adapted from a janitorial microfiber duster that screws onto a long handle (Edit: it is--from the Microfibertech site).

Anybody try both? I can see pros and cons with both--referring mostly to the flexible vs. bendable.

 

[Eldorado2k]

Can you post a picture of the wheels you’re looking to clean with the brush?

 

[Setec Astronomy]

It's not for a specific set of wheels--just as was mentioned in one of those threads, I usually use the Wheel Woolies to get the barrel, and the little ones are very short (bristle length along the handle axis). I may actually have an EZ Detail brush somewhere that I've never used, but I have an old Meg's brush that is similar that I don't like to use because the rubber tip likes to come off at the most inopportune times. I know from one of those other threads you like your tampico brush.

I'm may not even buy one of these, I was just curious because ChefWong said he really likes the Blade, and I saw there were big differences between these two competing products which at first blush seem like they could be identical, so I wondered if anyone had compared them.

 

[Eldorado2k]

Yup, the tampico brush is my favorite. I just wish it would last for years. It actually can last, the only thing that messes it up is my own fault when I fail to hang it up after use and leave it in a bucket or somewhere that causes the bristles to smash for a long period of time and that’s usually where it goes downhill.

Maybe 1 day I’ll spring for either the Daytona or Ez brush. Not sure which 1 is better but they’re both not cheap.

 

[Coatingsarecrack]

Yup, the tampico brush is my favorite. I just wish it would last for years. It actually can last, the only thing that messes it up is my own fault when I fail to hang it up after use and leave it in a bucket or somewhere that causes the bristles to smash for a long period of time and that’s usually where it goes downhill.

Maybe 1 day I’ll spring for either the Daytona or Ez brush. Not sure which 1 is better but they’re both not cheap.

I heard back in the day EZ made/imported the Daytona but doubt that now. I have the EZ go and the Daytona and bristles feel similar if not the same.


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[Eldorado2k]

I heard back in the day EZ made/imported the Daytona but doubt that now. I have the EZ go and the Daytona and bristles feel similar if not the same.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

EZ go looks kinda like a toilet brush. Lol

I wonder how similar the Daytona & Speedway Master brush are.

A couple of months ago I walked into the local detail supply/body shop store and they had a brush similar to the Daytona so I asked how much it was and they said $64 dollars! I was like oh hell no I would never pay that much. Lol

 

[Desertnate]

I wonder how similar the Daytona & Speedway Master brush are.

A couple of months ago I walked into the local detail supply/body shop store and they had a brush similar to the Daytona so I asked how much it was and they said $64 dollars! I was like oh hell no I would never pay that much. Lol

I've had both the EZ and the Speedmaster brushes. In fact the EZ detail brush I use now was a replacement for the Speedmaster because I found it to be less expensive. Holding both in my hand and looking them over, the only differences I could tell between the two were purely cosmectic like branding and the color of the bristles. Other than that, they felt the same, were the same size, same construction etc. Like many low cost tools these days, there is probably one factory spitting out hundreds of these things for various outlets.

If someone is charging $60 for one of their brushes, it's highway robbery. You can get the EZ on Amazon for around $20 and maybe less from somewhere like Detailed Image if you hit a sale.

 

[chefwong]

I haven't picked up my Wheel Woolies since using the barrel blade. My Main use case is to get deep into 10.5 - 11.5 Deep Barrels with Big A## Rotors
It does the job and fits into every application just short of the caliper. Heck, even the smallest Wheel Woolie won't fit the clearance of the caliper/wheel.

I don't use it to clean wheels but I will take advantage when inserting it through a spoke to scrub the window of it.
I like the MF material of it and to me, it's well constructed.
I've never considered using for a bent application. The sleeve does have some give but it's the flex is not something I have looked to utilize.


The mitt has 2 holes to set the running length mitt onto the blade. I generally am running it as the longest, which means the sleeve is unsupported by about 1 1/2 at the tip of the handle, but the entire MF sleeve does reach even 11 1/2 Deep Wheels with Easy and cleans well IMO.

There is a slight learning curve as reference in the previous thread, but that's more just adapting from a slim cylinder handle to a wider sleeve head....just adapt to angle of approach when you insert the blade to clean it.

I just swapped winter tires to summer. My inner barrels have been cleaner than any other time I have done this same task.....partially I am going to say because the barrel blade does all the way in....and or the OCD weekly cleanings...


I mentioned in one thread my favorite wheel barrel tool that fit where the Wheel Woolies didn't - it was on a rod, had -flaps-, drill mounted. Made in USA.....cannot recall the make:manufactuer . It sure as heck was -messy- with overspray if you did not know how to throttle the trigger.....It's still a great tool I suppose if you had really dirty wheels and had little barrel-rotor clearance....but the Barrel Blade has also replaced that as far as my top tier barrel tool

 

[Setec Astronomy]

I always thought it was accepted that EZ made those brushes for PBMG, just with a different color bristle.

I mentioned in one thread my favorite wheel barrel tool that fit where the Wheel Woolies didn't - it was on a rod, had -flaps-, drill mounted. Made in USA.....cannot recall the make:manufactuer . It sure as heck was -messy- with overspray if you did not know how to throttle the trigger.....It's still a great tool I suppose if you had really dirty wheels and had little barrel-rotor clearance....but the Barrel Blade has also replaced that as far as my top tier barrel tool

I remember that but for the life of me can't remember the mfr. either. Was it Aaron at Dedication to Detail who sold his company to 3M and then became the father of the Scrub Daddy?

 

[chefwong]

I have a EZ for my wheel wheels but I don't ever seeing using it on my wheels....even my winters, which in the realm of wheels for me, are the -beaters-

 

[Desertnate]

I have a EZ for my wheel wheels but I don't ever seeing using it on my wheels....even my winters, which in the realm of wheels for me, are the -beaters-

I love mine. It is my go-to for barrels and will fit just about anywhere except for the smallest gaps between the barrel and caliper. They are also handy when trying to get around the accessible side of a caliper quickly. In over 10 years of using them I've never had any scratching/marring issues when using them just on the barrels and tight openings. I have a different brush for the facing surfaces.

 

[DFB]

I love mine. It is my go-to for barrels and will fit just about anywhere except for the smallest gaps between the barrel and caliper. They are also handy when trying to get around the accessible side of a caliper quickly. In over 10 years of using them I've never had any scratching/marring issues when using them just on the barrels and tight openings. I have a different brush for the facing surfaces.

I have both the small and large EZ-Detail brushes, along with the GO version which looks like a toilet brush. Of those, I rarely use the small, the larger one is more versatile, I find it great for engine bays. The GO version I don't really use it on wheels, but it's absolutely brilliant for wheel wells. All of them are staples for me.