Customer Reviews

The Absorber Synthetic Drying Chamois, 27" x 17"

5 star:		(82)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

We have had one of these for YEARS (10+) & it still works great!

Cleans the car with no streaks.

Just roll up & store (damp) in container.

My wife was extremely pleased to find that this item is Made in Japan--both because she takes it as a sign of quality and because she's Made in Japan herself.

We're also familiar with this kind of product in Japan, where it's called a "gum towel."

I bought two actually, one for her and one for me to use on my bicycles--thinking it would be something like a super absorbant chamois rather than a gum towel. It's certainly super absorbant, but doesn't have the chamois quality I would need to, say, polish my bike frames. That is to say it's more sticky than soft, more like a piece of foam rubber or neoprene than a cloth.

So if I just hosed down the bike while cleaning and wanted to get on with the next steps of polishing and relubing, this towel is a great way to dry the bike when it's neither hot nor dry enough of a day for the bike to dry out on it's own in a fair amount of time.

It really draws the water out too, from every knook and cranny, so no need to use DW-40 before lubing my nice clean parts.

My wife uses ours for everything from picking up spills to quickly drying wet clothing that can't go in the dryer. If you wash a sweater for example, it's best to roll it up in the Absorber before laying it out to dry, as this will cut your drying time to at least half and make it less of a hazard that the sweater will get out of shape.

We use my far more grungy one as you might use a wet vac. It actually does a better job than a wet vac though.

Add that I've used several gum towels in Japan, mostly for swimming, and this is by far the thickest one I've used--therefore more absorbant. And at 27" x 17" it's big enough to be used as a bath towel without having to ring it out over and over again.

BOTTOM LINE:

I recommend this particular make and model over others simply based on the large size and the thickness of the towel.

Don't expect to use this to polish or dust, as the texture of the towel is far too sticky for that.

I initially searched for the Sham-Wow on Amazon because I had seen it on TV, and still would like to try it out because it seems like it might be more chamois like--where you could wipe and polish with it.

Overall, we're thrilled with the quality, size, and how well this item works. Absolutely 5 stars.

I've used one of these for over five years and it still works great! It is rare when you can find a product that does what is says and lasts as long as this one does. Just remember to put it away in its container and roll it up damp. Amazing!

but the key is to get it wet and then wring it out before you use it. i dont think the nay-sayers know that

First off, for my people that hate reading, THIS IS THE CLOSEST THING TO A REAL CHAMOIS, if you don't want to get the real thing, but want something that actually does what a chamois does, BUY THIS. Now back to my blurb.
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After watching the silly "ShamWow" infomercial once or twice I developed the desire to purchase a chamois like product. My first attempt was with the previously mentioned "--Wow" which really left a lot to be desired. Quite frankly, it was crap! Once I was burned by the hype, I figured I'd try a different approach, I'd do some research. (novel idea) Upon hitting up Amazon I found that this one always got high reviews and people seemed to be saying, "yep, it's the one!". So I bought it and I haven't been disappointed. It works like a chamois, period. Get it a little damp, use it to suck up liquids, squeeze, repeat. It gets the job done.

If you want something that acts exactly like a REAL lambskin chamois that's not a REAL lambskin chamois, this is the product for you. Just buy it and be happy.

I have used many products to dry my cars over the years, this is the best. I even bought a cheaper product that looked the same to relace my first Absorber, a mistake. I ended up buying another Absorder. I should note my first one still worked fine, it was just looking old after a few years of use. I give The Abdsorber an A+ nothing works better.

What can I say, it cleans your car quickly w/out leaving leaving those nasty water marks.

The only minor set-back w/ this product is that if you dont clean it well after using and let fully dry in a dry area it will create a smell. But this can be overcome quickly, just get it wet again when you go to wash and dry your car again. It is a great product. Well worth the $$$.

At my job we transport all levels of VIP and this calls for clean, detailed vehicles at all time. We count on these to help keep our vehicles clean and dry. I bought my first ine in 1992 and used it almost weekly for 8 years. They're grest for houshold spills too. On top of that, you can just throw it in the washing machine if it get's dirty. They are great to have and the make great gifts.

It's better than a chamois. The packaging on the one I bought says it will dry a car in 2-3 minutes and I guess if you could wipe and wring fast enough it would but 8-10 minutes was OK with me. And it was done. I walked around the car expecting to have to do some finishing up but it was all done. Let the sheep keep their skins. Get an Absorber.

I don't know if Amazon will want this in the review but I think the material is very interesting. I went to check out what it is made of, (Polyvinyl Alcohol), and I found the following:

"Polyvinyl alcohol has excellent film forming, emulsifying, and adhesive properties. It is also resistant to oil, grease and solvent. It is odorless and nontoxic. It has high tensile strength and flexibility, as well as high oxygen and aroma barrier properties. However these properties are dependent on humidity, in other words, with higher humidity more water is absorbed. The water, which acts as a plasticiser, will then reduce its tensile strength, but increase its elongation and tear strength. PVA is fully degradable and is a quick dissolver. PVA has a melting point of 230°C and 180-190°C for the fully hydrolysed and partially hydrolysed grades. It decomposes rapidly above 200°C as it can undergo pyrolysis at high temperatures." via Wikipedia

I thought the part about it being fully degradable was cool because I was thinking as I used it that it was kind of indestructible and would last forever.

It works as well as I could have expected. It's a good deal for $10. I haven't used a Shamwow so I can't make that comparison.

This chamois worked very well in comparison to every other chamois I've tried. However, I was expecting something a bit more outstanding considering the reviews I've read.

The Good

-Long Lasting (VERY long lasting)

-Easily wrung out when wet

The bad

-Left some streaks and spots on auto paint (in comparison to a microfiber cloth)

All in all, not a bad buy for the price