Sqeegee show-down

The Garage
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Last year i decided to just buy a bunch of different channels to see what felt better. I ended up not really putting much time into them because i focused heavily on the Liquidator. Well today something (76° in winter) possessed me to do my comparison and I’m blown away with the results.

I got all of them in 12".

First, Unger brass, stainless, and aluminum. Reluctantly dug out the cheap and uncomfortable Ergotec handle. Strangely enough, while still a bit uncomfortable due to the hard plastic, it actually felt really good. Way more maneuverable. I know a lot of people like the weighty feel of brass, but i began to notice i was liking lighter over heavier.

Next, ettore’s versions of the above. Surprisingly, they didn’t feel quite as good and especially my beloved ledge-ease actually felt clunky and unwieldy. I think it’s cause I’ve been focusing lately on having a lighter grip and pivoting the squeegee, holding it down with my thumb and steering with loose fingers.

Thinking lighter must be better i couldn’t wait to try the steccone featherweight. For some reason, i just couldn’t get it to work for me though.

Finally, the next big surprise: I was gonna just forget about the Pulex channels feeling that they are just second tier compared to ettore and Unger. Well i don’t know what it is exactly but the Pulex stainless paired with the Ergotec handle was amazing. Suddenly everything made sense, fanning became effortless, and i was shocked to find that i was cleaning windows with virtually no detailing required… Without the hassle of the Liquidator!

For good measure i revisited my ninjas. Truth be told, even the ninja handle just felt too big and heavy. The channels were decent though. With my technique improvements i actually got it to be virtually zero detail as well.

Finally as a comparison, the Liquidator. After how great the other setup was i just had to know how would the liquidator feel, which is really the squeegee I’m used to. Instantly, cleaning a window became cumbersome again. The only up side was that getting in corners is much easier with the liquidator.

So, if you’ve read this far, wow… Sorry for the long post. But, it looks like tried and true is the winner. If only the Ergotec handle wasn’t the hardest plastic ever with annoying burrs. I think ima try cutting the Pulex channels at an angle to get in those corners better. Otherwise, I’m sold!

For the record, i will be still using the excelerator though. I love that thing.

Oh and all these tests were done fanning. Straight pulls are still up in the air, but so far i do like my 24" sorbo on the ninja handle… But i digress.

Thanks for reading my novel. This may be a turning point for me!

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:wink: hmmm, I wonder why that is. I could swear I’ve heard that phrase before “tried and true.”

Well written novel by the way. :slight_smile:

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I keep telling people stainless is the way to go. You can feel the brass as heavier than stainless. Never weighed them, but the feel is there. Plus, they don’t warp as easily as brass. I used brass for a year and you drop it from a ladder and all of a sudden it’s not straight.

I never liked the featherweight either. Too light.

Dump the ledgeze and get the pro (not the pro+ zero degree thing that I can’t stand… unless that’s your thang).

The pulex channels are more rounded than the ettore so they’re more forgiving for starting out. The ettore takes some practice to zero it in whereas the pulex doesn’t. Unger is somewhere between those two.

As for the liquidator, I don’t have one. I know I should try it, but I’ve got a garage full of stuff that I “tried” and didn’t like. Superchannels, sorbos, slayers, tossed/gave away the ungers, etc.

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When you cut your channel try cutting it at only 30%. I think you’ll like it. I am very pleased. Gets in the corners better than a stock Ettore channel.

IMG_3516.JPG2448×3264 2.73 MB

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I noticed you mentioned that in another thread and was actually thinking of trying the 30° cut. Thanks for the tip!

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I think it’s possible you might be experiencing something a lot of sport motorcyclists do when they first move beyond basic steering and into more advanced techniques.

Riders sometimes feel like the bars resist their steering input at lower lean angles. What’s actually happening is the rider is resisting himself and counteracting his own steering with one hand or the other. If he can relax and let the bike do its thing, the steering magically lightens up and steers almost effortlessly.

I noticed a similar phenomenon with the new liquidator, in that it’s easy to over-control. It’s a new tool and a different feel so it can be hard to trust it, especially since it can be pretty finicky if any little thing is out of spec. If you are the least bit unsure of yourself then you’ll feel that it’s cumbersome because you’re too tense and resisting your own movement. If, however, you force yourself to relax and let the tool do its thing then you might be surprised at what a light touch you can use.

@anon35812390 Would you share your thoughts on this score?

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Wow that’s interesting. Interesting how the mind works. I’ve also found this to be true with nearly any sport, hobby, etc. Almost always being relaxed is key.

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Yep, you’ve hit the nail on the head. I’d been using Wagtails for about 4 years or so prior to Liquidator coming out and even though I hybridised a Wagtail with the Liquidator Channel to all intents and purposes it was still a Wagtail. Arrogantly I felt that the Excelerator would be simply an extension of that. I was somewhat shocked to discover that it was very easy to ‘crash’ with it. Pivot point is closer to channel so it has a very direct and extremely quick turning action if using the same way as a Wagtail. Initially it feels too quick, almost as if its gliding on ball bearings and the tendency at the start is to press harder to try and slow it down but that doesn’t help one bit. Light grip, blade resting lightly on glass and allow controlled wrist/forearm rotation to guide the fanning action. This is a precision tool and the user with a light accurate touch is rewarded.

I would say that the 10 and 14 are the best ones to learn with. The 18 in my opinion is unwieldy, especially for a newbie and particularly in hand. Also because the optimum fanning action is somewhat shallower than either a fixed handle squeegee or a Wagtail even, there really is no major advantage to using it. The 18 is really only useful on larger commercial panes.

Also if you’re new to the concept best to play around with it sans pad until you get a real feel for the pivot action. Then add the pad (I prefer top mount) and use it on a short pole. I believe the pads are too heavy for extended in hand use.

Oh, and finally. New, the pad is very rigid and doesn’t ‘behave’ itself very well. However, after 2 or 3 days of use the pad softens up and performs much better than the Wagtail equivalent. …However, I reiterate, still too heavy for protracted in hand use…

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Dump the ledge Eze? Everyone talks so good about it. I was thinking about getting one.

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Naw, feels cheap compared to the pro handles.

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They’re nice for high pole work and closeouts on commercial panes. That said, you have to glue the handles or they’ll fall apart.

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But Luke and Reanna say the ledge Eze is the shiznit. Does that not mean anything?

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Doesn’t mean anything to me. You? :wink: I only know what I like. I think every one has thier choice of tools and reasons for likeing those tools.

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That response gets a Wooooooo

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I think it has something to do with muscle memory. We like what we’re comfortable using.

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It’s a good handle.

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That’s great advice, and true! It comes back to overthinking your movements. Once you have down a routine, stick with it. Same with tools, once you find the ones that work for you stick with that tool. Thanks for the post.

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They don’t even wear Rolex’s while doing route work.

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I just bought one, and I really like it. I used to just buy the back flip replacements and use tennis racquet tape for some grip to save a little bit of money.

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Cool idea

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