# Wheel Woolies Vs Vikan



## james_death (Aug 9, 2010)

*Well since getting the Wheel Woolies for fathers Day... Thanks Kids... Big Thanks to My Good Lady Wife...

I Have had a bit of a play....:lol:

I have also decided to do a bit of a comparison to the vikan brushes as a result.

Weapons of Choice...










Wheel to be tested on...










This has done nearly 16k miles from new in 2004 had a poke from the long Vikan in the past but never been off the car by me and i could tell as needed a rubber mallet to it to get it off the Hub...:lol:



















Although the rear of the wheel is shown all the brushes were used from the front of the alloy to simulate actual wheel cleaning in situ on the vehicle, the wheel was vertical as it would be on the vehicle, any camber on a car is not going to affect the results here...
The only cleaning solution was a small measure of Triple wax Was&Wax in a bucket with warm water each brush dipped in the bucket and then shoved through the wheel spokes...:thumb:

First up the small soft Vikan...










Did a pretty good job in fact very well just leaving some residue at the back edge only on the lip between the two levels only minor...










Second up wheel Woolie the large one as fits fine for the polo's pretty standard and all uniform spokes...










Did a good job as the Vikan but bettering it as it cleaned the edge between the two levels of the rim, also slightly lessened the dirt at the very back of the wheel internal facing as in the rim bead facing the opposite wheel. By no means is it a clean just a slight lessening of road film nothing to be significant. The Wheel Woolies constant dense plastic handle been constant diameter does mean you can put some pressure on over the more flexible Vikans for more scouring/rubbing on tougher deposits...:thumb:
However time will tell if the wool actually holds up to sticking to the shaft which i cant help feeling doubtful about just a gut feeling nothing founded.










Now the Longer more flexible Vikan Long Brush...










Again as the Woolie it reached right to the back and again cleaned slightly the back rim bead... the handle Not as stiff as the Woolie... but from past experience the flexibility does mean you can reach round the back of the spokes with ease the only issue is loosing the end rubber, which can then result in scratches...:wall:










I then cleaned one half with the Woolie and the other half with the Vikan Long.










The Woolie and the Vikan Long both cleaned equally nothing in it at all..:thumb:

However you cannot buy the Woolies individually they are a £36 set...:doublesho

Now if you can use the Woolies for other jobs...





































This could well make the Woolies more justified of there price point...
Especially if you have expensive wheels and want to ensure soft treatment.
If you can afford the wheels then perhaps the outlay for the Woolies is not such an issue.

However the case with my 17" Serpents on the rover 75...










There design means that the Large Woolie gets in fine to the Large openings but i cannot get in the smaller openings so have to change to the medium brush this for me defeats the object of a wheel brush i either have to have both the brushes in hand so one in each hand and back and forth, or go round once on one opening with one size then go around again for the other opening with the other brush...:wall:

Not for me i find myself reaching for the long reach Vikan goes in the large or the small openings reaches right to the back whereas the shorter Woolies are a challenge.
Yes be wary of the splatter from the Vikan but just stand to the side and put a slight bend on the flexible handle... Less splatter with the woolies but i personally reach for my vikan even with the rubber tip missing... which i must sort out...:lol:

Even the small soft Vikan is a cracking brush does not clean as well to the back of the wheel but does clean as well just let down by the length however if there was no lip to the wheels rim it would have performed just the same as the others...:thumb:
*


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## Ninja59 (Feb 17, 2009)

do love the woolies and used them for loads of other jobs i dont tend to use the big one for mine though the mid size is a little better for and the big one for the arches....the small one i reserve for grills and stuff


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## adlem (Jul 6, 2008)

I've got some Woolies from the Group Buy on here, not had any issues with the ends falling off yet.

I just can't like the Vikans - that metal running through the middle and the bare end would petrify me!

Good little review though :thumb:


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## james_death (Aug 9, 2010)

adlem said:


> I've got some Woolies from the Group Buy on here, not had any issues with the ends falling off yet.
> 
> I just can't like the Vikans - that metal running through the middle and the bare end would petrify me!
> 
> Good little review though :thumb:


On the small soft brush Vikan the metal is coated full length the Long has a shroud over most of the length however the actual bristle ends are bare metal dont know why the end should not be coated like the small one as the small is only like £5/6 anyway.

Nice to hear the wool is holding up...:thumb:


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## bero1306 (Jan 24, 2011)

Nearly bought some of these as my mate has them but opted for the EZ Brush instead. Works great but covers me in splats. :thumb:


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## james_death (Aug 9, 2010)

bero1306 said:


> Nearly bought some of these as my mate has them but opted for the EZ Brush instead. Works great but covers me in splats. :thumb:


Im sure ill get a Daytona at some point at a price im happy to pay....:lol:


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## HeavenlyDetail (Sep 22, 2006)

Have been using the same woolie for 3 years now and no issues but slightly less dense.
Ive got to say your findings may slightly vary from mine , put simply no 2 wheels are the same and the clear on some wheels damages incredibly easily and i simply cannot trust any wheel brush apart from the woolies to not mark them because applying pressure with a woolie means you have a sheepskin ball with no metal internals applying high pressure and no damage , this is just not possible with any of the vikans or similar and i have over 10 wheels brushes and the full range of vikans and the mini range aswell for behind brake callipers 10mm sized.
Simply put nothing even comes close to the woolie to me , some wheels need pressure when they are bad and even with strong solution of chosen product sometimes a little pressure is required and the woolie just will not damage from pressure. I have 4 sets all 4 sizes and expect them to last over 10 years because i simply cannot do without them. I will also say the group buy set have a slight synthetic feel to them compared to the original sets although stripping one down the internal glueing and winding of the sheepskin strip is identical.


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## james_death (Aug 9, 2010)

Great to hear that the Woolies really hold up well...:thumb:
As you say if this is more your profession then you will face stuff needing more elbow grease and i would not envisage giving a good deal of pressure on the Vikans.
There design even limits that due to there flexibility.

Also you would face lots of different styles of wheel and as you say lacquer quality.
Anyone that does this to earn a living or part of it, the cost of the Woolies would be easy to soak up, not so much for minimum wage and one daily driver workhorse.

If really bad i feel i would take the wheels off and do full clean and seal.

I find the large one of the woolies the best feel as the shorter the pile the more it feels like felt or even velcro.

That is great news about the wool holding up...:thumb:


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## Superspec (Feb 25, 2011)

If you've got a bit of rubber tubing (vacuum advance type of thing) that works really well to replace the missing end. I've had to do it on both of my EZ Detail brushes - which are brilliant by the way!


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## chrisc (Jun 15, 2008)

could bits get trapped in the woolies and do damage what you have not seen?


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## HeavenlyDetail (Sep 22, 2006)

chrisc said:


> could bits get trapped in the woolies and do damage what you have not seen?


Nope nothing in a wheel that can be that concerning anyway and if you rinse out and dry you have no worries.
You can always make your own , i have a sponge one i made and use occasionally if required.


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## chrisc (Jun 15, 2008)

they look good what bike is that then what you have one resting on


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## Trip tdi (Sep 3, 2008)

thats impressive marc, how did you manage to make one up, sorry for the silly question.


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## HeavenlyDetail (Sep 22, 2006)

chrisc said:


> they look good what bike is that then what you have one resting on


Cherry Black Fatboy Harley , my old mans ride along with a Ducati Monster.


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## chrisc (Jun 15, 2008)

Heavenly said:


> Cherry Black Fatboy Harley , my old mans ride along with a Ducati Monster.


love the sounds of the harleys even though i prefer the looks of a triumph


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## james_death (Aug 9, 2010)

Cool double ended tool...:thumb:
The distinctive Potato Potato of the Harley...Nice..


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## GJM (Jul 19, 2009)

I know people who have scratched wheels with that first Vikan brush, obviously by using pressure and the metal doing the work as opposed to the bristles


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## Stewart H (Jul 4, 2011)

James

It has been recommended to me that the mating faces of the wheels/hubs should always be given a thin coat of grease to stop them sticking together. I always use aluminium grease which I buy at a bicycle shop. This prevents the corrosion/oxidation you get at the join of two metal surfaces.


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## Dan J (Jun 18, 2008)

nice review James, i have the long vikan brush amongst others from the range and its a great bit of kit and will last quite a while as have all my other vikan brushes ive had in the past too. money well spent when you buy a vikan brush.


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## james_death (Aug 9, 2010)

Stewart H said:


> James
> 
> It has been recommended to me that the mating faces of the wheels/hubs should always be given a thin coat of grease to stop them sticking together. I always use aluminium grease which I buy at a bicycle shop. This prevents the corrosion/oxidation you get at the join of two metal surfaces.


Never had the wheel problem before and only because its so low millage for its age that they had gripped due to only main dealer work they never treat the threads or mating services, where as i always do...:thumb:


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## walker1967 (Sep 12, 2010)

So my Vikan wheel brush broke today and I dont know which to replace it with. I need a brush thats very durable as it will be getting used day in day out, I'v been thinking about either the EZ Detail or wheel woolies  will the wheel woolies be able to take the abuse of getting used 7 days a week or am I better to stick with the brushes


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## -Kev- (Oct 30, 2007)

the wheel woolies are superb imo - have'nt touched my ez brush since. the largest of the three is great for arches too. used mine lots and they are still 'as new', same with my ez brush although some people seem to break theirs easily by being ham-fisted....


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## walker1967 (Sep 12, 2010)

Do you reckon they'd be able to cope with 5 cars a day 7 days a week though lol the Vikan lasted from february till today so im looking for something with similar durabilty


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## Blueberry (Aug 10, 2007)

I've got the wheel Woolies and been using them since January. They do the job as intended but I've gone back to using the EZ brush as I think it tackles the job in a more efficient manner ie quicker. The smaller sized wheel Woolies brushes are good for small nooks and crannies like around the brake calliper.


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## -Kev- (Oct 30, 2007)

walker1967 said:


> Do you reckon they'd be able to cope with 5 cars a day 7 days a week though lol the Vikan lasted from february till today so im looking for something with similar durabilty


depends how bad the wheels are really, vikans are better if the wheels need a good scrubbing with loads of elbow grease..


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## james_death (Aug 9, 2010)

Lots have said the wheel woolies stand up well, the fixing certainly seams very sound...:thumb:

You certainly can ram them in there with reckless abandonment.. safe in the knowledge they wont scratch... un less there is something large and sharp trapped between it.

I can see the merits of the small brushes in the set but i wish they could be got as separate brushes...:wall:


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## chunky79 (Nov 25, 2007)

I'm looking at buying the woolies when they are back in stock. Can anyone tell me the smallest gap they will fit in though please? I'd like to know if they will fit between the wheel and caliper on my motor.

Cheers

dunc


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## turboyamaha (Nov 18, 2010)

Same here??


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## svended (Oct 7, 2011)

The EZ brush is good, but I retired it due to all the fling back I got all over myself everytime I used the damn thing. Just been using Swissvax style brushes of late but need something to get right in. Got Wheel Woolies on order now and a crap load of other stuff, so I'll be happier than a pig in crap when all the parcels come.


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## james_death (Aug 9, 2010)

So many variation's on wheel sizes and callipers.

However if i cant get between calliper and wheel i just do all i can then roll car forward or back for that matter half a wheel revolution and do the bit that i could not get to....


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## Junior Bear (Sep 2, 2008)

Lots of chat about the wheel woolies lately.


Really don't get it. I have a range of vikan brushes, and a noodle mitt for the wheels. Never felt that I need anything else lol


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## Tips (Mar 27, 2011)

Junior Bear said:


> Lots of chat about the wheel woolies lately.
> 
> Really don't get it. I have a range of vikan brushes, and a noodle mitt for the wheels. Never felt that I need anything else lol


Same as yourself - didn't see what all the fuss was about until I had a play with a set of wheel woolies recently at a pro-detailers crib.

Complete 90 degree turnaround, the best cleaning tool for your alloys (especially reaching the backs - without the need to remove them) and spot on for all my car nooks and crannies, like shuts & for cleaning my front RS4 honeycombe grille.


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## -Kev- (Oct 30, 2007)

Junior Bear said:


> Lots of chat about the wheel woolies lately.
> 
> Really don't get it. I have a range of vikan brushes, and a noodle mitt for the wheels. Never felt that I need anything else lol


comes down to personal preference as with anything 
personally, i've not used my EZ brush since getting a set of wheel woolies even though i do different wheel designs quite often, and the EZ is a good brush the wheel woolies have served me well so far..


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## PJS (Aug 18, 2007)

"Woolies" are in a league of their own, and when I first was aware of their existence, and the price then, I thought "aye, right!".
As Tips said, once tried, you'll never go back to splattering brushes ever again.

As for balking at the price - never quite understood the psyche at play there.
You get three brushes for various tasks, not just wheels.

You'll spend £20 on a wash mitt/sponge (Wookie/Zymol/large natural sea sponge), which almost inevitably won't last half as long as the Woolies, yet see nothing near as aggressive a chemical or pressure exerted on them in use!

Maybe instead of buying yet another wax or whatever else is this month's best thing since sliced bread, and diverted the funds into the brushes, you'd soon realise just how good they are, and long after the price is but a distant memory, also realise what a bloody bargain they've been.


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## Bmwjc (Apr 2, 2012)

Is the rubber end in your brake disc cover? I'm always loosing the rubber end from my meguiars wheel brush first place I look is there. It's never been anywhere else since!


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