Reviews
The Rag Company Gauntlet Review: Worth the Premium?
A 900 GSM 70/30 Korean microfibre towel at a premium price. We look at whether the blend ratio and size justify costing three times a supermarket towel.
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Pros
- 70/30 blend absorbs more per gram than typical 80/20 towels
- Genuinely one-handed at 15x24in — easy around mirrors and badges
- Suede edge, no stitched border to drag across paint
- Two-pack means one stays clean for glass
- Holds up well past 50 wash cycles when laundered correctly
Cons
- Needs wringing out on anything larger than a mid-size sedan
- Roughly three times the price of supermarket microfibre
- 900 GSM is below the ideal range for one-pass truck drying
The Gauntlet is the towel most detailing forums land on when someone asks what to buy first, and it costs roughly three times what a supermarket microfibre towel does. That gap is worth interrogating.
What you’re actually paying for
Two things, and neither is the brand name.
The blend ratio. Most budget microfibre is 80/20 polyester to polyamide. The Gauntlet is 70/30. Polyamide is the component that actually absorbs, and it’s the expensive one — which is why cheap towels use less of it. The practical effect is that this 900 GSM towel out-absorbs many 1100+ GSM budget towels, because density without polyamide content is just weight.
The size decision. At 15x24in this is deliberately not the biggest towel available, and that is the point. It’s large enough to take a door or a quarter panel in one pass, and small enough that you can control it with one hand while it’s soaked. Larger towels sound better on a spec sheet and are worse to actually use on a normal car.
Where it falls down
On a full-size SUV or a truck it simply runs out of capacity. You’ll be wringing it out three or four times, and a wrung towel is never as effective as a dry one. That isn’t a flaw so much as a mismatch — The Rag Company sells the Liquid8r at 1100 GSM and 25x36in for exactly this case, and that’s the one to buy for a large vehicle.
It’s also the wrong towel for glass. At 900 GSM the pile is too deep to make consistent contact with a perfectly smooth surface, so it smears the final film of moisture rather than lifting it. Keep a low-pile towel for windows; this is true of every drying towel, not a specific failing here.
Durability
The suede edge matters more than it sounds. Many towels use a stitched polyester overlock border that is harder than clear coat and stiffens with age — a genuine marring risk on soft paint. A suede or edgeless border removes that risk entirely.
Reported longevity is good past 50 wash cycles, though this depends far more on laundering than on the towel. Fabric softener will ruin this towel just as fast as it ruins a cheap one — see our microfibre care guide.
Should you buy it?
Yes, if you have a sedan, hatchback or small crossover, you wash it regularly, and you want one towel that does the job properly for years.
No, if you drive something large — get the Liquid8r instead — or if you wash your car twice a year, in which case a budget twisted loop towel is perfectly adequate and our drying towel guide covers those too.
Frequently asked questions
Is the Gauntlet big enough for an SUV?
Not comfortably. At 15x24in you will be wringing it out several times on a full-size SUV or truck. For those vehicles the Liquid8r at 1100 GSM and 25x36in is the better option from the same brand.
What does 70/30 mean and why does it matter?
It is the polyester to polyamide ratio. Polyamide is the more absorbent and more expensive component, so a 70/30 towel absorbs noticeably more than an 80/20 towel at the same GSM. It is a better quality signal than GSM, and far less often advertised.
Is the Gauntlet worth three times the price of a cheap towel?
For a towel you will use fortnightly for years, yes — the blend ratio and edge construction are real differences, not branding. If you wash your car twice a year, a budget twisted loop towel will serve you perfectly well.
Can I use it on glass?
You can, but you shouldn't as your first choice. At 900 GSM the pile is too deep to make clean contact with glass and will tend to leave streaks. Use one of the two-pack on paint and keep a low-pile 300-400 GSM towel for windows.