Warning: Nerdy thread ahead!
tl;dr: I think a heavier channel but a lighter handle is the most effective and most comfortable combination.
Yesterday, I repeated my squeegee channel showdown, which i posted about a little while ago. I wanted to see if i still liked the Pulex stainless channel the best and i also wanted to see if i could find a channel that would make me like the Unger pro handle, which i want to love so badly. I’ll start with my new conclusions regarding channels, followed by my issues with the unger pro handle (which are relevant to my discovery), and then discuss what I’ve learned overall.
Basically, all the classic channels are about the same. I think it matters little if you go with unger, ettore, pulex, or whatever. One may fit a certain handle better than the other, and i think square edges are slightly better than round ones, but all in all, there’s not much difference. The ettore channels were much smoother tbh, but i believe it’s because they come preloaded with ettore rubber. If i get to it, I’d like to redo the test using all the same rubber in each channel. My suspicion is that rubber matters more than the brand of channel.
Something else that matters more than the brand, however, is the material. Yet again i determined that aluminum just doesn’t work as well as stainless and brass. In fact, brass had almost a “magnetic” feel on the glass. I don’t like brass cause of the corrosion and because it’s ugly, but it may have been marginally better than stainless. I’d love to do a blind test to determine what feels better. The downside of it’s heavier weight was evident while fanning, however. It definitely torques your wrist more on each turn, something to consider if like me you’re prone to rsi’s.
Stainless was still heavy enough to squeegee without adding pressure, but it felt easier on the wrist due to the lower weight. Plus, it’s stronger, won’t corrode, and just generally looks cooler.
I used two channels, the Unger Ergotec red, which i discovered last time to be amazing even though i hated it when i first got it, and the Unger pro, which seemed like it would be perfect due to it’s small size, rubber grip, and stainless construction. It’s a solid handle and i love the locking mechanism, but i just didn’t care for it, especially compared to the Ergotec. It was just too heavy. And even though it’s just a matter of ounces (i actually weighed them lol) it just didn’t feel as smooth. So i tried an experiment: I put an aluminum channel in it so it weighed just about the same as the Ergotec with a steel channel. Nope. It just wasn’t as good.
The conclusion I’m drawing from all this: ideally the channel is heavier and the handle is lighter. This weights the glass more, meaning you don’t have to push and instead the weight of the channel does the work. The lighter handle pivots more easily and more quickly and strains your wrist less.
Next, I’m going to order the ettore aluminum handle. I’m hoping it’ll be like a lighter version of the unger pro. It’s small, shiny, and has a grippy handle. However, a grippy handle may not actually be a good thing. Maybe you actually want a slippery handle so the squeegee pivots in your fingers more freely. Further experimentation is needed. Also on the agenda for testing is the unger zero degree handle everyone raves about. I’m already liking it’s light weight. It definitely needs a quick release mod though as I’m not gonna deal with having to screw and unscrew it constantly. Maybe my unger pro’s release system can be transferred.
Total sidenote: I’m thinking of switching to only clipped channels. I feel like on my clipless i have to adjust the rubber a hundred times a day, which is getting old.
Anyway, that’s of course all my personal preference. Maybe you prefer a handle made of obsidian paired with a carbon fiber channel (sounds kinda cool, actually lol). Thanks for reading!
