Is Pad Color Coding Standard?

R

Rockfish66

New member
Wow, my life used to be so simple! Wash the car with whatever my wife had under the kitchen sink, dry the car with whatever towel had been demoted to "rag" duty, and pick up some Turtle Wax at AutoZone.



THEN some friends started buying me Griots stuff...



NOW, I'm in "Autopia" and I have a collection of all kinds of stuff from all kinds of companies I never knew or even dreamed of!



That's my problem....



I have collected a bunch of pads for my PC (thet I have yet to use!) and I have no idea what came from where anymore. They were all from "reputable" companies, but any indication of what was a polishing pad vs a buffing pad is long gone.



SO, my question is, is the "color coding" of pads standard in the industry? Does it follow this progression, from most aggressive to least, no matter what brand or who you bought the pad from?



Yellow

Green

Orange

Blue

White



Any help is appreciated.



--Newbie drowning in autopian bliss!:D
 
Unfortunately, no. I also have this dilemma, I even put a cheat-sheet in with the 4" pads I got from AG so I don't get confused. The one standard seems to be the orange pads, which are all termed "versatile" or light-cutting without producing a lot of marring. I don't have time right now, but I'm sure other members will chime in with the "ratings" from various mfrs.
 
Don't forget that Meguiar's pads have a totally different color system too. Yellow is polishing, red is cutting, and beige is finishing in their system.
 
You may find this chart most hopeful. Jaybs95 at detailcity gets full credit:

Manufacturers Pad colors - DetailCity.org - Auto Detailing Enthusiast Forum



padchart.jpg
 
This was an excellent question! If the manufacturers can't get together and do something as simple as creating a standard, you should really be ashamed of yourselves!

Some poor guy (maybe me) might pick up the the wrong pad and "SCREW" up because of no standard!!!!!!!!!

Guess what I am going to do then, right, limit all my purchases to the same manufacturer and never touch another pad from the manufacturer that caused the problem!!

These guys better start thinking a little!

Changeling
 
Changeling said:
......... If the manufacturers can't get together and do something as simple as creating a standard, you should really be ashamed of yourselves!

Some poor guy (maybe me) might pick up the the wrong pad and "SCREW" up because of no standard!!!!!!!!!

Guess what I am going to do then, right, limit all my purchases to the same manufacturer and never touch another pad from the manufacturer that caused the problem!!

These guys better start thinking a little!

Changeling
Click to expand...





A Subaru's windshield wiper switch is in a different location than a F250's. A F250 Powerstroke uses diesel fuel. A Beretta semi automatic has an external safety and a Glock 17 doesn't! These manufacturers can't get their act together and do something as simple as creating a standard. They should be ashamed of themselves!



Some poor guy, like Changeling, might put premium gasoline in a F250 Powerstroke and ruin the fuel pumpand eight injectors! Changeling may forget where the windshield wiper switch is on a Subaru and drive off a cliff! What if Changeling picks up a loaded Glock and shoots himself in the foot?



Changeling better start thinking for himself ( I know, it's a novel concept, but if he doesn't, the Democrats will be more than happy to pass legislation so he doesn't hurt himself.)



Here's a tip: IF YOU CAN'T REMEMBER WHAT IT'S USED FOR, DON'T USE IT.:idea





I'm looking forward to your upcomming "I just screwed myself!" thread.
 
Have you ever heard of mixing apples and oranges, your analogies border on ridiculous !!



Here's another one, Changeling should realize that Bombs aren't the same size, Duh!

two, Changeling should realize that all pump and auto shotgun safety's are just ahead of the trigger guard, in for fire, out for off, Duh!

three, Safety's are required by law on all manufactured firearms, Duh!

four, Changeling uses a Belgian Made 9mm Browning Hi-Power do you know what kind of safety it has, Duh!

five, Changeling should realize that Seat belts should not have a standard user friendly means of using.



Here's a tip: (no all caps) If they were all the same color relative to there capability, Changeling/no one would have a concern or anything to worry about would they !

I see the light is on over your head, dam shame "Nobody's" home, think about it.



Changeling



Do you see how stupid your and "some" of my analogies are!!!!!!!!!!
 
Anyone ever try the Edge Black Foam Cutting Pads? I bought 1 years ago and have never found a use for it. I'm actually a little scared to try it. It's almost like rubbing out with brillo pads!
 
Note to self dont buy black pad of death.... What I do is get a sharpie marker and write on the back of my pad of what step it would be if I needed the most aggresive cut example my Sonus Sfx yellow pad is labled use first, and my white pad #2 and my blue pad #3, I also lable my bottles with the pads "yellow pad" White pad" Blue pad" so I dont forget. I also put the speed I should use on the pad. Just what I do to help me out...
 
Thanks for all the replys. That chart is really helpful, Sergei.



As for whether there SHOULD be a standard - of course there should! It would make everyone's life easier.



Am I surprised there isn't a standard? Shure I am! But I figure if they can't standardize what side of your car the gas cap is on, there's really no hope for something as trivial as polishing pads!
 
All manufacturers have access to the same colors and grades of foam. Some pads are the same between different manufacturers and some (even though they are the same color) are different(durafoam). It's best to experiment with pads and figure out where each pad you have fits in relation to the others.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top