Is there any gold standard to MF colors?

U

unleashedfury

New member
I was always a terry cloth user until I jumped on the MF bandwagon a few years ago.



But what I really wanna know is there a color coding standard for MF towels. From what I've seen Light blue tends to be an all purpose towel. Or the standard Green slightly softer, And yellow tends to be the softest.



Any hard evidence to my results, Or am i just judging wrong?



And is there any sure fire way to see the difference in quality MF brand name stuff vs. the knockoffs without close examination of the towel. As manufacturers get better at correcting obvious defects. it gets harder and harder to tell the difference between a high quality towel and a knock off you might find in the discount bin at wally world. Dosent help much that they roll them up so that you can only see the center sometimes
 
In my humble opinion, the gold Meguiar's microfiber cloth that comes with their claybar kit is a good microfiber. Not super plus or super soft, but pretty decent if you look at the spectrum. I'd say theres nothing that particular microfiber can't do so I'd set it as the standard.
 
For me the gold standard is, more cloth for less gold. I get mine at Costco, 36 for $15. They work and they aren't so expensive I feel like I have to be careful with them. I can give them away with my details so my clients can keep one in their car to wipe their windows, etc.



Once a tool passes a certain threshold, where it accomplishes what I need, then I put it in the category of usable. If it's something that can get me a better result in less time, then I'll go for the absolute best, but otherwise, like in the case of microfiber, good enough is good enough. IMHO as always.



Robert
 
Correct me if I am wrong, but I dont think it's just the color.



It depends from which detail company u buy the MFs from. There r many:



Pakshak, Danase, Autogeek, Griots, etc.



Dont know if the colors are standard across the board?
 
I never see a difference in color v. softness. What I do see a difference in is from brand to brand quality, edged, edgeless, the number of microfibers per square inch, plushness, etc. I guess what I am getting at is this....I buy the large pack of microfibers from Sams Club. They come in many different colors such as yellow, green, blue, and orange....and I am sure there are a few other colors. Anyway, The only thing the colors are useful for is a reminder what they are used for. For example, I will always use blue to clean my windows, I will use the plush side of the yellow for removing compound residue and I will use the green for my IPA wipedowns. This way, I can keep track of what MF I used for what process. I then use my Arctic White Edgeless MF for removal of wax and sealants and for final wipedown. When looking at the softness or "quality" of the Sams Club MF's, they all seem to be equal softness and equal quality; it's just the color that is different.
 
different microfiber companies/vendors will have microfiber in many different colors, so no there isn't (always) a set color in which a microfiber will all be the same unless it's the same towel different color from the same source...
 
Street5927 Your from W-B so I assume you use the same Sam's that I use the one on Highland Park Blvd/309. I haven't been up there in a while. Never thought to check out the MF's up there.



I buy different brands sometimes and notice a difference in plush vs. fiber thickness, Was just seeing if there was ever a standard. Would make things so much easier. But I do the same thing Use one color for specific applications. Still trying to find the perfect combo. I'll get there eventually.



Thanks for the Input guys
 
Color has no consistent meaning in the MF world. "Measuring" MF is really hard, too, as there are different naps, weight, and other factors. It is an amazingly complicated area.



I just went through a bunch of sampling of MF for my company, and here's what I was using to judge:



Weight: Grams per square meter. The stuff you buy at Sam's/Costco is approx. 200 gsm. I'm using 360 gsm, and is is so much nicer. Also have 530 and 700 gsm which are terrific for wax removal or quick detailing.



Banding: I chose MF-banded, but there are towels with nice silk bands as well. All but one "edgeless" (non-banded) towels I saw were heat-cropped, and had rough, scratching areas on the edge. The Zaino towel is edgeless and really nice, but at 3 for $25, I'd rather have three of my 700 gsm towels and $7 in my pocket.



Nap: Most of the cheap towels are short-napped, which makes them less useful for wax removal and quick detail work. The towels I use have a long nap side and a short nap side for versatility.



Tags: Tags sewn into the edge are scratches waiting to happen. Even the towels with perforated tags leave tag material in the edge, which can scratch (or you spend frustrating time getting the "stump" out and possibly ruin the band doing it). I use MF with tags that are lightly stuck on, and come completely off.
 
One more item that was not said....the color of the microfiber could depend on the material that is available (I was in the clothing business) Does the color make a difference NO but if the vendor needs MF and China or whoever won't get the material for 2-3 weeks they work with the color that is in stock. Time is money in this industry.
 
unleashedfury said:
Street5927 Your from W-B so I assume you use the same Sam's that I use the one on Highland Park Blvd/309. I haven't been up there in a while. Never thought to check out the MF's up there.



I buy different brands sometimes and notice a difference in plush vs. fiber thickness, Was just seeing if there was ever a standard. Would make things so much easier. But I do the same thing Use one color for specific applications. Still trying to find the perfect combo. I'll get there eventually.



Thanks for the Input guys
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Yes, Unleashed, I use the Sams on Highland Park Blvd. It's really close to where I live, so it's very convenient to go there instead of up to Scranton to the other one.
 
After getting a cheapo MF, probably from an auto store, that left green lint on everything it touched - including several of my nice white Cobra towels in the wash, turning them light green and making them deposit lint on everything, I'm a bit leery of cheapo towels.
 
Passrat said:
After getting a cheapo MF, probably from an auto store, that left green lint on everything it touched - including several of my nice white Cobra towels in the wash, turning them light green and making them deposit lint on everything, I'm a bit leery of cheapo towels.
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do two seperate washes - one for your good towels that touch the paint, and another for the towels that are general purpose for everything else. you don't want the cheaper towels to start linting onto the good ones.
 
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