What electric polisher/buffer????

[mattfletcher]

Hi All,

I live in Australia and do not have access to a Porter cable DA polisher. Any ideas as what is the next best thing to use.

I need something to get rid of cobwebbing on a black car.

Is orbital better than rotary etc? What would be best for getting rid of light cobwebbing? (I have tried by hand to no avail!!!). Lambswool, foam polishing pad etc???

Also, what product does everyone recommend to remove cobwebbing and with what application (not including the DA polisher).

Matt

[kuhlguy71]

I'm fairly new to the car care world (only a few years of experience) but I will offer my 2 cents worth.

I had good results with a craftsman 10" random orbital (RO)buffer. I used a foam pad and #9 Swirl remover 2.0. This process was used on my dark blue dakota a couple of weeks before I ordered my PC. I noticed a huge difference in the reduction of swirls and cobwebs.

A rotary is a step above the PC as far as user experience is concerned and can cause paint damage if used in correctly. This is why I opted to get a RO buffer and step up to the PC. For me the RO buffer was just to familiarize myself with what a machine can do for me instead of working only by hand.

Hope this helps!

[mzmtg]

http://www.meguiarsonline.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=4235

[Buellwinkle]

A good rotary like the Makita is an excellent buffer. Get the variable speed one where speeds go down to about 1,200-1,500 and has a 5/8" arbor. Then get some decent thick 6" foam pads with the 5/8" socket built it and use the least abrasive polish that will do the job, in the Meguiars pro line that's probably #83. The next step is learning and between the rotary forum here and autopia.org you should be able to figure it out, it's not that hard and once you figure it out, it's at least twice as fast as using a da/orbital buffer. The trick with safety in rotary buffers is to use a small pad like a 6" so the edges are not spining as fast. They come in different levels of abrasion, get some of the mildest ones first to learn on as they will have the least ability to cause damage. And the #1 thing to do with foam pads is always keep them flat against the car, never tilt them or use the edge. The #2 thing is to learn to control splatter, the polish does no good on your clothes.

The best place to buy pads and polish is to find a store that sells automotive paint. Our local automotive paint shop sells all Meguiars products.

[streetstylin]

Hi Matt,

Its a bummer us ozzie guys dont get the Porter cable down here, and shipping one over just works out too much.

GMC however have two great machines, both of which i have and use. Both of these can be picked up from Autobarn very cheap.

First one is your Random Orbital.

SA515 - $49


It has more than enough power, 515 watt, and the dustbag is easily removed. The Variable speeds are set nicely as well. It did take me a bit to get used to the shape, but after a few cars its bloody light and easy.
The Meguiars pads fit on very neatly. Im always using this on cars that are already in good condition and going for max shine and reflection.
With the right product your cobwebbing will vanish, and if your a first timer, you cant go wrong.




POL1450 - $109
178mm 1450W Angle Grinder/Sander/Polisher


This is a great rotory, and for its size its light compared to alot of the ones on the market in oz atm. Once again, buy the Meguiars backing plate and pads and your set to go. This rotory will get rid of serious defects, and although i love my random orbital, it has nothing compared to the results of what a rotory can do.
A novice can do a bit of damge if their not carefull, but having said that i have held rotory classes for car clubs and first time users picked it up in no time....

I think these are the best 2 products in oz for car polishing etc. Cheap price, 3 year warrenty, you cant go wrong....

[Mike Phillips]

Originally posted by streetstylin
I think these are the best 2 products in oz for car polishing etc. Cheap price, 3 year warranty, you cant go wrong....

Thanks for posting this streetstylin, I think we need to make this a sticky as this question comes up once in a while.

Mike

[mattfletcher]

Thanks everyone

Thanks everyone for your help.

I purchased a Ryobi random orbital from bunnings for AU$60, and it looks identical to the GMC pictured.

However, i tried it with a W8006, and #9 on my VW, trying to eliminate cobwebbing (very minor). It had little effect, but was so easy to apply the product and control splatter etc.

Fed up with the situation, i tried the old variable speed drill again with a new lambswool cutting pad. I again used #9. I usually do not press very hard and at first there was no improvement.

Then i tested a section and turned up the speed on the drill to generate more heat and started to press quite firmly. I used a slight edge, aware that i may get buffer marks, but i thought i could re-polish (with #9) by hand to get ride of the hologram type effect if it occured.

Finally it worked. Although the cobwebbing was very light and only seen in direct sunlight, the random orbital and #9, W8006, just was not enough cut.
The lambswool pad and drill at high spped and a bit of pressure worked exceptionally well and i got rid of 100% of the cobwebbs. The car is only a year old, but looks better than showroom.
In a few sections, there where some buffer marks, but these were easily removed by hand with swirl remover.

Ultimatley i would like to get a foam 'cutting' pad and something stronger, like #83, but again, i have not found one place in Sydney that sells them. I was lucky enough to get the W8006, and that was almost $40!!.

I know my methods may be a little unconventional, but i got the results i was looking for, given, as mike said, the tools that i have. I was aware of damaging paint, but given the low abrasiveness of #9, and a test section, i knew i was not going to do any damage.

I was going to follow #9 with #7, but though it didnt need it and #9 is a polish anyway isnt it???

I will post some pics soon.

Thanks for all your help guys, and if you find a stockist that has a larger range of meguiars MG products in Sydney, please let me know.

Matt