Pad Cleaning and Rotary Questions

[BlackScreaminMachine]

Rotary section is kinda dead so I am posting this here....

I got to really play with my Makita 9227c Buffer which was quite a fun experience. I really noticed the benefit of having a apron... lol.

Anyways, my set up is....

Makita 9227c with 7" Backing Plate
Meguiars 105/205 combo
Lake Country Pads (Smart pads)
-Orange x2
-White x2
-Red x1
-Black/Dark Grey x1

One of my first questions is that when I am ready to cut, I primed the pad by putting some product on there and moving it around. Then I putting a thinish line of product on the surface. Running about 1500 rpms I would go over the area quickly and not to over lap. Enough where I touched the paint after and felt a little warmth, nothing crazy, just a minor difference (which is to be expected).

I tried m205 and a Orange Pad which was the highest cutting pad I had and overall, even with more pressure and some rpm, did not remove all the defects. I am thinking I junked up the pad but not sure. I have no reference. Does the (Cleaning the Pad on the Fly) technique work with a rotary?? I sounds silly but that thing grabs my cloth.

One thing to note is that using the 2nd clean Orange pad, I stepped up to 105 and ran a decent speed and the swirls and RIDs really cleared out with out too much effort.

To follow up I went to the White pad and 105, reduced the speed, and reduced my arm speed and seemingly that really help clean up any hazing. I achieved IMO 95% correction of a pretty swirled surface and the owner was quiet happy.

I guess to get down to my question is what is the best way to keep pads clean during a correction process, I have limited funds so I cannot have 10 pads for each type of cut avalible. I think I will be adding LC Yellow pad and I do have some wool but I do not see a need for it yet.

Second, what RPM on a Rotary are people using as well as arm speed. When I did the White/205 combo I had it down around 1000 rpms and my hand speed had the pad moving about 6 inches every 3 seconds or so. When It was on the Orange/105 I had it 1500 rpms moving about 6 inches every 1-1/2 seconds.

I am basically looking for some thoughts and insight. I have no pics, it was not an avalible options.

[TH0001]

Re: Pad Cleaning and Rotary Questions

I guess to get down to my question is what is the best way to keep pads clean during a correction process, I have limited funds so I cannot have 10 pads for each type of cut avalible. I think I will be adding LC Yellow pad and I do have some wool but I do not see a need for it yet.

I use a pad brush (kind of like a stiffer toothbrush) and brush after every application and sometimes in the middle of an application if I am getting a lot of scouring. At some point the pad will become so saturated with product that you have to swap it out.

Second, what RPM on a Rotary are people using as well as arm speed. When I did the White/205 combo I had it down around 1000 rpms and my hand speed had the pad moving about 6 inches every 3 seconds or so. When It was on the Orange/105 I had it 1500 rpms moving about 6 inches every 1-1/2 seconds.

With M105 in particular, I find pressure to have more of an impact then pad speed. As such I typically use 1000-1200 RPMs with a fair amount of pressure. My arm speed would be about 2-3 inches per second. These are very general rules for me though as every paint is different and the exact speed, pressure, and movement is ultimately dictated by the paint.

[BlackScreaminMachine]

Re: Pad Cleaning and Rotary Questions

Where can I get a Pad Brush? Makes sense on what you said. For washing what can I use for a detergent?? More pressure. cool I'll try that next.

[Michael Stoops]

Re: Pad Cleaning and Rotary Questions

I tried m205 and a Orange Pad which was the highest cutting pad I had and overall, even with more pressure and some rpm, did not remove all the defects. I am thinking I junked up the pad but not sure. I have no reference. Does the (Cleaning the Pad on the Fly) technique work with a rotary?? I sounds silly but that thing grabs my cloth.

That's a bit of an odd combination - a final finishing polish used with a strong cutting pad. It's probably very rare that anyone would put these two together, but the circumstances would have to be fairly unusual.

One thing to note is that using the 2nd clean Orange pad, I stepped up to 105 and ran a decent speed and the swirls and RIDs really cleared out with out too much effort.

If getting this result by moving from M205 to M105 while increasing your speed is any surprise to you at all, then we need to talk a lot more before you keep using this tool on other people's cars. You made a huge jump in cutting ability by switching liquids here, and by increasing the speed of the tool. The fact that you are now able to remove even fairly severe defects should be totally expected and not a surprise in the least.

To follow up I went to the White pad and 105, reduced the speed, and reduced my arm speed and seemingly that really help clean up any hazing. I achieved IMO 95% correction of a pretty swirled surface and the owner was quiet happy.

This is exactly what M205 was made for - a lighter finishing polish to be used on a finishing pad to remove any hazing, holograms, etc created by your cutting process. Reducing both tool speed and arm speed as you did here is spot on, and M205 loves being put to use this way.

I guess to get down to my question is what is the best way to keep pads clean during a correction process, I have limited funds so I cannot have 10 pads for each type of cut avalible. I think I will be adding LC Yellow pad and I do have some wool but I do not see a need for it yet.

A pad brush is critical and should be used after every application as Todd suggests. Most of the online sources for Meguiar's and others offer these pad brushes, and if you're going to seriously use a rotary you really need one. It can and will make a huge difference in the quality of your work, and the ease with which you accomplish your task.

Second, what RPM on a Rotary are people using as well as arm speed. When I did the White/205 combo I had it down around 1000 rpms and my hand speed had the pad moving about 6 inches every 3 seconds or so. When It was on the Orange/105 I had it 1500 rpms moving about 6 inches every 1-1/2 seconds.

That all sounds about right for starting points. Nothing is set in stone here, so experimentation is normal in this game. Also, you seem to have just contradicted yourself here as you mention the white pad/M205 combo while above you said you used M105 with the white pad. A simple typo?

[BlackScreaminMachine]

Re: Pad Cleaning and Rotary Questions

^ What I can say Mike is the panel was expected to be repainted and it was completely ok if I blew through the clear on it. I used the principal of less aggressive product but also took into consideration total cut. What that equated was experimentation.

I was trying different pads, different chemicals. I am very well aware of the jump in cutting abilities.

I wish I had pics becuase the hatch was saved, looks really good considering the severe swirls and scratches. I have read a good deal but like with anything, I needed to see how the product worked in relation to pad and RPM of the buffer as well as arm speed and knowing that I can slow down the rpms and arm speed with the White Pad + m205 really made the difference. No that was not a typo, I did step down the pad, on the finishing polish and then reduced RPM of the buffer let it really work the surface.

The one thing I did not preface the post was this was an experiment, on a hatch that was getting repainted if it could not be corrected. I had explicit permission that it was ok if I blew through the clear. I saved the owner some decent $$$ since GM Light Pewter Metallic is a pain in the *** to blend with the rest of the car.

[Michael Stoops]

Re: Pad Cleaning and Rotary Questions

^ What I can say Mike is the panel was expected to be repainted and it was completely ok if I blew through the clear on it. I used the principal of less aggressive product but also took into consideration total cut. What that equated was experimentation.

I was trying different pads, different chemicals. I am very well aware of the jump in cutting abilities.

OK then, that's great. Just wanted to be sure, and my apologies if it sounded like I was coming down a bit hard on you. It's not always easy to know someone else's full intentions, knowledge, etc and with so many noobies reading things we always want to make sure that important points are clarified.

We always welcome experimentation - you never know what you can do until you try. Some of your phrasing just threw a little red flag and we just wanted/needed to clarify a bit.

Nice to hear that in the end you actually saved the panel and had an excellent result overall. Good for you!