How good are Buff and Shine pads?

[CieraSL]

Well, my question is in the title. How good are Buff and Shine pads for the DA? There is an Auto Magic distributor near me (whom I have mentioned in prior posts and threads) who carries the Buff and Shine pads, as well as the backing plates. He has the 7 and 1/2" polishing and finishing foam pads, as well as the smaller 3 and 1/2" pads with appropriate backing plates for each size. The 7 and 1/2" pads are around $7.50 each, and the 3 and 1/2" pads are either $3.50 or $4.00 each, I can't remember which. I see ADS sells Buff and Shine pads, but they're the 4 inch ones. Is 7 and 1/2" too big? Any info would be appreciated, as when I do get a DA, I would like to get good pads at a good price. Thanks!

[CieraSL]

Re: How good are Buff and Shine pads?

Also, I'm thinking of getting the PC7424 from ADS, listed for $128.95. Is the PC as dummy proof as the G110?

[CieraSL]

Re: How good are Buff and Shine pads?

Darn this one minute editing rule.

When buying pads, what should the ratio of finishing pads to polishing pads be? Should I plan for 1 finishing pad to 1 polishing pad, or 1 finishing pad to 2 polishing pads, or what? Obviously I won't have just one of each, I would just like to know what an ideal ratio should be.

[Tuck91]

Re: How good are Buff and Shine pads?

Darn this one minute editing rule.

When buying pads, what should the ratio of finishing pads to polishing pads be? Should I plan for 1 finishing pad to 1 polishing pad, or 1 finishing pad to 2 polishing pads, or what? Obviously I won't have just one of each, I would just like to know what an ideal ratio should be.

I have more polishing pads than I do finishing pads. But I usually set aside three to five W9207 Finishing pads and six to nine W8207 polishing pads for a detail, regardless of the size of the vechile I always have more clean pads ready to go just in case. You dont want to ever run out of pads during a detail, it just isnt fun.

As for the PC, I am not going to comment on a tool I have never used. Might wanna wait to see if Meguiars releases a new machine for 2010. I was contemplating on buying a few more G110s but decided to wait and see.

best of luck.

[JohanD]

Re: How good are Buff and Shine pads?

I have more polishing pads than I do finishing pads. But I usually set aside three to five W9207 Finishing pads and six to nine W8207 polishing pads for a detail, regardless of the size of the vechile I always have more clean pads ready to go just in case. You dont want to ever run out of pads during a detail, it just isnt fun.

As for the PC, I am not going to comment on a tool I have never used. Might wanna wait to see if Meguiars releases a new machine for 2010. I was contemplating on buying a few more G110s but decided to wait and see.

best of luck.

How far will one pad go? Can you complete a small car with one pad? When do you know it is time to change to a new one? (assuming you are not switching compounds, as if you switch compounds you would want to use a different pad)

[tcope1]

Re: How good are Buff and Shine pads?

A person could do an entire vehicle with one pad but it's not the best plan. Product build up can be removed with a terry cloth but there is going to be some product that gets inside of the foam pad that only washing is going to remove. I find that a saturated pad compresses and does not bounce back as well as a cleaner pad. This is especially true of polishing pads as you tend to press harder with these. IMHO a good number of polish pads to have is at least 2 and 3 would be a good lower number. Of course having 5 or 6 would be great. For LSP I can get away with just one pad or I do it by hand.

[gjohn28]

Re: How good are Buff and Shine pads?

Darn this one minute editing rule.

When buying pads, what should the ratio of finishing pads to polishing pads be? Should I plan for 1 finishing pad to 1 polishing pad, or 1 finishing pad to 2 polishing pads, or what? Obviously I won't have just one of each, I would just like to know what an ideal ratio should be.

I work only on my own cars, but typically use one finishing pad and 2 polishing pads per detail. Of course, my cars never looks as good as Nick's, either...

[ColonelCash]

Re: How good are Buff and Shine pads?

I can say the original PC, also known as the G-100 from Meguiars has substantially less power than the G110. There is a comparison that Mike Phillips recently did at AutoGeek that compares the G110, The PC 7424 XP and the new Griots' Polisher. The G110 was the least powerful in those tests.

I have the G-100 and anything larger than 6.5" pads are not nearly as effective due to the pad size slowing the machine down. I'd also wait to see what Megs has in the coming weeks. There is a chance the G-110 will be updated, but that is just speculation for now. If you decide to go with a G-100, you could easily pickup a rotary buffer later on and be ready to handle most paint surfaces.