advice on rotary purchase

[armand]

I have been using the PC DA for about 1 year now and have decided to make the big leap into the rotary world and give it a shot. While my DA works just fine and I keep my car's paint in good enough condition that I wouldn't the "power" of a rotary, I do like its speed. THe DA has just become too slow for me. Also as neighbors, friends and family have seen my car they ask me to bring their neglected paint back to life and by the looks of some of these cars I am definetly going to need a rotary.

My dilema is that Im not in the detailing business and just clean my own car so it's tough to justify the expense of a makita or dewalt. I have found a company (harbor freight) that sells 3 different polishers all less than $70 - the brand is CHICAGO ELECTRIC. After a little online research I've come to the conclusion that Chicago Elec. is this stores own brand.

I plan on buying the 5" backing plate so that I can continue to use the 6" pads (of which i have 8) I already have for my DA.

My question. Has anybody out there had any or heard of any experiences with this brand? Please keep in mind that I realize makitas and dewalts are the best and that I am probably comparing a BMW to a corolla but this is a machine I will, at most, use 5 times a year. I'll always have my trusty porter cable DA (i think it's called the g-100 here).

[Mike Phillips]

Hi armand,

Seeing that this is your first post, Welcome to Meguiar's Online!


Check out this thread...

Bought a polisher

[travisdecpn]

If you read through the rotary forum, Don purchased the CE machine and has written his thoughts and experiences with the rotary. In general it has received very good reviews from its users and the cost alone helps to justify the purchase. There is a 5 dollar difference between the unit with a side handle and the one with a bail handle, control wise I find it easier to use the bail style handle, but the units are otherwise very similar.

[armand]

Thanks for the info. I read the thread and I guess it only confirmed what I was already thinking the CE may not be the best but will do the trick. I figure if the thing blows after 4 uses it only cost me $10/use and I gained the experience w/a rotary - still cheaper than renting a polisher. Best of all, I will feel better about dropping $160+ on a dewalt or makita LOL.

Thanks again.

[Tim Lingor]

Hey armand

Welcome to Meguiar's Online!

Buying a rotary is a big step, but one that you will LOVE in no time!

It boils down to how much use will it receive. At the moment, you may use it 5 times a year. But is there any chance that you may do a few more cars throughout the year? If so, perhaps the extra investment into a Makita or a Dewalt would be wise. Just an idea.


Tim

[RLdetail]

I actually bought one of these last year for sanding cabinets and such and threw the polishing pad and bonnet in the cabinet and forgot about it until about 2 months ago. I have the one with the side handle.

It works okay but I think the numbers are a little off if you divide them evenly to figure out the speed. I keep mine around 2 to 2.5 most of the time and it seems to do fine.

If you don't plan on using it that much then by all means go for it. I got mine for $29.99 last year on sale and I'm guessing it goes on sale for the same price from time to time.

The only bad thing is that you don't have variable speed on the trigger. It starts slow but then it's straight to the speed set on the dial.

[Ranger72]

Just remember if you buy eigther a Makita or Dewalt it will always be there and I'm sure there are lots of places you can have these machines serviced. Always remember you get what you pay for. I own a Makita and wouldn't trade it for the world! lol

[onawrxhigh]

Hey armand,
You may want to do what I did with my Makita 9227c and get one that is factory re-furbished. I got mine for 129.99 instead of 169.99. heres a link

http://www.meguiarsonline.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=4244

Andrew M. Parshall

[armand]

Andrew thanks for the info. I checked out the page and it seems as if they are out of the refurbished makitas. I do however have a friend getting me a dewalt model #849 which has 8 amps. THe other 2 dewalt models have 7 amps.

[Tim Lingor]

Hey armand

Glad to hear you made the leap to the rotary world! You will be glad you did! I have 2 Makita's and the 849 DeWalt. They are awesome tools! Luckily you bought the 849 as if I am not mistaken, the other DeWalts do not have variable speeds and you want variable speeds!

Tim

[armand]

Tim thanks, I wasn't sure if the 849 had the variable trigger. I think this will open up a whole new world.

[OctaneGuy]

I actually bought my first rotary as well. After much research and debate, I bought this one from HF.

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/Displayitem.taf?itemnumber=90820

I like it a lot. While it cost more than the $24/$29 models it's specs are much closer to the Makita in terms of amps, weight, and smooth start/electronic speed control. To me, it's important that it's a whole 2 pounds lighter than the cheaper HF ones, and the electronic speed control allows me to select the exact RPM's I need.

[Tim Lingor]

Hey OctaneGuy

Welcome to the rotary club for you as well! Trust me...you will love what the tool and some practice can do for your paint!!

Tim

[OctaneGuy]

Thanks Tim! I can't wait to become a pro at using it! Fortunately for me a friend recently got into an accident and he's got some body panels for me to play with that the body shop was going to discard!


Richard

Originally posted by 2hotford
Hey OctaneGuy

Welcome to the rotary club for you as well! Trust me...you will love what the tool and some practice can do for your paint!!

Tim

[Dragpakmach]

I would step up to a good rotary loke Dewalt or Makita because youll work on 2 cars.Then 2 becomes 4 then 20 and so on.The better stuff will pay for itself in time.Ive learned you can pay a little more now or alot more later(got that from AC Delco commercial).Good luck.