Going from Rotary to DA

creina1221

New member
Hi All,



I'm pretty new here and I'm going to throw out my first question. I've been deatailing for about 9 years. The first five professionally and the last four for special requests and such.



I've never used a DA or PC. I've only used Rotary buffers and thought my worked turned out well. I always thought there had to be an easier way to get out hollograms and buffer swirtls that what I was doing. After seeing some of the things here and some of the results you guys pull off using a DA or PC after the initial cutting phases, I must have one. With that being said, I'm considering either the PC or the G110. Is there anything I should know about working with a DA vs my rotary. I've read that it's safer and I think I saw a thread that called it idiot proof but I just want to be sure.



Thanks in advance and I'm really glad I found this place.



Chris
 
Hey man, I'm right on the border of Allentown and Bethlehem. When I'm back from school for a weekend, I can show you how to use a rotary properly to insure there are no buffer trails.
 
Hey Darkstar I am in Northeast PA and would gladly take you up on that. Been at it a long time but still have some problems. But over the past 2 years switched to the Megs polish line. Have only used 83 with the rotary so I am curious with the 80 how it would do
 
wagsjr said:
Hey Darkstar I am in Northeast PA and would gladly take you up on that. Been at it a long time but still have some problems. But over the past 2 years switched to the Megs polish line. Have only used 83 with the rotary so I am curious with the 80 how it would do



Yea sure, I only used M105/205 from Meg's line, I've never used the 80 or 83 yet but I'm pretty confident you can get them to finish down hologram free with proper technique.



The only thing is, I won't be able to do it when it is colder out, say below 40 degrees. I haven't tried out my polishes at that temperature yet, but I heard that some can get really hard to work with at those temps. If anyone has a heated garage or a decent sized garage at all, that would be a huge help, as mine is tiny and you can BARELY fit a car inside.
 
I use my sisters place for free. I'll be honest. After getting a pc I only used he rotary with the 83 and it finished pretty damn nice. But it isnt a last step though.



Im gonna grab some darker junk panels from a friend and try in the the meantime. I like the 80 cause theres no fillers.



We have to get in touch though bro.
 
wagsjr said:
I use my sisters place for free. I'll be honest. After getting a pc I only used he rotary with the 83 and it finished pretty damn nice. But it isnt a last step though.



Im gonna grab some darker junk panels from a friend and try in the the meantime. I like the 80 cause theres no fillers.



We have to get in touch though bro.



Yea sure, just send me a PM sometime.
 
Accumulator said:
Same opinion here, and I too have a scad of different polishers to compare it to.





What makes the Flex that much better than the PC? I've been a rotary junkie forever, Just looking for an easier way to finish the car out after the initial compuonding step. I can finish out with a rotary with no buffer swirls/hollograms, I just feel like there has to be an easier way.



Thanks again for all of your help.
 
creina1221 said:
What makes the Flex that much better than the PC? I've been a rotary junkie forever, Just looking for an easier way to finish the car out after the initial compuonding step. I can finish out with a rotary with no buffer swirls/hollograms, I just feel like there has to be an easier way.



Thanks again for all of your help.



What do you mean? DA's without the implementation of the KBM are generally slower than using a rotary. You still have to level the micro-marring on the paint left-over from compounding, and a rotary is going to do that faster.



I'm not sure about a Flex though, I'm going to say it's slower than a rotary and faster than a PCXP. Not sure though. I have never used a PC for anything more than glazes or waxing.
 
creina1221- Much as I love the Flex 3401 (and dislike using my rotaries), if you're finishing out hologram-free and you aren't having any other issues, then I can't help but think that switching from a rotary to a DA will be a step backwards. It sounds to me like you're looking to solve a problem that doesn't exist.



The Flex3401 is in a whole 'nother league compared to the PC/etc. due to its powered (as opposed to free-wheeling) rotation. *Almost* as fast as a rotary unless you're using rocks-in-a-bottle compounds (which are simply best via rotary). So much faster than a PC/Cyclo/etc. that there's simply no comparing them, but once you get past the serious correction the differences start to diminish. Still, the Flex 3401 seems to finish out better than the PC (as does the Cyclo), at least IME; the PC can sometimes leave a final finish that the most particular people might have some slight issues with.
 
you can't go wrong with the PC (it can be used for several different things), if you doubt serious correction cannot be done with it - look up some of bryan's work (aka : gmblack3a )...
 
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