My first experience with a Vector rotary

A

airjames

New member
I had the oppurtunity to try out the Vector Rotary on a 2000 Dodge Neon that belongs to my cousin. My uncle purchased the Vector not so much for detailing but for sanding and grinding use. He had some old Megs pads and a wool pad laying around in an old cabinet that havn't been touched in years from his older days of detailing. So I took them down into his workshop and cleaned them out very throughly with Dawn and warm water. Came out looking better. His velcro backing plate was some off brand name thing but it seemed to do the job at hand. I didn't burn the paint suprisingly but I did introduce some light holograming into the finish. I just tried it out on the hood, trunk, and drivers side doors. I used my own Megs DACP along with my uncle's polishing pad at 1500RPM. The car was very shiney when all was said and done but the holograming really bothered me. My cousin didn't mind anyway because she wrecked it couple months back.



Pros for me:

Slow Start capability

not real loud

doesn't shake the hell out of the panel

relatively lightweight



Cons:

Cheap thing, tended to bog down in some areas

Speed goes up in intervals of 500RPM

why can't they make other rotaries with the bail handle like on the Makita?





Bottom line: a good rotary for someone who's on a budget and just starting out. Or for someone who uses it once in a while. I've seen Vectors in body shops before and they said that they have last over 6 years. I would like to purchase a Vector myself. Besides, I don't detail everyday. Thanks,,,,,,,AR
 
It is the same as the 'infamous' $25 Chicago Electric/HarborFreight rotary.



Perfectly fine for occasional use.

Kinda heavy, but, with the proper pads, it makes them 'go around' just fine. We have two in the shop - saves changing backing plates, pads, etc.
 
To get rid of you holograms, slow the machine down to 1000 RPM, if possible, and use a finer polish and finer pad. Don't move it over the paint very quickly - 4-5 inches per second MAX. Be careful of the edges and make sure the pad rotation is so the pad comes off the high side - sometimes you will need to tilt the tool from "pad flat" to accomplish this. Just be careful and VERY MINDFUL of the fact the rotary can chew through paint in an inattentive heartbeat!
 
Thanks guys for the tips. This is actually the first time I have been able to check on this post because shortly after I posted this, we lost power due to the ice storm. Hopefully I can obtain one very soon. Thanks,,,,,AR
 
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