That's it! I'm trading in the PC.

What kind of rotary should G.A. invest in?

  • Makita 9227C

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Cheapie

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • DeWalt 849

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Wankel/Renesis

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Total voters
    0
M

MongooseGA

New member
I hate to say it, but I'm way too impacient to use a PC for full details. I just can't sit and wait so long to do one body panel. It was great when I first got it, but it's starting to upset me. Now I understand why people said "The PC is an arm saver, not a time saver".



I planned on getting a rotary back before Christmas, but the winter came and I had no need to do any polishing. Now today, I was doing some work on the SC4 and I gave up. Can't take it. I'll be ordering a rotary. Very soon.



I have a favor to ask of you guys familiar with both.



Sell me on the 9227C or the cheap ones from Harbor Freight. I know that the cheap ones are fine for the weekend warrior, but I'll probably be doing some body work during the week this summer, and it might be used daily. I'm pretty sold on the Makita by now, but I'll need a reason to justify it over the cheap ones to the Father man. ;)



I don't mind spending $200 instead of $25 to get the Makita, but what's special about it that I'd want to?



'Preciate it,
 
If you wait a couple weeks, I'll be able to share my own comments on the $25 Chicago rotary.



I have to say that out of your choices, I would prefer a Wankel / Renesis! :woot: OOOOH man would I love one of those. Particularly the newest version. :)
 
Once the money's in the bank with enough for accessories (God, I'm such a chick... I'm buying 'acthethorieths') I'm ordering something.



Pray I go broke soon ;)



Edit* OK, who voted the 4th option? :rofl
 
I'd say the 9227C, very nice machine and backed by a great company. If you're serious about the rotary, you can't go wrong with either the Makita or the Dewalt.
 
I'm with you here Mongoose GA. The pc is very time consuming when it comes to polishing. But for waxing, polishing windows and doing my bike's gas tank, I'll keep it around.



I have the Makita 9227 and I love it. Smooth operation of the motor and head, somewhat lightweight, the bail handle is a very cool design and idea whoever came up with it. I vote for the 9227,,,,,,AR
 
The one thing that I believe the Makita def has over the cheapie is the variable trigger. Meaning you can use the trigger in the same way a clutch works for a car. Pull the trigger half way to work up to full speed slowly. Its a nice feature. I love my makita. I actually have a chicago rotary still in the box, i havent even opened it yet. I guess I will keep the cheapie around just in case my makita dies during a detail or something like that.
 
01bluecls said:
The one thing that I believe the Makita def has over the cheapie is the variable trigger. Meaning you can use the trigger in the same way a clutch works for a car. Pull the trigger half way to work up to full speed slowly. Its a nice feature. I love my makita. I actually have a chicago rotary still in the box, i havent even opened it yet. I guess I will keep the cheapie around just in case my makita dies during a detail or something like that.
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I'll have to get this VA meet thing going again. You and tdekany both have Makitas and love them. I feel like I'm missing out.
 
I've got the cheapie, and it works fine for how seldom I use it, but I voted for the Makita because if you're going to use it daily then the quality,weight, and variable trigger will make a difference that you'll appreciate.
 
id go with which ever machine you can find the company locally so maitenance wont be that much of a problem.
 
Toss up between the Makita and DW. I have to vote for the Makita because i have seen one used before, and they are real nice it appeared. DW if you feel manly, lol.
 
go with the chicago. does same exact job. You could buy 4 of them plus accesories and stil be cheaper than dewalt or makita. The brand of rotary will in no way make the paint look better. My chicago works great. i ve worked in a bodyshop for a couple of years and have used all diffrent rotaries.
 
I busted out my new DeWalt yesterday afternoon and I must say that after the initial use I liked it better than my old, deceased Makita. I prefer the extra weight from the machine and found it almost effortless to control, especially on vertical panels. The construction is also noticably better as the DeWalt's plastic body feel as if you could heave it off of a roof and it would remain intact; I think the rigidity of the machine as a whole leads to a more controlled feel. I would stay away from cheap machines if you are going to be using it a few days a week since power tools are a "you get what you pay for" type item, in my own experiances anyway. If I were you I would keep the PC around though. Even with the rotary the PC is still a nice tool to have around for the times when you may not need the rotary, think applying liquid waxes, sealants, light polishing, etc.
 
From personal experience the cheapie harbor freight machine is a very good product. I own one now, and think nothing of buying one on the future should this one fail. I would have to burn up nine of them before it became more expensive than a makita or dewalt. It's a good feeling machine and has given me good results. Spend your money on some good pads and a cheap machine first. Then down the road if you must have it, get the more expensive brand.
 
Yon should answer on how often you will use it. I bought a chicagio electric, and while I have used it more than I expected my PC is still used 95% of the time. I get the rotary only in cars with tons of swirls or blemishes. If I maintain them, there is no need to use a rotary on them again.
 
Even though I use my PC 95% of the time, I could not go without my rotary. The corrective factor with a mild polish, low speed and polishing pad is at less 20 x faster with the rotary.



PC is great for very minor fixes when time is not a factor but a few passes with the rotary will every time do a better job. I also find that many products work better with a rotary (i.e Menzerna,DACP and 1Z pro and consumer lines.
 
JHowell1976 said:
From personal experience the cheapie harbor freight machine is a very good product. I own one now, and think nothing of buying one on the future should this one fail. I would have to burn up nine of them before it became more expensive than a makita or dewalt. It's a good feeling machine and has given me good results. Spend your money on some good pads and a cheap machine first. Then down the road if you must have it, get the more expensive brand.
Click to expand...



Exactly which unit from harbor freight is it? We actually have a HF retail store not too far from my house, so I might stop by later and have a look. I've wanted to play with a rotary but haven't really had a chance; but now I have potential access to a "junker" vehicle that I might be willing to experiment with. I figure pads and a backing plate can't be THAT expensive.
 
Shiny Lil Detlr said:
Exactly which unit from harbor freight is it? We actually have a HF retail store not too far from my house, so I might stop by later and have a look.........
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The one I have, and I believe most others are using is this one (the ad says $25, but I paid $29 at the HF store):



http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/Displayitem.taf?itemnumber=46507



FWIW, there is a new one out, haven't looked at it too closely, but the speed on it goes down to 300 RPM and it has a bail handle:



http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/Displayitem.taf?itemnumber=92623



You can get backing plates at Autogeek, they even have a 5" if you want to use your PC pads:



http://www.autogeek.net/backingplates.html
 
Eliot Ness said:
The one I have, and I believe most others are using is this one (the ad says $25, but I paid $29 at the HF store):



http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/Displayitem.taf?itemnumber=46507



FWIW, there is a new one out, haven't looked at it too closely, but the speed on it goes down to 300 RPM and it has a bail handle:



http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/Displayitem.taf?itemnumber=92623



You can get backing plates at Autogeek, they even have a 5" if you want to use your PC pads:



http://www.autogeek.net/backingplates.html
Click to expand...



Thanks. I probably would want to just use the Meguiar's 8006es that I already use (Yellow Polishing "SoftBuff" Pad) unless there's some extreme advantage to the beveled/edge pads for control and preventing burns.
 
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