How To Use The Flex 3401

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Mike PhillipsMike Phillips is verified member.

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How To Use The Flex 3401



Be sure to watch the below vide0s plus read the article...

For those of you that want to lubricate the felt ring on your Flex 3401, here's a video that shows you how... starts at the 1:45 time mark...





About Flex 3401 Forced Rotation Dual Action Polisher
The Flex 3401 is a gear driven, forced rotation dual action polisher with a variable speed controller enabling you to select the appropriate speed for the task at hand. The Flex 3401 is purposefully built for machine polishing paint. The Flex 3401 is German Engineered to be a professional grade tool that can be used in a production environment under heavy use. There are multiple backing plates and pads available for this tool for just about any type of paint correction, polishing or even machine waxing.


Here's my demo truck, a severely neglected Chevy Tahoe owned by my buddy Dave who's not really into car detailing but more into building Monster Trucks and Swamp Buggies for use at the Mud Fests in in South Florida.

This Tahoe has been repainted at some point in it's history but since then I doubt it's ever been waxed, let alone washed.

Speedy Prep Towel
I clayed the passenger side of the hood using the Speedy Prep Towel Medium Grade with Detailer's Universal Clay Lube before starting.

Flex3401BeforeAfter000.jpg



Here you can see water spotting and general staining and oxidation of the paint. Because the Flex 3401 is a gear-driven, forced rotation polisher it offers a lot of power and for this reason I'm able to buff out this large section at one time.
Flex3401BeforeAfter001.jpg



Here's the Flex 3401 as well as some products from Optimum Polymer Technologies.
Flex3401BeforeAfter002.jpg



Here I'm priming a Microfiber Cutting Pad with Optimum Compound II
Flex3401BeforeAfter003.jpg


Flex3401BeforeAfter004.jpg




Here I've turned the polisher on and spread my working product evenly over the entire surface I'm going to work.
Flex3401BeforeAfter005.jpg



I work the section using overlapping passes and a crosshatch pattern...
Flex3401BeforeAfter006.jpg




Even after wiping the hood clean and removing all the above surface bonded contaminants off using the speedy Prep Towel you can see all kinds of embedded dirt coming off the paint onto the pad. Note I have a clean pad in the picture for contrast.

Flex3401BeforeAfter007.jpg



Here I'm wiping the compound residue off and you can see a clear, glossy finish is starting to return.
Flex3401BeforeAfter008.jpg


Flex3401BeforeAfter009.jpg


Flex3401BeforeAfter010.jpg




Next I switch to the Optimum Microfiber Polishing Pad and Optimum Finish and proceed to prime the pad and then add the working product.
Flex3401BeforeAfter011.jpg


Flex3401BeforeAfter012.jpg



I repeat the overlapping, crosshatch pattern to the same section. Both the compound and the polish were applied using speed setting 6
Flex3401BeforeAfter013.jpg


Flex3401BeforeAfter014.jpg



The clarity and gloss are increasing after using the Optimum Finish
Flex3401BeforeAfter015.jpg



You can actually see the metallic flake now...
Flex3401BeforeAfter016.jpg



For contrast, here's what the paint looked before which is dull and flat and then to the right side is clear, glossy paint.
Flex3401BeforeAfter017.jpg



Optimum Car Wax
After compounding and polishing the rest of the hood I then applied the Optimum Car Wax which offers patented UV Inhibitors, the same UV Inhibitors that are used in clear coat paint formulas. Dave parks this in the South Florida sunshine everyday so the paint needs all the protection it can get...

Flex3401BeforeAfter018.jpg



Here's the end resuls...
Flex3401BeforeAfter019.jpg


Flex3401BeforeAfter020.jpg



The Flex 3401 is a powerful tool and a tool that can get the job done fast without the risk of burning the paint or instilling swirls at the same time.


On Autogeek.net


Flex 3401

Optimum Polymer Technologies

Detailers Car Care Products


:)
 
Thanks Mike, for helping us all understand that MF pads can indeed be used on the 3401. The timing was too perfect, ya'know?
 
do you have to use mf pad specific compounds and polishes or can you use the wolfgang tsr and finishing glaze with them?
 
If you are using the same mf compound/polish pad and the same Opt compound and final polish, how much faster do you think a Flex 3401 would have the same result on this car compare to a GG6"?

$330 vs $130
 
The Griots is a very capable machine. If money is an issue go with the Griots at a big cost savings. I have both the Flex 3401 and the Griots 6". With the Griots you get a lifetime warranty.
 
mwoolfso said:
Thanks Mike, for helping us all understand that MF pads can indeed be used on the 3401. The timing was too perfect, ya'know?
Click to expand...

The only thing is when doing correction work you'll find yourself using a little muscle to control the polisher as you work a section.



sproketser said:
Real nice work in there . Congrats Mike .
Click to expand...

I had Dave bring the truck over yesterday so I could get an "after" picture of his chrome wheel after doing the IronX video and even though I only buffed out the hood and the bug defector, he was thrilled.

Iron X Bleeding Effect While Cleaning Brake Dust Off Wheel

Before
DavesTruckWheel01.jpg



Bleeding
DavesTruckWheel07.jpg



Rinsing
DavesTruckWheel11.jpg



Clean Decontaminated Wheel
DavesTruckWheel12.jpg



kingweb50 said:
d
o you have to use mf pad specific compounds and polishes or can you use the wolfgang tsr and finishing glaze with them?
Click to expand...

What I've experienced is any quality product with good lubricity for a long buffing cycle with a foam pad works well with a microfiber pad. The shorter the buffing cycle or play time a product has with foam the less it will have with microfiber and the polisher won't glide over the surface smoothly.


604_Snooze said:
If you are using the same mf compound/polish pad and the same Opt compound and final polish, how much faster do you think a Flex 3401 would have the same result on this car compare to a GG6"?
Click to expand...

Much faster plus you can tackle a larger section at one time. That's a HUGE hood and I knocked out 1/4 of it in a single buffing cycle. With any of the DA Polishers, PC, Megs or Griot's, I would have had to work only half the size seen in the picture to get the same results. I guess that means twice as fast?


:)
 
Do you suggest 5" pads or 6.5 with the flex? And which backing plate. Thanks
 
Mike, how is it that the Flex is able to work in larger sections? I thought that section size was limited by the product and pad not by the polisher.
 
TrKent said:
Mike, how is it that the Flex is able to work in larger sections? I thought that section size was limited by the product and pad not by the polisher.
Click to expand...

Amount of product and pad are factors but not the only factors. I used the "ample" amount of product and worked hard. It would be easier to have tackled a smaller section but I wanted to show "what could be done" plus "what I could do", if you're new to machine polishing you might want to tackle smaller sections.

:)
 
Mike.Phillips@Autogeek said:
Amount of product and pad are factors but not the only factors. I used the "ample" amount of product and worked hard. It would be easier to have tackled a smaller section but I wanted to show "what could be done" plus "what I could do", if you're new to machine polishing you might want to tackle smaller sections.

:)
Click to expand...

This is good to know. I've been using the 3401 for a little over a year now and am about to detail a F350 with a long bed. I'll be testing out this larger section size. This job should go by a little faster now :buffing:
 
Also just to note, when I worked this section, approximately 1/4 of this large, full size Chevy with a full size hood, I stood at the passenger side fender as this let me work the entire length of the hood from one standing position in a non-stop, overlapping motion with the polisher.


Here I've turned the polisher on and spread my working product evenly over the entire surface I'm going to work.
Flex3401BeforeAfter005.jpg




I'm not saying tackling a huge section like this at one time is easy or the best approach for all detailing projects but for me and this project I was able to knock out the hood doing sections this large.


:)
 
I see someone else asked the question but didn't get an answer, hopefully someone can update.
I've been using a 7424XP with 5.5" Pads.
Had a bunch of 6.5" pads which were overpowering the PC.
Obviously this isn't the case, what pad sizes are people using now?
 
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