Looking For DA

[flb18r]

hello everyone on AG. I recently brought a Mikita rotary buffer, I never use a DA before, but am looking into DAs now. since I have makita to do corrections, should I invest in a Flex or others will be fine?

 

[skizot]

Here is a post I made in another thread asking a similar question.

I am not sure I will do what you are asking. I owned a PC for about a year and after using a Flex just once, I sold the PC and bought the flex. I realize this is not what you want to hear, but the difference in performance and usability was quite substantial. The fact the flex has about 95% less vibrations then the PC (similar to the Griots) that I was used to, it was a no brainer. The only downside is the flex is quite heavy in comparison with the PC or Griots. The trade off is that you will be done in less time.

With that said, this might help your dilemma. If this is just a hobby, you are only going to need to polish your car once a year, maybe twice if it is really needed, so a PC or Griots is going to be fine for this purpose. It does take longer in each section to correct the paint, but again, unless you get addicted like I did and start wanting to detail everything in sight, save the money and spend it on pads, polish, washer, etc.

Essentially, the flex is going to perform more like your rotary, many people who get the flex, stop using their rotary as often. Perhaps a better idea would be to pick up a 3" griots DA ROP for the right spots and a PC 7424XP for when you need a DA. These combined are still cheaper then the flex.

 

[flb18r]

Making this decison is hard because if I get the flex then the makita is useless, since I will rarely need it. I'm leaning more to the PC, because it's good for production finish. Does anyone have a makita and a PC? please share your expericne since I'm a newbie and low income.

 

[mcpp66]

I'm still in the process of finishing my car with the Porter Cable, but what I've done so far I'm extremely pleased with. I'm a complete noob when it comes to detailing and I think I did a damn fine job with my car. Take it for what it's worth coming from a noob like me, but the PC is safe and easy to use.

 

[Rsurfer]

Making this decison is hard because if I get the flex then the makita is useless, since I will rarely need it. I'm leaning more to the PC, because it's good for production finish. Does anyone have a makita and a PC? please share your expericne since I'm a newbie and low income.

I have a Makita, PC, New Griot and a Flex light weight rotary. If you are doing heavy correction like removing sanding marks...you can't beat a rotary. There is a learning curve on using a rotary. On the other hand, if you are doing just light correction then a PC,Griot, G110V2 would be good. When the Flex DA came on the market most of the DA's were not nearly as powerful as the Flex and therefore the Flex was king. Now with the newer and more powerful DA's they are giving the Flex a run for it's money. I don't own a Flex DA, but the only down side that by you owning a Makita and a Flex is that you won't be able to use smaller pads than 6". You could get a 5",4"3" pad for the Makita, but in my opinion the Makita is too heavy and bulky for tight areas. Sorry for going on and on, but to answer your question on owing a Makita and a DA, my answer is yes, that's a great combo.

 

[Mike PhillipsMike Phillips is verified member.]

When the Flex DA came on the market most of the DA's were not nearly as powerful as the Flex and therefore the Flex was king. Now with the newer and more powerful DA's they are giving the Flex a run for it's money.

Great analysis

I don't own a Flex DA, but the only down side that by you owning a Makita and a Flex is that you won't be able to use smaller pads than 6".

Correct and very insightful.

You could get a 5",4"3" pad for the Makita, but in my opinion the Makita is too heavy and bulky for tight areas. Sorry for going on and on, but to answer your question on owing a Makita and a DA, my answer is yes, that's a great combo.

Great summary.

And just to note, the Makita and any other full-size rotary buffer can be used with small pads in tight areas, it's just not as fun or easy than using a smaller, lighter tool.

This isn't a sales pitch to the OP, but just to point out to anyone that will read this into the future, I can't say enough good things about the Flex 3403 Lightweight Rotary Buffer.

It's small, lightweight and powerful. It's easy to use for a seasoned pro and much easier to learn how to use for someone new to machine polishing, specifically new to polishing with a rotary buffer.

It would be so cool if they introduced an improved version that had the low 600 RPM range of the Makita, and drop the extreme 3700 RPM range it comes with down to the industry standard of 3000 RPM.

To tell the truth, if you're working on car paint there's never really and need to go over 2000 RPM although sometimes with single stage paints and polyester gel-coat finishes you need 3000 RPM


Didn't mean to take this off-topic just thought I would throw that out there.


In the past few days I've been testing the GG, XP and v2 side by side and my experience is the GG has the most power hands down when it comes to the single criteria of the ability to rotate a foam pad on the 6.0 Speed Setting when the pad is held flat against the surface and pressure is applied.

In simple terms, my opinion is the GG has the most power to remove defects out of the paint and another way of saying that is the GG has the most power to remove paint.

I know that scares some people when I put it in those words but the reality is, if you want to remove swirls, scratches and Type II water spots, these are all defect that are below the surface level of the finish and the way you remove them is you remove a little paint that surrounds them and no matter how you want to type it or say it, it all comes down to removing a little paint.

Because all the 3 above tools have what we now call a FREE ROTATING SPINDLE ASSEMBLY, which means if you hold the pad at an angle, (not flat), or you're working on a raised body line where more pressure is exerted to a smaller portion of the pad face, then unlike a direct drive tool like the rotary buffers or the Flex 3401, the pads on these other 3 tools will stop rotating.

This is the safety feature everyone loves about these tools as it prevents you from removing too much paint and going through the clear or in the case of a single stage, going through the color coat and exposing the primer.

All 3 of the new generation dual action polisher with free rotating spindle assemblies have much more usable power than the first generation dual action polisher and that's a good thing as anyone that's been doing this long enough knows it was real hard to keep a pad rotating on the first generation tools once the pads became wet with product.

So if you already have a rotary buffer, adding a dual action polisher would give you a lot of versatility when it comes to polishing paint. Any of the 3 new generation polishers would be fine tools to own and all of them are more than capable of getting the job done.

While the GG ROP has the most power, you don't need the "most" power to remove swirls as the v2 and the XP have plenty of power to remove swirls too...

In a perfect world, everyone could own one of each, that is we could all own a

• Full Size Rotary Buffer
• Lightweight Rotary Buffer
• Flex 3401
• Dual Action Polisher

And a whole slew of pads and backing plates to go with them.

Click here to order now!

 

[flb18r]

I looking at the PC with the edge foam pads. Have anyone use edge pads with no backing plate? And if I get the adaptor for my rotary, can I use the same edge pad I use with the DA with my rotary buffer? please tell me if I will create a disaster, I'm a newbie.

 

[INMY01TA]

I have the Flex and the PC. I never touch the PC anymore. Now I really notice the way it bogs down and stops spinning when pressure is applied. I say save a lil more for the Flex. You'll never be sorry.

 

[Rsurfer]

I have the Flex and the PC. I never touch the PC anymore. Now I really notice the way it bogs down and stops spinning when pressure is applied. I say save a lil more for the Flex. You'll never be sorry.

OP already has a Makita, why would he need a Flex DA? Wouldn't a PC or G110v2 or Griot be more useful because he can use smaller pads for tight areas, use a carpet brush and wax/seal? Once the OP gets the major correction done...all he would need is a DA for minor correction. You probably have the 1st generation PC that is not as powerful as the newer PCXP. I have the new Griot and even with 6" pads you can really bear down on this DA and it won't bog down or stop spinning. The Flex DA is a great machine so I'm not insulting your choice of machine.

 

[INMY01TA]

You probably have the 1st generation PC that is not as powerful as the newer PCXP. I have the new Griot and even with 6" pads you can really bear down on this DA and it won't bog down or stop spinning.

I guess I'm outta the loop. If they've improved it the PC would be a good choice.

 

[PAR Detailing]

I have to agree with INMY01TA, I just got the new flex. I had a rotary for years and then bought megs v1 a year ago. I just got the flex da as an earl bday gift and I absolutely love it. It blows my v1 out of the water. I guess it depends on what you will be using it for, if it is for correction alone then id say save up the extra money you wont be sorry, if its for the extras like rsurfer said then there is more reason to consider the others.

 

[flb18r]

I now have the pcxp, I like it, but I know there are better DAs out, maybe next round I'll pick a GG ROP up.