Pad confusion best all around pads for 3401 Flex use

Red Lehr

Red Lehr

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I've had my 3401 for a couple of years now and I have been using the LC CCS orange,white, and black pads with Menzerna products. I am still kind of a newbie at polishing and with all the new pads being offered ie. LC CCS Smart pads,LC Hybrid pads, Thin Pro pads,Hydro Tech pads, Constant Pressure High Gloss Pads, Kompressor Pads, it gets a little confusing what to use....

Do any of you use these pads with your Flex 3401 and Menzerna products ??
I have a PC 7424 XP but I keep going back to the 3401....

Thanks for the help !
 
Many Flex users agree that the lake country hybrid pads are the best when used in conjunction with the Lake Country 4" BP. Also, Swapping out the OE backing plate with the Lake Country 4" and using Lake Country 5" Hybrid pads makes controlling it many times easier.
 
expdetailing said:
Many Flex users agree that the lake country hybrid pads are the best when used in conjunction with the Lake Country 4" BP. Also, Swapping out the OE backing plate with the Lake Country 4" and using Lake Country 5" Hybrid pads makes controlling it many times easier.
Click to expand...

Is this what your referring to? Only 4" BP I could find for the 3401 so wanted to make sure.
FLEX XC3401 Mini 4 3/8 Backing Plate, FLEX
 
Lake country has made force pads made for the flex, they look pretty sweet, and where made to upgrade the hybrid line.

Ag doesnt carry them yet, but that should change keep an eye out for them soon.
 
Mike@DedicatedPerfection said:
Hey Red, the Lake Country Hybrid pads were designed for the characteristics of the FLEX XC3401. These pads used in conjunction with the 3401 are the bee's knee's. I too use this setup with the range of Menzerna polishes.
Lake Country Hybrid Power Finish Ultra Performance Pad System

Here is an article I put together a while back on extracting the maximum potential from this setup.
http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum...rning-3401-menzerna-products-hybrid-pads.html
Click to expand...

Thanks Mike !! I've been taking in a lot of the great info that you guys post...Thanks to everyone who shares.
 
Red Lehr said:
I've had my 3401 for a couple of years now and I have been using the LC CCS orange,white, and black pads with Menzerna products.

I am still kind of a newbie at polishing and with all the new pads being offered ie. LC CCS Smart pads,LC Hybrid pads, Thin Pro pads, Hydro Tech pads, Constant Pressure High Gloss Pads, Kompressor Pads, it gets a little confusing what to use....
Click to expand...


Get the Lake Country 6.5" Hybrid Pads. You can do everything with Orange, White and Black. If you like to machine apply your waxes and sealtants get a Red Hybrid.


Down the road, get the Lake Country 4" Backing Plate Adapter Kit. This will enable you to burn and turn 5" Hybrids and 4" anything. This comes in real handy for thin panels and smaller pads on the FLEX 3401 makes the tool really easy to use. Larger pads help you to knock out large panels likity-split.


:)
 
When you have some heavy cutting to do or if you detail boats with oxidized gel-coats then get the pad I show in this article.


Almost as fast as a rotary buffer but a lot safer - What is it?


FLEX_3401_HD_026.jpg



:)
 
Here's some pictures to show you all the Hybrid pad options....



Remember, thin is in only applies to free rotating DA polishers.

When it comes to direct drive polishers both dual action orbitals and single direction rotationals, pad thickness isn't and issue and in fact a thicker pad is what you want.

I'm showing the wide selection of Hybrid pads for both my Flex 3401 class and my Flex PE14 class at Detail Fest this weekend.



Wide selection of Hybrid pads

From the top down,

Gold Jeweling, Red Waxing, Black Finishing, White Polishing, Yellow Light Polishing, Blue Light Cutting, Orange Cutting.

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This is also a great pad for the Flex 3401, it's the Lake Country 7.5" Electrified Wool Finishing Pad.

Although it's called a finishing pad it's still a FIBER pad and that means compared to foam more cutting.

7.5" Electrified Wool Finishing Pad

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This is a combination that we'll be using in the upcoming Marine 31 Boat Detailing Class on April 18th.


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With the addition of these two new Hybrid pads this pad system is one of the beat and most complete on the market for the Flex 3401 and the Flex PE14


:dblthumb2:
 
Mike@DedicatedPerfection said:
Hey Red, the Lake Country Hybrid pads were designed for the characteristics of the FLEX XC3401. These pads used in conjunction with the 3401 are the bee's knee's. I too use this setup with the range of Menzerna polishes.
Lake Country Hybrid Power Finish Ultra Performance Pad System

Here is an article I put together a while back on extracting the maximum potential from this setup.
http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum...rning-3401-menzerna-products-hybrid-pads.html
Click to expand...

As I make the move from standard to hybrid pads, as Mike noted in his post, almost anything can be done with Orange, White and Black. However, where does the corresponding match up take place? Is an Orange Standard Pad (medium cut) the same as an Orange Hybrid (heavy cut) or a blue says it's (light cut). Also, which of the hybrid pads works best for an AIO like HDSpeed which I normally use a Green pad for?

Thanks!
 
The new lake country force pads look very cool. New design, same hybrid foam, with the addition of a new heavy cutting pad. I need to try these.
 
Mike.Phillips@Autogeek said:
Down the road, get the Lake Country 4" Backing Plate Adapter Kit. This will enable you to burn and turn 5" Hybrids and 4" anything. This comes in real handy for thin panels and smaller pads on the FLEX 3401 makes the tool really easy to use. Larger pads help you to knock out large panels likity-split.
Click to expand...


I was about to order the Flex 4-3/8" backing plate. Is that different than the Lake Country 4" Backing Plate Adapter Kit? If so, where can I get the latter of the two. I have a ton of standard 4" Lake Country pads that I'd like to still use but would they be too small with the 4-3/8" one from Flex?

Thanks!
 
pdqgp said:
However, where does the corresponding match up take place? Is an Orange Standard Pad (medium cut) the same as an Orange Hybrid (heavy cut) or a blue says it's (light cut). Also, which of the hybrid pads works best for an AIO like HDSpeed which I normally use a Green pad for?

Thanks!
Click to expand...

Currently the Orange Hybrid pad is the most aggressive foam pad made by LC. The Blue LIGHT cutting pad is just a bit less aggressive than the standard yellow cutting pad from the CCS line. Below is a chart that lines up the pads and how they stack.
Lake Country All Wool & Foam Comparison Chart

Here is another chart just for the LC pads. Take note of Todd's response in block #2.
Lake Country Hybrid Aggressiveness Pad Chart

I would start off with the white Hybrid pad for AIO work. If that doesn't work then step up to the blue Hybrid pad.
 
pdqgp said:
I was about to order the Flex 4-3/8" backing plate. Is that different than the Lake Country 4" Backing Plate Adapter Kit? If so, where can I get the latter of the two. I have a ton of standard 4" Lake Country pads that I'd like to still use but would they be too small with the 4-3/8" one from Flex?

Thanks!
Click to expand...

Yes those two plates are different sizes.

They both are listed at the bottom of the FLEX Power tool link on AG.
Flex Power Tools, Flex car polishers and buffers, circular polisher, dual action polisher, buffer, german car buffer, german car polisher, flex buffer
 
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