pads for a rotary?

flyinion

flyinion

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So I got to borrow my friend's DeWalt 849 (the older one where the RPM range starts at 1000) for a little while. He also acquired a "junk" door panel for me to practice on. I figure I'll play with the WG TSR and/or Finishing Glaze (really a fine polish) that I have but I'm thinking I may need to order a pad or two as all I have right now are some LC flat and CCS pads in the 5 1/2" size. Should I just use those? Or order a few larger ones? He did also give me a large wool pad to play with, though I'm not exactly sure what product I might use with a wool pad.
 
I find the LC 5.5" pads to work well with a rotary though I prefer the variable contact pads from Poorboy's World (5.5" for VRG) with my rotary. The VC pads contour better to curved areas being compounded or polished and leave far less holograms than flat pads do.

You can use just about any polish or compound with a wool pad depending on what level of defect removal you're trying to achieve. Just remember that the wool pad will leave it's own swirls regardless of what product you are using with it so if you try getting a swirl free finish with a wool pad you'll likely be chasing your tail and removing too much clear. Just remove the heavier defects with the wool pad and then switch to foam pads for your finishing steps.
 
The pads you have will work fine to practice with. Both your liquids work well with foam and the TSR will cut well with a wool pad.

Use a nylon brush to clean the face of the foam pads and a spur to clean the wool pads. If you don't have a spur you can use a screwdriver but it's kind of the caveman way.


Clean your pads often when using a rotary buffer and always remove any residue off the panel before applying fresh product.

Like I'm showing in one of my detailing classes. Note you also clean a foam pad the same way only with a nylon pad conditioning brush or a firm toothbrush...

Pictures & Comments from September 19th Detailing 102 Class


This is a Steel Pad Cleaning Spur and to use it you bring the Rotary Buffer RPM's up to speed and then run the spur back and forth across the face of the pad on the side that is rotating away from you...
Sept19ADVClass097.jpg



It's easy, fast and enables you to work clean...
Sept19ADVClass098.jpg


Sept19ADVClass099.jpg



:xyxthumbs:
 
does anyone know where i can get that nylon brush Mike Phillips is using to clean pads? I've been using a large toothbrush for that.
 
You can pickup a nylon brush at autozone or most automotive stores. As for the dewalt 849, It's a great machine.. Most people use DA's given the lack of knowledge with using a Rotary or that the newer DA's deliver similar results as a Rotary with less chance of burning..If you learn how to use that monster, you can accomplish most any task. It's really a great machine with it's variable trigger. It's a staple in my toolkit and I'm constantly perfecting technique with it. Good luck
 
Thanks for the info all. Yep I figure if I can learn the big ole 849 I'll be good :) Worst case, I'm using a scrap panel so any damage doesn't matter lol. If I do end up buying one I'm thinking it will be the DWP849X with the dual 0-600 and 0-3500 ranges unless I have the money for the Flex sitting around.
 
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