thinking of buying porter cable

A

animescreen

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I'm a newbie so sorry if i say a cardinal sin to detailing.

i'm thinking of buying a porter cable because i heard good stuff about it..

now questions

1. if tend to polish/wax once a month or once every month and half.... i'm sure i'll end up with lot of swirl marks after....
is this something that is safe for me to do? I use carnaba wax and heard it only lasts 4-8 weeks.. and so far i've been using my hand to wax the whole car and it's been good workout but too much work involved.

2. i know polising removes swirl marks.. but if i keep polishing (like once a month) eventually doesn't the clear coat get completely disolvced since i recall polishing takes slight clear coat off so that it's even surface which is why swirl marks gets removed..

3. and finally.. do you guys use the same pad cover for waxing and polishing after washing it??? i'm wondering if wax residue might be left on even after washing it and air drying it that it will scratch the car.....
 
I bought and used my PC for the first time on Sat. Plenty strong enough and powerful in my opinion. I got the 199 package with several pads. The orange 5.5 did a great job for me. In addition, I bought the extra 6 counter weight for 3.99 which gave much less vibrations with the 6.5 white pad.

Many will tell you to buy the Flex for an extra $100. Since I only have experience with the PC, I can't comment on that one. Lastly, I bought the WG swirl combo which worked very well for me.

Good luck!
 
most of us started with a PC at one point, its a great machine that has since been replaced by the Flex due to more power. But neither is a wrong choice.

you will most likely want a kit that also offers the polishes and pads needed for machine. You can still hand wax as wanted, but using the correct pad (abrasive content) with correct polish before will provide best results. Best part of the 'geek, you can call in and get the correct package for your needs.
 
I wax and seal by hand, but polish with the PC. Polish only when you deem it necessary, however it should not be a monthly thing if you use a good wash technique i.e. the two bucket method. There are a slew of pad cleaners and pad washers that are very effective at removing residual product on the pad after a detail
 
And anime, one thing you need to realize, is the difference between polish and wax.

Polishing is taking off a small layer of the clear coat in order to remove swirl marks/scratches.

Waxing is just adding a layer of protection.

You can wax monthly, or if you really want, every 2 weeks. But polishing is something you would want to do maybe once every 6 months.

Good luck with your purchase. If you have any questions please ask.
 
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