What pads to buy for Griots G9?

[Reuben Brumby]

So my wife just ordered me the Griots G9 for my birthday! #Bestwifeever!

So I need some help picking out a pad package.

I want to get the 5 inch conversion plate.

I want to be able to cut, polish, finish, apply wax, and one step.

I currently have the complete Wax Shop line up and Blackfire one step.

How many and which pads should I get to efficiently correct a car or suv?
Thanks for hepling.View attachment 67913

 

[Mike lambert]

Stick with the Boss pads, get the set and you’ll be good.

 

[JustJesus]

Stick with the Boss pads, get the set and you’ll be good.

Agree with Mike. I like their pads. I stick with those on the Griot's machines.

10 pads for polishing? Slightly less for correction. Even less for applying LSP. That's just my take.

Suggestion: order the 5 (or is it 6?) packs to get additional savings. So like, 6 pack of Yellows. Maybe another 6 pack (4 correcting, 2 LSP)? Or whatever combo works best for you.

 

[Reuben Brumby]

Agree with Mike. I like their pads. I stick with those on the Griot's machines.

10 pads for polishing? Slightly less for correction. Even less for applying LSP. That's just my take.

Suggestion: order the 5 (or is it 6?) packs to get additional savings. So like, 6 pack of Yellows. Maybe another 6 pack (4 correcting, 2 LSP)? Or whatever combo works best for you.

So the griots work better than others with their polishers? I'm just a little concerned about longevity, it seems that the main issues with their pads are durability. They have numerous reviews that mention durability in relation to their higher prices.

 

[JustJesus]

So the griots work better than others with their polishers?

Not necessarily. The new BOSS pads, the thinner ones, work very well with their machines. That is not to say other pads won't work equally good. Lake Country has Thin Pros that may work well. Or if you wanted to try the Meguiar's line, they also have thin pads.

Check out this article by Mike Phillips Thin is in...

I'm sure Mike Lambert could speak to that better than I can. He does this way more than I do, times a million.

Personally, I like their pads. They seem to work well for me, and I find them to be easy to clean. For MF pads, I have many of the Meguiar's MF Cut discs, and those work well on Griot's polishers. I have only one of the Griot's version. I like it too, but with so many of the Megs, I didn't see a need to add more. Granted, the same could have been said for the Yellow Griot's pads I bought!! But that's MAYBE where my weirdness comes into play. I find myself wanting to use Megs pads on the Megs machine (exception being MF), Griot's pads on Griot's machines, and others for the Flex machines.

I can't recall reviews speaking to their durability, but I'm not on social media much.

Buy several, swap them often, and wash /maintain them, and I'm sure they will last a good while.

 

[Mike lambert]

I hammer on my microfiber pads all the time. I wash all my pads in a machine and air dry them in the dryer. I have some that are 6 months old and still fine. You’ll have no problem with durability.

 

[PaulMys]

Also, and to paraphrase a post by Mike in another recent thread........

Pad longevity is subjective. Are you a pro or a hobbyist? How many of each pad do you have?

If you only have 2-3 pads for correction, and saturate/overheat them, they will die a quick death.

If you have say, 6-8 of the same and switch them out regularly, they will last MUCH longer.

 

[Reuben Brumby]

The reviews were on the Griots website!

 

[The Guz]

Here is a good article to read through

How many pads do I need to buff out my car?

 

[Mike PhillipsMike Phillips is verified member.]

Just to chime in,


If you were to look at any of the pictures I post showing the volume of pads I pack for my roadshow car detailing classes you'll see a TON of pads. For Griot's and all the tools. These pads get HAMMERED! I bring them home, wash them, dry them and put them back in the garage.

I RARELY see a Griot's BOSS pad fail.

Rarely.

Be careful which detailing guru listen to or which social media platform you hang out on.

 

[Mike PhillipsMike Phillips is verified member.]

I'd also add this,

This new G9 has enough power to turn, churn and burn any size pad. It really does have a lot of power.


I covered the topic of pads in my review in-depth...

Review: Griot's G9 - 9mm Orbit Stroke Random Orbital Polisher by Mike Phillips

I used this tool in its factory configuration, that is with the factory installed 6" backing plate. I know most of you that have been reading my articles or have attended any of my classes know I show and recommend 5" backing plates for tools like this. Two reasons for this are,

1: With a 5" backing plate you can use 5.5" diameter buffing pads and simply put, smaller diameter pads tend to fit thinner body panels on modern cars better. That is you can buff out a section of a panel that has an edge on one side and a raised body line on the other side so you're never buffing on top of the edge or the body line. (good best practice)

2: Smaller, thin pads are easier for tools to maintain pad rotation. While this has been an issue historically, this isn't a problem with the new Griot's G9 - like I mentioned above, it has a TON of power.

And I wrote this and shared the pictures of the NUMBER of pads I used ON PURPOSE (I do this in ALL my write-ups). I count 8 of the orange pads and there's only 1 of the very aggressive white pad.

Pads, Products & Tools
I try to always take a picture of all the pads I use when I buff out a car. Why? Because most people don't know how many pads they need and I would day from about 32 years of experience, most people don't have enough pads to buff out a car. So when purchasing a Griot's G9 polisher, be sure to get plenty of pads.

 

[Mike PhillipsMike Phillips is verified member.]

And I'm going to add one more thing....

Thicker pads feel better on most tools as far as the "buffing experience" goes, that is holding the tool and moving it over a body panel.

I've only used the THIN BOSS pads on this tool so far. Tonight, I'll test out the thicker Griot's pads and see how they feel.

These pads here,


Griots Garage Random Orbital Buffing Pad Guide

I'm also switching my personal G9 over to the NEW Griot's G9 5" backing plate so I can turn and churn the 5.5" foam pads.




I'm fairly confident the G9 will no problem with these thicker foam pads. If you can wait until tomorrow I'll let you know.

Test out the NEW FLEX and Griot's Polishers this Thursday Night!

 

[oneheadlite]

The reviews were on the Griots website!

Without trekking over to their site to dig through reviews, I can tell you you’ve got a big advantage on your side already - You’re on this forum polling many detailing experts/enthusiasts for their experience and advice. Thus, you’re finding out early the keys to pad life (regardless of brand)

I’m a long time Griot’s fan, starting off with their stuff as a catalog customer. One thing I don’t think they relay well enough is the number of pads you need to do a job. I certainly wasn’t aware of it until I joined here.

I’d be willing to bet most of the pad failures people are complaint about is either the pads going concave in the center or the backing material separating from the pad. Both of these are generally caused by running the pad too long and at too high a speed. The pads get saturated with product, increasing their weight and reducing their effectiveness. This generates a lot of heat in the pad, causing it to break down.

You’re gonna love the G9! I’ve only run mine a little bit for a test panel, but it’s a sweet machine. I run the BOSS pads on mine, but I do have some of their standard pads in both the 5.5 and 6.5 inch sizes.

If you get the 5” backing plate, make sure to get the new Black 5” plate- it’s had revisions for cooling to match well with the G9.

 

[Reuben Brumby]

Thanks for chiming in. I will wait for your analysis! Thanks again for coming to Chicago!

 

[Reuben Brumby]

My 5" backing plate should be arriving tomorrow!

 

[Mike PhillipsMike Phillips is verified member.]

Thanks for chiming in. I will wait for your analysis! Thanks again for coming to Chicago!

Now I recognize your name - you attended the Wax Shop Classs!

We used the Griot's 5.5" pads tonight on the 5" backing plate and they worked GREAT!

Also, everything that tested out the G9 loved it.

BF One Step now available in 16 ounce bottle.

 

[Reuben Brumby]

Now I recognize your name - you attended the Wax Shop Classs!

We used the Griot's 5.5" pads tonight on the 5" backing plate and they worked GREAT!

Also, everything that tested out the G9 loved it.

BF One Step now available in 16 ounce bottle.

Awesome thanks a ton! I was also thinking about what would happen if I used Blackfire one step with a Griots microfiber cutting pad on swirled paint? Would it cut enough but not finish well?

Or should I use the Wax Shop heavy cut compound with Griots cutting mf and finish with Wax shop finishing polish and Griots mf finish pad, or Griots regular black finishing pad?

Vehicle in question is a 2014 black vw with clay marring and light to medium swirling.

 

[JustJesus]

Test spot. that's the best way to know what combo leaves you most satisfied.