paint polisher advice

[Greg L.]

I'm looking for a decent all around paint polisher/buffer that will work on lacquer as well as the newer clear coats and was wondering what your opintions are on these two.

I was going to order a Makita 9227C polisher kit like this one.

http://www.coastaltool.com/cgi-bin/SoftCart.exe/a/makita/9227c.htm?E+coastest

Then I noticed this one from Griot's.

http://www.griotsgarage.com/product/tools/detailing+tools/griot%27s+garage+random+orbital.do

I think the Griot's one might be better for a guy like myself that has very limited polishing experience because it's orbital but I thought that I'd check and see what you all think first. Quality and feature wise is the Griot's one any good or would it be good for me just because it's orbital?

I also seem to remember that Harbor frieght had one that may have been okay but can't seem to find it so may I was wrong on that.

[Joe C.]

Re: paint polisher advice

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00002247Y

[Pete B.]

Re: paint polisher advice

http://www.coastaltool.com/cgi-bin/SoftCart.exe/a/port/7424-polisher.htm?E+coastest

This is a dual action polisher that will not burn paint or cause swirls. I saw it demo'd a few years back by Meguires and it is great. It has a speed limiter and you can hold the pad with your hand. I am a complete novice also but this gives me pro results!

[Bruce B.]

Re: paint polisher advice

I own and have used a Makita variable speed for years and it is a great buffer. The Milwaukee is a good buffer also.
I believe the key to a easy to use buffer is weight, more weight the better. The heavy buffers take a little getting used to but are effortless and do a superior job.
Burce B.

[William G.]

Re: paint polisher advice

The Makita is a great buffer. I wet sanded and buffed my 66 with the Makita. A buffer and a polisher are two different animals. It is true that a dual action polisher is safer for the amateur and less likely to cut through your finish coat but a dual action polisher will not work well if you are buffing out any sanding marks after wet sanding with 2000 or 3000 grit or need to remove any deeper scratches. If you have the experience the buffer is the way to go.

[Stephen L.]

Re: paint polisher advice

IT's not only the buffer motor that is important... more important is the pad used with a particular compound.
I have a Makita variable speed unit. Don't waste your money on "general" pads. I use 3M products which have a recommended pad/compound relationship, depending what stage of buffing you are at. Also get a buffer with a "hook-it" pad to eliminate the center hole in the pad. Keep the pad clean by periodically running a screwdriver thru it while it is spinning. Wash the pad periodically and spin dry using the buffer.
Buffing is an "art" so be careful. Always buff with the pad motion going "away" from an edge, not into it.... Keep moving to prevent heat buildup. Stay away from edges and corners as much as possible. When you need to buff these areas be very careful as they can buff thru very rapidly.

Practice on out of the way places until you get the feel of it.

Buff under flourescent lites for a perfect job. These lights reveal imperfections that natural light doesn't. I have a flourescent light mounted vertically on a stand which I use when doing the sides of the car. This gives me a good reflection of the panels to see any small discrepancies.

Patience, patience, patience. You may need to resand some after buffing to eliminate imperfections and then rebuff again

[Donald T.]

Re: paint polisher advice

I use a dewalt variable speed buffer along with Meguiar's pads and one step compound. It works good on laquer, but I don't know about urethanes. I have also used 3M pads and compounds on laquer and urethane with good results. The one step is just a simpler process. As was stated previously, a paint job can be damaged VERY quickly with a high speed buffer.

[Pete B.]

Re: paint polisher advice

As you can see there are a lot of good ones out there. I was terrified about swirl marks. The dual action of the porter cable quickly removed my fears of screwing up my 20 year old original paint. So moral of my story is I found that i could do a good polish with out the stress of burning and swirl marks. I used megures 2 step mild cutting and polish for DA polishers.
I had never held a polisher before.

[Greg L.]

Re: paint polisher advice

Thanks guys. I guess the orbital is generaly safer for a first time user but if there is a way for me to damage the paint with one I'll find it!

What do you guys think of the quality of the Griot's buffer?

[Donald L.]

Re: paint polisher advice

I have one and its an excellent quality polisher. I think its a Porter Cable 7424 with a front u shaped handle. Very hard to screw up the paint using this polisher.

[Christopher R.]

Re: paint polisher advice

Griot's has a free CD on how to do this. Coastal Tool used to have a free one too. The Coastal Tool CD was on how to buff a C1.

Coastal Tool used to have the best price on the Porter Cable. Their prices are very competitive in general. When I did the research on this subject last year, I ended up buying the Porter Cable 7424 from Coastal. I believe the Griot one is the Porter Cable 7424 with Griot's labelling. Not sure, though.

The Porter Cable 7424 is the one that most of the guys on the detailing bulletin boards use. That's not to say it's the best. That's not to say it's the best for you or your application. Just that it's popular.