recommendations of a car polisher - Honda Prelude Forum

ugotshafted · 12-25-2004, 06:52 PM

what is a good one to get .... seen some from porter and cable, dewalt, and makita... is the DA from PC good enough? since we are the topic anyways .. what are some good products to use ?

KB798 · 12-25-2004, 10:57 PM

What kind of experience have you had with polishers? If you've had rotary polisher experience, nothing is going to beat that but if you're new to machine polishing then a Porter Cable 7424 or 7336 DA Orbital Buffer would be the next best thing.

The best products to use depend on the condition of your paint - if you have a severly swirled/scratched surface then a heavier polish would be better, and likewise with a lightly marred surface and a less abrasive polish. There's been a wide variety of products already covered in this forum, but here's a rough scale to follow of polish abrasiveness:

Glaze (Meguiar's Show Car Glaze)
Swirl Remover/Light polish (3M Swirl Mark Remover)
Medium Cut Polish (More of a gray area...but maybe Meguiar's No.9?)
Heavy Cut Polish (Menzerna IP, Meguiar's No.83)

ugotshafted · 12-26-2004, 07:51 AM

I don't have any experience with any ... but if I get the 7336DA ... is that just as good as one of those high powered ones? I know the high powered ones can do more harm then good ... but I not just gonna to just leave it one spot ...heard ya have to keep it moving ... just want the best results .... well my paint is still very good condition .... there are light scratches here and there ....
so do I need to get a clay bar the car? then polish and then wax?

cementups · 12-26-2004, 12:18 PM

You don't need to use a clay bar if you are using an aggressive pint cleaner. Clay barring jusst takes toooo much time.

I would say, since your new jsut gettimng a DA buffer would be good enough for you.

KB798 · 12-26-2004, 01:13 PM

A DA buffer would be more than enough for you. Rotaries are used mainly by professionals for time efficiency and to be able to tackle deeper marring.

ugotshafted · 12-27-2004, 06:38 PM

where are u guys find the pad for the pc? went to a body shop and they don't have anything that fits ?

KB798 · 12-27-2004, 11:02 PM

I prefer Lake Country pads, but the Meguiar's will work fine as well. I get mine from www.detailersparadise.com. They put their own name on them, but it's the same pad.

ugotshafted · 12-27-2004, 11:25 PM

damn it is a toss up ! pc or dewalt !

KB798 · 12-27-2004, 11:43 PM

I would go with PC

ugotshafted · 12-27-2004, 11:46 PM

blah ya nothing making this any easier ... I heard nothing but good things about the pc ... and I heard the dewalt is mack daddy of all polishers ... and I am a cleaning freak !!! but thanks that site is pretty good ...

KB798 · 12-28-2004, 12:22 AM

Are you referring to the Dewalt rotary?

ugotshafted · 12-28-2004, 07:09 AM

yes

KB798 · 12-28-2004, 11:44 AM

If you haven't had experience with a rotary, it's highly recommended that you stick with the PC. It's a lot easier to do damage to the car with the rotary, whereas it's really hard to do damage with any DA buffer.

JoeW · 01-04-2005, 05:32 PM

I noticed you're in Raleigh too. If you want, you can use my PC sometime and see if you like it. I need to get some new pads but these should still be good for a little while longer.

ugotshafted · 01-04-2005, 08:24 PM

ah cool .... yeah I just bought one (pc) ... but can u help me show me how to use it ... trying to get it all clean and buffed out by sun .. let me know ....