Autopia.org - View Single Post - Question for PC users that switched to Rotary?

Accumulator · 10-03-07, 09:55

I dunno...IMO it's perfectly possible to not have that OMG moment with the rotary

Takes a certain mindset, but IMO it's like using a chainsaw- mistakes can be very serious but they don't necessarily ever have to happen.

Tape/remove all trim; pay close attention to what you're doing *every second* (consider taking breaks so you stay fresh and focused); err on the side of caution/resist the "just a little more..." temptation; give prior thought to what you'll do if the pad skips or something otherwise goes wrong.

I'm no rotary-Meister, but I can honestly say I've only had two incidents of damage:

'84 Volvo- I put a lot of the blame on the panel's having been badly repainted (burned a small area of clear in an instant at ~1200 rpms with polishing pad/3M 05937 while somehow not damaging the adjacent paint at all).

'97 M3- I took the paint off maybe 1/2" of a painted plastic trim panel's edge. I knew I was being mighty aggressive for the piece in question but it was so scratched up I woulda had it repainted had the marring not come out. As it was I touched up the damage and it looks a lot better than before I started. Still, this is a perfect example of "just a little more" getting somebody in trouble. And there's simply no way I could do that car's clear with a PC/Cyclo; it's taking *many* passes with the rotary/HT-EC/cutting pad/high rpms.

10-03-07, 09:55	#40 (permalink)
Accumulator Practical Perfectionist Accumulator is offline Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: NE Ohio Posts: 19,582	Re: Question for PC users that switched to Rotary? I dunno...IMO it's perfectly possible to not have that OMG moment with the rotary Takes a certain mindset, but IMO it's like using a chainsaw- mistakes can be very serious but they don't necessarily ever have to happen. Tape/remove all trim; pay close attention to what you're doing every second (consider taking breaks so you stay fresh and focused); err on the side of caution/resist the "just a little more..." temptation; give prior thought to what you'll do if the pad skips or something otherwise goes wrong. I'm no rotary-Meister, but I can honestly say I've only had two incidents of damage: '84 Volvo- I put a lot of the blame on the panel's having been badly repainted (burned a small area of clear in an instant at ~1200 rpms with polishing pad/3M 05937 while somehow not damaging the adjacent paint at all). '97 M3- I took the paint off maybe 1/2" of a painted plastic trim panel's edge. I knew I was being mighty aggressive for the piece in question but it was so scratched up I woulda had it repainted had the marring not come out. As it was I touched up the damage and it looks a lot better than before I started. Still, this is a perfect example of "just a little more" getting somebody in trouble. And there's simply no way I could do that car's clear with a PC/Cyclo; it's taking many passes with the rotary/HT-EC/cutting pad/high rpms.