My Impressions of the Makita 9227c Rotary Buffer

jazzyjack · 11-12-01, 09:55

Have you ever just looked at your car and thought that there has to be a better way of getting a fantastic finish? I have and after much thought and question asking I took the plunge and bought a PC 7424. After purchasing the Porter Cable 7424 orbital buffer I was not happy with the finish of my wife's 1997 Toyota 4Runner. It's dark blue and at the time I knew that I could make this finish look new again. I was feeling guilty for doing stupid things to the finish, so I take all the blame. There were still swirls and non-leveled scratches in the finish by the door handles and near the bottoms of the doors from feet banging the finish.

I used all Meguiar's products along with my PC 7424 and though the finish looked a bit better, I wanted more. I took the 4Runner to a friend of mine that has been detailing for over 15 years and had him take a look. He reviewed with me both the products I used to repair the finish and the Porter Cable orbital buffer as well. He has never used one, but he admits that for a quick polish job, you could not go wrong with this tool. However to achieve the results I wanted I was going to have to face my fears and get a rotary buffer. He made two suggestions to me about brands. The first was the old dependable Dewalt DW847 or they're DW849. Or the new kid on the block the Makita 9227c rotary buffer. After taking a look and feel of both tools, I settled on the Makita. Here's why:

The no load speed of the Makita is 0-3000 RPM. That gives the user a lot of control on how fast the head will spin on the surface, as well as the ability to control the heat build up. The speed control is right by the back handle and is a dial type control. Speeds varied from 1-6, each setting a bit faster then the last. I have only used it on 1-3 and three being about 1500 RPM and this with a high quality-leveling compound. Using 3M's Perfect-IT II I use about 1100-1250 RPM and only a few passes to remove the imperfections. Also when starting the buffer it does not hit max speed setting right away. It's clutched and so it's a gradual build up to the set max speed. Very nice in that it will not jump out of your hands and damage the surrounding finish!

The weight of the Makita is only 6.6 lbs. and that is much lighter then the Dewalt machines I looked at. Thus adding to the control and fatigue issues some people have to deal with.

Third was the sound of the Makita at full throttle. This thing is very quiet. I could not believe it and it was more so then even the Porter Cable machine! This is good if you are going to be doing buffing on a regular basis. Easy on the ears! My wife came outside to see if I had even started and was surprised to find me buffing away on her baby.

The products I've used on this vehicle are as follows:

1. 3M Perfect-IT II for the first several passes
2. Race Glaze Leveling compound to polish and level the finish.
3. Zaino Z-1, Z-2 for sealant protection.

All in all it took me four hours from start to finish with the Makita to get a deep, deep, wet shine that looks better then new. I am amazed at how easy it is to use this rotary buffer and get great results. My only trick is this: be thoughtful, careful and pay attention. If I can get this type of results my very first time using a rotary buffer, then I think any enthusiast of detailing can as well! Please follow the provided link below to check out this machine. Thanks for reading my review.

http://www.makita.com/product/tool.asp?MODEL=9227C

FLONI · 11-12-01, 10:10

never heard people mention the noise factor before...but u can bet thats important...also...never heard of the race stuff before...how long have u used that and how do u like it

carguy · 11-13-01, 12:27

Thanks - good info. There absolutely, positively is stuff you just can't fix any other way - at least not without resorting to wet-sanding. I'm very tempted.

Can you tell us what kind of pads you chose for the various products, and why? Foam? Wool?

Brad B. · 11-13-01, 07:37

Great review!

BradE · 11-13-01, 08:13

Good Review Jazzy

I have been thinking about a rotary, now I will take a look at a Makita!

Freeman · 11-13-01, 08:23

Great review!! it was enough to push me over the edge, I have been reading and learning all I can about them rotarys,,and I am believing it is the way to go if you have anything more to do on vehicle besides polishing.
I am curious what pads u used ,,and did u use the rotary to apply the finall sealant ???? Thanks

Dude · 11-13-01, 09:27

Awesome review!

jazzyjack · 11-13-01, 10:29

To answer the questions about what Race Glaze is and what type of pads I've choosen to use:

Pads:

Meguiar's "Softbuff" cutting pad # W-7006 and "Softbuff" finishing pad # W-9006 both of which are foam and velcro backed for quick change.

My reasoning for not using the "Softbuff" buffing pad is that I wanted to keep things as gentle as I can. The finishing pad works just fine in this regard after using a cutting pad.

Race Glaze products are just another in a long line of products one can use. I use them due to my experiance at the body shop that fixed several scratches on my new 330i. They also are the ones that have the contract to repair, all BMW's from one of the local BMW dealerships in the Tacoma, Washington area. I figure if someone that has been detailing and fixing cars for over 15 years uses it, then I can as well.

But don't get me wrong, there are many different products on the market and this forum has made it easy in that we can find JUST the right one, that works best for us!

Provided link for "Race Glaze"

http://www.mr-shine.com/

PrinzII · 11-13-01, 03:03

My choices have just been narrowed down to Milwaukee and Makita.

Ron Ketcham · 11-14-01, 04:56

Keep in mind that I have been rotary buffing for longer than most here are old.

Milwaukee is a great buffer, but heavy, does last a long time between brushes and trigger replacements.

The DeWalt DW849 is the hands down unit of choice.

We have 30 of them in service at our shops, lighter, better speed control, easier to handle.

The Makita is ok for the occassional user, but for daily use, they get very hot due to a small armature, small bearing in the gear head etc. Use one like we do and in an hour it is so hot you don't want to hold on to it, plus the noise.

This is due to the light construction of the unit, the previous mentioned parts.

You want a true professional tool?

Get a DeWalt!

Ketch

jazzyjack · 11-14-01, 06:14

Ron it's very clear that your missing the point of the review. Not once is it mentioned in the entire review that professionals will choose this machine over either a Dewalt or Milwaukee brand polisher. I do know from experiance and talking with local detailers that all machines depending on where you touch them are hot. Especially on the brush covers on either side of the unit. There is really no getting around that. With the output of 10 amps the Makita is in the middle of the pack and the Milwaukee is outputting 11 amps which makes the brush covers hot enough to fry an egg. Not to mention it's almost 9 lbs. or weight.

Hands down the Makita is much more quiet then the Dewalt or the Milwaukee models. This being proven through a side by side comparison at both the detail shop my friend works at and at the tool dealer that sold me the Makita. By the way he sells all of the mentioned polishers/buffers and then some.

Finally to close the Makita offers a speed setting of 600 RMP, where the Dewalt DW849 starts at 1000 RMP. Seems to me that if a person wants to do a slow speed buff job, the Makita is a good choice. Also this is a new generation machine where the others have been mareket standards for several years.

41' · 11-29-01, 10:58

Great review.
Gotta ask: what kind of pads are we using here? Foam-backed
with velcro I assume.
thanks