Griot's Garage 6" Polisher: Current state of affairs

[Thomas Dekany]

Interesting how we had threads about keeping the GG pc at 4, the Meg's at speed 5 and the PCXP at 6 soon after the first MF pads came out to prevent damages with the pads. Either people forget or don't do research.

[RZJZA80]

Interesting how we had threads about keeping the GG pc at 4, the Meg's at speed 5 and the PCXP at 6 soon after the first MF pads came out to prevent damages with the pads. Either people forget or don't do research.

I've read where users go with speeds > 5 on GG6 and MF pads, so apparently it's not a universal rule. Megs I never tried, and my PC I haven't used in a few years.

[pwaug]

I believe the Lifetime Warranty offered with the GG DA is important for those of us who don't detail as a profession. Consider that a hobbyist might use the unit 5 or 6 times per year and that if the machine should fail after a few years it can simply be returned for repair or replacement. Without the lifetime warranty we would have a significant repair charge or worse have to purchase a new polisher.

Regarding the heat build up--I applied a coat of HD Speed to my Passat's hard paint--6 passes at speed 6 with firm pressure and 2 passes with light pressure using a B&S Orange pad to remove light to moderate wash induced marring. I used two sets of two pads--after each couple of sections I'd clean the pad on the fly with a denture brush then replace it with another--switching back and forth between the two for half the car and the same with the second set of two for the other half. NO heat build up problems what so ever. (Perhaps I should have used MF pads, UNO or Polish but this was my first complete polish--so with experience I may change my technique.)

[Thomas Dekany]

It is not a "RULE" but some of us figured out pretty quickly that higher speeds meant melted pads. Again one needs to use common sense. If D300 recommends to use that speed ( I recall) with the MF pads we are on our own if the pads get damaged. MF or foam. As pwaug also suggested, use 1 pad for 1 panel and switch to another if you need to use higher speeds. With speed 5 ( I use it often on some paint) the pads will last longer, but not like when you use 4.5

I've read where users go with speeds > 5 on GG6 and MF pads, so apparently it's not a universal rule. Megs I never tried, and my PC I haven't used in a few years.

[Barry Theal]

Speed 6 is just a waste, even though the added pressure slows down the rotation, your not loosing the cut. The movement of the DA provides the cut, while you want the pad spinning some, it does not need to spin at full speed in order to get what you want. This past week we did a test with 15lbs of pressure on speed 4.5 and 30lbs of pressure on speed 4.5 / not only did the 30lbs of pressure cut more, it provided a slightly better finish too since the pad wasn't spinning freely.

How does one measure exact pounds of pressure?

[DJ Mayo]

a digital scale that is used for measuring weight for when shipping packages. You can take whatever machine you are using are measure the weight and get a feel for how much pressure is being added, etc.

[ww2717]

by attaching a transducer to the da which in turn will measure mechanical pressure which is then converted into an electrical signal that can be metered by a pc and displayed by a graphing program on the pc.

[RZJZA80]

It is not a "RULE" but some of us figured out pretty quickly that higher speeds meant melted pads. Again one needs to use common sense.

So what does common sense have to do with it? Some people get great results with > 5 speed, and others just don't. My only statement was that it's not a universal rule that 4-4.5 is the only way to use MF pads.

[mikenap]

So what does common sense have to do with it? Some people get great results with > 5 speed, and others just don't. My only statement was that it's not a universal rule that 4-4.5 is the only way to use MF pads.

Actually, 4800 OPM is the universal "recommendation" from Meguiars when using their pads and compounds. It says it on the bottle of D300. Anything outside of that, and you're flying solo.

[RZJZA80]

Actually, 4800 OPM is the universal "recommendation" from Meguiars when using their pads and compounds. It says it on the bottle of D300. Anything outside of that, and you're flying solo.

Yes, I realize and already know what is "recommended", but I said it's apparently not a "universal rule", in other words, if you don't follow the recommendations, you may still be just fine, even though you're on your own. "Universal rule" being the key point in my statement, nothing about what's recommended and what's not.

[mikenap]

Yes, I realize and already know what is "recommended", but I said it's apparently not a "universal rule", in other words, if you don't follow the recommendations, you may still be just fine, even though you're on your own. "Universal rule" being the key point in my statement, nothing about what's recommended and what's not.

I understand, and am clarifying not just for you but for anyone else reading this thread. Thanks. Relax, I'm not attacking you!

[RZJZA80]

I understand, and am clarifying not just for you but for anyone else reading this thread. Thanks. Relax, I'm not attacking you!

Hey my bad, I've gotten a little defensive since certain people try to discredit whatever I say... haha! It's all good though, we're here to learn and help others when possible.