It Came Today

ZaneO · 08-23-06, 04:31

Well my Hitachi rotary and flexible backing plate came in today!

My car wasn't clean, but I quickly QD'd a couple of areas so I could practice. Considering I've never used a rotary before, I think my first outing was a success. I used a finishing pad and PO106FF starting at ~800 rpm and then at ~1200 rpm. The finish was smooth, clear, and free of holograms.

Overall, the rotary was easy to use, but it seemed to "tug" a little when moving the same direction it spins. How can I minimize this?

wannafbody · 08-23-06, 05:41

I think an orange pad would be killer on a rotary-due to the fact that it tends to soak up product. The hardest thing is to reduce or eliminate splatter. Too much product and it just slings. The slight concave nature of the Edge cutting pads work great to reduce splatter IMO.

ZaneO · 08-23-06, 07:28

I applied a thin line of product across the pad and spread it over the panel with the machine turned off. I had zero splatter.

G35stilez · 08-23-06, 07:31

Zane: Stunning shot!

Keep the pad dead flat with zero pressure. Flat buffing pads work much better.

Once your pad is primed, you will buff much easier. If you want a smooth (est) buffing experience, put some Optimum Polish on there

.

106FF likes to be run at 1200 or 1500. Run Optimum at 1200.

ZaneO · 08-24-06, 08:51

I washed the car this morning and got some more practice in with the rotary.

The process was pretty similar - PO106FF with finishing pad at 1200 rpm.

I'm starting get a much better feel for the machine and how to "move" it.

awahl63 · 08-24-06, 09:27

Yeah I love my Hitachi...best purchase I've made so far

Dave KG · 08-24-06, 10:10

Cracking pics there mate!

When I first got my rotary, I experimented around with doing things deliberately wrongly so I could see how the machine responded in these situations to gauge what the machine responses were telling me... I found that if I tried to fight the rotary and steer it with my hand on the head of the tool, it would tug and pull at me. If however, I simply used my hand on the head as a pressure weight, and steered with my back hand and went with the flow of the tool it was nice and easy to use.

Also, far too much product or not enough produce caused the machine to hop up and down - buffer hop, which also contributed to a tugging effect.

Accumulator · 08-24-06, 11:21

ZanoO- Glad you like the rotary, bet you wonder how you got by without it. Those are great results and just go to show what a rotary-newbie *with the right mindset* can accomplish

Joshua312 · 08-24-06, 11:25

ZaneO, Cant wait too see some of your future click and brags using the Hitachi! Congrats on the new tool, looks like your getting use too it fast!

Way2SSlow · 08-24-06, 11:49

Zane,

Nice work. I love using a rotory vs a pc. It's just more comfortable to me.

Is that the factory paint on your Z?

BlackSunshine · 08-24-06, 12:41

Very cool Zane. I have been throwing around the idea of getting a Hitachi but I just don't polish my GTO enough to need it.

Keep us posted on how you feel about the rotary. Did you just jump right in and use your gut instincts or had you seen one used before?

ZaneO · 08-24-06, 01:03

Thanks for the feedback, guys!

Way2SSlow - unfortunately, I had most of the car repainted 6 years ago due to a hail storm.

Tyler - I've done lots of reading about proper rotary usage, but other than that, I've never used one. I decided that a finishing pad and slow speed would be safe to "jump in" on my car.

I'll have a practice hood by this weekend, so I can start working on major correction with the rotary. It will also make a good canvas for product testing.