UDM – A mini review
Talking with Johnny O at
‘Clean and Shiny’ in England recently he kindly offered to send me a pre-production 240v UDM for trial and review and who was I to refuse such a great opportunity!
I don’t own a PC 7424 and enough has been written comparing it to the UDM on size, weight, build quality etc that I can’t add anything, especially as I am a novice to machine polishing.
The Car
A friend’s Mercedes SL320 was chosen to test the UDM due to the severe swirls, holograming and scratches present. Unfortunately I could only lay my hands on a
Lake Country White CCS polishing pad and some
Menzerna PO106FF polish. This was to be a tough test!
The Process and Results
The boot lid was masked off down the middle and the process followed was the same as would be used for a PC, ie spread on speed 1, step-up to speed 3 for a couple of passes and then speed 5 or 6 (no discernable difference?) to fully work the abrasives in the polish until it went clear. 15 or 20lbs of pressure was mostly applied although 35 or 40lbs force was also tried to see if the UDM would bog down and it didn’t. 6 full sets of polishing followed taking the best part of 2 hours! However, it was worth it, and the after photos show that 95% paint correction was achieved. A few deeper scratches remained but, due to the vibration, my hands and arms just couldn’t take any more punishment. It really was that bad and didn’t matter if I used the side handle or held the head of the machine, both positions were equally uncomfortable by now. I’m led to believe that the machine I tried is not typical of the vibration that should be encountered and I hope this is true.
The Verdict
I found the UDM good to use in all respects other than vibration and would urge DavidB to
replace this particular machine as soon as possible if further damage is not to be done to the UDM’s reputation and hinder potential sales. Sorry David!
The Photos
Swirls and marring
Swirls and marring close-up
50:50 Photo showing correction
50:50 Photo showing correction
Correction under Brinkmann
Many thanks to Johnny at C&S for the loan of the UDM.
Linear Mode
