UDM thoughts from a normal guy....Dissapointed

WilliamHBonney · 07-17-07, 10:17

Well the intent of this review is not to step on any toes just offer an honest persons thoughts who is an enthusiasts detailer and someone who details for cash whenever I want to but not every week.

Going in I was expecting a lot more power from the way that it was advertised and what the general reactions from the beta testers stated.

First thing I noticed is that its heavier, not much but enough to notice.

Second was the backing plate was way to small so put a larger one on. It vibrated so badly I wasn’t sure if I wanted to fix the hood with it and go to the rotary. So I went down to a 4 inch pad and a 2 ¾ inch backing plate. At that size it worked great but it covered such a small area that there was not a lot of use for it. So I went back to the backing plate that came with the UDM and used the 6.5inch LC VC pads I have always used. It was better than the larger 5.5 inch backing plate but by much. At one point the vibrations were so bad that I tried to take by wedding ring off and couldn’t get it off because my hands had swollen up. Anyone who says the vibrations are less than the PC I think you are crazy. To cut down on vibrations I put the handle on it but I just don’t like that feeling so I tossed it off after one panel.

The on / off switch is the biggest pain in the a$$. I must have accidentally turned the UDM on 4 times, I really hope a fix for this comes out. I like the way the speed dial protrudes from the machine, its easier to adjust speed. And the cord being shorter is also not good, even though I use an extension cord there are times where I am in a confined space and would like the extra distance so that I do not have to get out the extension cord.

In summary, don’t expect miracles, and I would not say that its going to remove rotary type swirls. I guess I was just expecting a smoother machine and I certainly did not get one. Its definitely better than the PC and will probably replace it but it sure did not live up to the hype I had read. If we could kick the power up another 20% and get rid of the vibrations it would be much better.

EDIT: Im a moran and can not spell. Yes I know moran is spelled wrong, its an OT thing.

MotorCity · 07-17-07, 10:37

Thanks for the review BUT, after all that you said I am confused by your closing statement that it's better than the PC.. How so?

Any chance we could get you to do a 50/50 panel with the udm/pc same pad/product combo?

Jason

WilliamHBonney · 07-17-07, 11:15

Quote:

Originally Posted by MotorCity

Thanks for the review BUT, after all that you said I am confused by your closing statement that it's better than the PC.. How so?

Any chance we could get you to do a 50/50 panel with the udm/pc same pad/product combo?

Jason

Sorry, Im not the best at writing reviews, I more or less just blurt out thoughts. Its better in that it does not bog down like the PC and it has more correcting abilities. You are getting more bang for the buck than the PC. It is just after IMO how it was presented and initial reviews I took it that the machine would be smoother and more powerful than the PC. It is indeed more powerful but not as powerful as I thought it would be and certainly is no smoother IMO.

I have a Corvette coming to me on Friday that I will test out how it works with a more aggressive compound and pad combo, but my car just did not need that much work. It was more for fun than anything.

Again no disrespect to DavidB and the creators as I have the utmost respect for all that they put into this project. These are just the thoughts of a common person who has a passion for detailing and does do detailing for money when the mood hits him.

z06meister · 07-17-07, 11:36

If you already had a PC ROB and a Rotary would you still replace the PC with a UDM? Anymore, I find the onlt time I use my ROB is for a quick once over after I use my Rotaary just to ensure the Rotary did not leave any light holograms that I can not see.

WilliamHBonney · 07-17-07, 11:48

Quote:

Originally Posted by z06meister

If you already had a PC ROB and a Rotary would you still replace the PC with a UDM? Anymore, I find the onlt time I use my ROB is for a quick once over after I use my Rotaary just to ensure the Rotary did not leave any light holograms that I can not see.

Probably not. Quite frankly my wife wanted to get me a wedding gift that was not expensive as we spent enough on our rings and the wedding and I thought this was a good idea.

If you are debating between the UDM and the PC, its a no brainier, UDM due to the additional power. I was just expecting more, when I put it on setting 6 my first thought was that it seemed a little more powerful and didnt bog down, but again I was expecting more.

If you have a PC and a Rotray and can use both effectively, no point in getting the UDM.

My dream is rotary power in a UDM package.....

Jakerooni · 07-17-07, 12:25

I was wondering about this as well. From what I've read the UDM is nothing more than a crutch for a beginner. It seems if your already skilled with a rotary I don't see any advantage to the UDM or even a PC. It really comes off (to me anyways) as a beginners tool to detailing. Can anyone explain to me why the UDM is a good purchase if your already skilled with a rotary? What benifits does it offer over a rotary. My rotaries are all variable speed so i can go as slow or as fast as I need to with that. Pleanty of Foam pad options out there for my dewalt. I'm just curious as to why this is such a popular item. I'm sure there's really got to be something to it.

WilliamHBonney · 07-17-07, 12:32

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jakerooni

I was wondering about this as well. From what I've read the UDM is nothing more than a crutch for a beginner. It seems if your already skilled with a rotary I don't see any advantage to the UDM or even a PC. It really comes off (to me anyways) as a beginners tool to detailing. Can anyone explain to me why the UDM is a good purchase if your already skilled with a rotary? What benifits does it offer over a rotary. My rotaries are all variable speed so i can go as slow or as fast as I need to with that. Pleanty of Foam pad options out there for my dewalt. I'm just curious as to why this is such a popular item. I'm sure there's really got to be something to it.

Well, I think that the intent of the marketing is to market it to those who may have a fear about the rotary and this is a medium between the rotary and the PC. Benefits over the rotary are lighter less chance to do damage. With the flick of a switch you can burn paint with the rotary but I dont see how you could with the UDM. Ive already tried and although I was unwilling to let it go more than 60 seconds in one spot on my car, it did no visible damage. I wish that I would have gotten the Hitachi rotary as I have the Porter Cable rotary and its just too bulky to use on vert panels.

WilliamHBonney · 07-17-07, 02:19

Another observation after using the machine for the last hour, if you change backing plates after using for extended period of time, dont touch the counterweight, or in my case your arm, it will burn you.

Jakerooni · 07-17-07, 04:15

Ah ok so my assumption seems to be on the mark I take it. If your not skilled with a rotary then this is a good tool. But someone like myself who is extreamly confident with using a rotary probably wouldn't find much use for this... Thanks for the info.

ZoranC · 07-17-07, 04:18

Quote:

Originally Posted by WilliamHBonney

Second was the backing plate was way to small so put a larger one on. It vibrated so badly I wasn’t sure if I wanted to fix the hood with it and go to the rotary. So I went down to a 4 inch pad and a 2 ¾ inch backing plate. At that size it worked great but it covered such a small area that there was not a lot of use for it. So I went back to the backing plate that came with the UDM and used the 6.5inch LC VC pads I have always used. It was better than the larger 5.5 inch backing plate but by much. At one point the vibrations were so bad that I tried to take by wedding ring off and couldn’t get it off because my hands had swollen up. Anyone who says the vibrations are less than the PC I think you are crazy.

In apples to apples test when using backing plate that comes with UDM (as that is size counterweight was designed for) on both of them with 5" pads on both of them (as that is the size that is best fit for that backing plate) vibrations are less than a PC.

phamkl · 07-17-07, 06:51

Yea, with 5 and 6" pads I've had very little uncomfortable vibrations. I was able to use it with one hand on speeds 4-6 smoothly and with confidence. It just appears the UDM at this point can't handle a 6.5" pad all that well?

ZoranC · 07-17-07, 09:02

Quote:

Originally Posted by phamkl

It just appears the UDM at this point can't handle a 6.5" pad all that well?

I don't think pad size makes as much difference as the fact that bigger pad size is harder to perfectly center/balance on backing plate which will create vibrations. Further more, even same amount of imbalance will cause more vibrations with bigger pad because location of weight is shifting further away from center. That is one of reasons why I like pads that are just slightly larger than backing plate. Much easier to center them.