Rotary Newb finds success with Poorboy’s help

[awd330]

This thread could alternatively be titled something like, “Gosh, this rotary stuff isn’t so hard after all!” Today was my first experience with using a circular polisher. I’ve been using a Porter Cable Dual Action polisher for about 2 years, so I wasn’t totally unfamiliar with machine polishing a vehicle. However, I had never dared to try my hand with a rotary due to all the well known horror stories (burnt paint, holograms, torn off trim pieces, etc.). I only detail for fun, and most of the cars I work on are in pretty good condition. So, proficiency with a rotary wasn’t a skill that I really needed to develop. However, the opportunity arose to learn the craft from an expert. How could a DC member in good conscience pass that up? Did I mention that said expert also provided a beater test vehicle for a guinea pig? Bring it on!

Setting the stage:
The participants – awd330 (The Newb) and Poorboy (The Pro)
The tool - Makita 9227CX3
The guinea pig – a red, oxidized, water spotted, cobweb covered Lincoln that had been parked in the tall weeds for who knows how long

Here is a photo of the rotary – [Note: The pictured backing plate is not the stock part. It is an aftermarket flexible plate sized to properly fit Lake Country 7.5” Advanced (curved edge) pads. Thanks for the special order Dwayne!]

[awd330]

Besides the rotary itself, I remembered to bring the following accessories:
An assortment of pads, backing plates, and connectors
Cotton terry weave towels
Microfiber work towels
S&W
SSR2.5
SSR2
SSR1
PP
PwC
Distilled Water in a spray bottle
50/50 Isopropyl Alcohol/Water mixture in a spray bottle

[awd330]

The neglected car belongs to Steve’s cousin. He’d like to put the car up for sale, but he never got around to sprucing it up enough to sell. The vehicle has been sitting amongst a veritable jungle of weeds adjacent to an automotive repair facility. Here is a picture of the work environment.

[awd330]

Steve and his cousin did some heavy duty weeding to clear out some work space. However, the guinea pig was still parked up against a wall to the left and a fence to the rear. It also had flat tires, so moving it wasn’t an option today. So, we settled for just working on the panels that we could comfortably reach. Here is a picture of the untouched left side of the hood.

[awd330]

Which pad should we start with? Steve said, “I like wool” and installed the wool pad that came packaged with the Makita kit. That was fine with me, as it allowed me to conserve my LC and Edge foam pads for use on my own cars. At the same time, I felt some trepidation about using wool as I perceived wool to be more “dangerous” than foam. Steve proceeded to prime the pad with SSR2.5 and then tapped the machine over the hood to distribute the product. He said that he could have also squirted product directly onto the paint, but that it would be easier for a beginner to just place the product on the pad. He set the speed control to “1” and then showed me how to position and maneuver the buffer. I tried one pass at the low speed before Steve had me increase the control dial to a speed slightly above“2”. I noticed that there was more “kick back” from using the rotary compared to a PC dual action, but the Makita was still easy to control. I worked the product until it started to dry, then wiped with a cotton towel. A lot of the oxidation was already gone, but many of the physical defects remained. Steve explained that SSR2.5 should be used at a higher speed to properly break down the product, but he wanted me to get a feel for the tool at the lower range of speeds first. We switched to SSR2, primed the pad & surface, and then spread again at speed “1”. Then, Steve said “Crank it up to “4” or “5”!”. I turned the control to “3”, then “3.5”, and then “4”. When I tried to increase it to “4.5”, there was a significant amount of extra torque transmitted. I adjusted the speed control until I was comfortable with the vibration level (this was at around “4.25”. I continued at this speed until the product started to dry up. Then, we sprayed a 50/50 alcohol/water mixture and wiped with a MF towel. Wow! What an improvement! More importantly, there were no buffer induced swirls. Yippee! I’m not sure if the dual action PC would have been able to make the same amount of progress. Even if it could, it most certainly would have taken many more passes. Here is a picture of the right side of the hood after one pass with SSR2.5 at low speed and one with SSR2 at a higher speed.

[awd330]

A picture showing the whole hood with one side buffed and the other untouched.

[awd330]

Another angle of the hood showing the “before” and “after”.

[awd330]

Okay, so the hood turned out pretty well. We’ll follow-up with a finishing polish and some protectant, but that will have to wait for another day. Today’s goal was to finish the panels that we could easily reach. Steve said that vertical panels required some different techniques and then showed me how to hold and move the buffer on the front fender. Then, I got a chance to try what I’d learned on the doors. I worked on the wide sections, but left the difficult spots (around the mirrors, trim, and side pillars) to Steve. Steve showed me how to properly angle the pad to reach into those tough areas. When we get to work on the other side of the car, I’ll give those tips a try. Here is a photo of the doors and front fender. The main sections of the doors were buffed, but the bottom panels were untouched.

[awd330]

The roof was the next panel, but first I needed to find something to stand on. Being vertically challenged, I couldn’t reach much of the roof without some outside assistance. Steve found me an old wheel to serve as a step stool. I worked on the roof using the same techniques that I used on the hood. However, the machine was much more difficult to control at shoulder level than at waist level. I commented that it was a good thing I decided to purchase the lighter Makita version rather than the heavier DeWalt, Porter Cable, or Milwaukee models. My shoulders started to ache before I was even two thirds of the way done with that half of the roof. I have no problems using a dual action PC in this manner, but the rotary’s torque made me have to work much harder to hold the machine steady. Steve said “That’s why they call it WORK!”.

By the time we finished the roof and started on the trunk lid, it had started to rain. I did one pass on the trunk, then Steve quickly finished up the panel so we could get out of the rain. We got all the equipment put away, then the rain stopped. This was a good point for stopping, so we just decided to call it a day. I used some S&W to clean off the last of the residue and the newly deposited raindrops, then took this final picture. You can see where we polished one side of the hood and roof as well as the front fender. The bumper was left untouched.

Thanks for the lesson Steve! Seeing the techniques in person, along with the added benefit of one-on-one coaching, made the whole process seem very simple!

[Woob]

:drool Man I want a rotary! But thats after a few months with my beautiful PC!

[wifehatescar]

Did you use wool for the SSR 2.5 and 2?

Have you tried a foam pad on the rotary yet? I find that with a foam pad and SSR3 or 2.5, the pad gums up easily and starts to skip and jump alot due to the higher solids content in those products. A wool pad doesn`t really load up like that.

[Poorboy]

exactly why I started her on wool...using foam requires less product and more technique IMO, as the product has less absorbsion into the pad`s surface:D

[wifehatescar]

Let me ask this then.....

I tried an 8" wool pad for the first time yesterday. While it was easier to control it was just huge! It seems like I much prefer 6" DA pads on the rotary as well as PC.

Seems like these 8" pads would work better back in the 70`s when the cars were huge (hoods, trunks, roof). A small pad can cover more paint next to an edge as well. I did a 02 TransAm with the 8" and it seemed like the pad was always over an edge or something because it covered so much area.

I`m thinking of try to trade my 8" pads for some 6" wool pads.....any comments?

PS - I have been using 6" DA FOAM pads on my rotary for a couple months with good success. I`m trying wool for cars that a pretty messed up.

[dafowl1]

Wow one day i`ll get there

[Poorboy]

Originally posted by wifehatescar
Let me ask this then.....

I tried an 8" wool pad for the first time yesterday. While it was easier to control it was just huge! It seems like I much prefer 6" DA pads on the rotary as well as PC.

Seems like these 8" pads would work better back in the 70`s when the cars were huge (hoods, trunks, roof). A small pad can cover more paint next to an edge as well. I did a 02 TransAm with the 8" and it seemed like the pad was always over an edge or something because it covered so much area.

I`m thinking of try to trade my 8" pads for some 6" wool pads.....any comments?

PS - I have been using 6" DA FOAM pads on my rotary for a couple months with good success. I`m trying wool for cars that a pretty messed up.

it is true that larger pads on some of the newer small vehicles are a bit harder to control, that`s why we used a big old Lincoln for learning. Experience will allow you to use larger pads, which cover more area faster, but you must use what you are comfortable with. Try a 6" or 7" wool pad and see if it works better for you, but I`m sure you`ll also need to use the smaller foam pads for use on light swirls and tight places.