Help with Random Orbital Polisher

[escape]

I just found out that my wife got me a Porter Cable 7336 Sander/Polisher for my birthday. I want to be very happy, but I asked for the 7424 Orbital polisher. I did some research and found that the body and the motor is the same on both units, but the pads are different. Can I just put the polishing pads on the 7336 and have virtually the same polisher as the 7424?

[JasonD]

Yep, they are the exact same except the 7336 comes with a 6" counterweight and the 7424 comes with a 5" counterweight. You can buy the alternate from Coastal Tool online. Other than that, they are identical.

[JimGo]

Escape,

I just bought a 7336 from eBay, and got the Sonus pad kit from Autopia-Carcare. Did my first first-ever detail this weekend, and the backing plate fit perfectly!



Good luck and enjoy!

[escape]

Jim & Dookie,

Thanks for the replies, it is truly a happy day!



Jim,

Did you install a new counter weight or use the polisher "as-is"

Thanks

[Raven]

Escape, I have and use the 7336. Leave the counter balance as is, get a good backing plate and some pads. Your going to love using it.

[Accumulator]

Yeah, I have both the 7336 and the 7424 and I`ve switched backing plates and counterweights so often I can`t even tell which machine is which any more.



When you remove/repalce the backing plate, you can see the counterweight- it`ll say "use with 6" pads only". I like the larger counterweight for use with all but the 4" pads, you you`re all set.

[Pondscum]

The 6" counterweight that you get with the 7336 is probably the one you`ll want to use, so your wife did very good getting you that one. The pads you`re most likely to buy are in the 6.5" to 7.5" range. The 6" counterweight is going to give you the least vibration with these pads.



If you`re wanting to also use it for sanding, or you want to use some type of specialty pad that only comes in 4", then you would want the 5" counterweight that comes standard on the 7424.

[dcampen]

http://www.autopia.org/forums/showthread.php?threadid=14421&highlight=definitive+porter+cable

[escape]

Thank you all for the responses. As usual, this site was a wealth of information. I can`t wait to detail my Escape and 318ti!!!