My Review: Griot`s 6" DA, Hydrotech pads, ONR

[imported_RZJZA80]

Griot`s 6" - no question it has more power than any PC, and nears the power of my Makita 9227c, at least it feels like it. Performs flawlessly. My only gripe is that my hands tingle due to vibration, mainly my left hand which holds the handle or orbital area, so I take frequent breaks. Also, it may be just my eyes fooling me, but it seems that it just goes in a rotary like rotation and not really a random orbital....although I`m not exactly pressing down so hard like I did with my PC, but then again I don`t have to either.



Hydrotech Pads -



5.5" - I really like them overall, much better performance and finishing than the CCS which I am used to. The cyan pads don`t seem to last very long so far, they get soft and squishy after about half a car or so, and basically stop cutting as well. I`ve had a couple rip and start splitting in half, and a few others that got very soft and "soggy" in the middle, so I threw those out (after washing first to be sure). Combined with 205, this has been my one step, perfect finish go to and it cuts great and finishes perfectly. The orange pad works great with 205 also, I use it on softer clears and again it finishes LSP ready. I only use the red with Klasse AIO and it`s similar to the black CCS I used to use with it, no complaints.



4" - so far they wobble around so much I don`t feel comfortable using them. Either they are cut crooked or they are just too tall or I don`t know what, but unless I put a great amount of pressure, they go all over the place, don`t like it at all. I`ve reduced their use to using them by hand with 205 in those hard to reach areas.



ONR - I`ve been using just a normal microfiber towel to wash so far, and I will say it works very well as far as cleaning and glossing up the paint. However, the dirt and grime seem to permanently stick to the towel I use to wash to I`m using several towel for one car, I don`t know if others have this experience or not. I bought the Optimum mitt that`s made for ONR and I think it`s complete garbage. The raised edges on the foam make it difficult to clean as quickly because you have to go back and forth so many more times for the mitt to touch and wipe the paint clean. I suppose I could press down to get better contact, but I`m not doing that to wash a car, that invites marring IMO. It does work great as a clay lube also.



I think next I may try to Meg`s microfiber disks but I`m not sure about the compound and polish/wax they made to go with it. I`ll wait and read more about it and decide then.



Thanks again to Accumulator for his sound advise and patience with my many questions.

[imported_RZJZA80]

Update:



Last night, an orange Hydrotech 5.5" pad split from it`s velcro backing from the middle outwards, and created so much heat that it started to smoke up or at least steam up. I won`t be buying anymore Hydrotech pads. At 8 bucks a pop they just arent worth it. I`m only getting quality use from a pad for up to half a car, at least the CCS pads didn`t have this problem. I`m going with the normal Meg`s pads for now and continue to read up on the Meg`s microfiber pads.

[chris03tl]

I tried the Crimson and Tangerine HydroTech pads in 5.5" size on my original PC.



Dont know if its just me, but the crimson didnt really feel soft enough to be an "ultra finish" pad. I didnt use the tangerine that much but a small part of the edge of the backing is starting to separate.



I may go `all in` to the Megs system. I have soft paint in general so I was looking for something that I can polish with and will wipe away easily without leaving dust, etc. Seems that the Megs D300/301 combination is pretty easy to work in to the point where it wipes right off with very little pressure. Thats what Im looking for. I know I can probably try the compounds with foam pads, but I might actually just put my foam pads up for sale and stick with the Megs system.