Edge 2000 Pads review

[gbackus]

I have a REALLY big review of these pads that I`ve been meaning to post up. Anyways, I`m just putting this here as a space saver ftm because I`m having trouble with digital camera and the pictures I have to go along with the review. Should I not be able to get the pictures up, the review will be posted later on tonight.



Stay Tuned

[gbackus]

Well I`m having trouble with the digital camera(the memory card actually, as the other card works fine, but it`s used for non detailing pictures) so unfortunately this review is going to suffer from a lack of pictures.



I tested the following pads on both the rotary and pc(where applicable).

Standard edge 2000 8" pads, orange, yellow, green, blue

Standard edge 2000 6" pads, yellow, green, blue

Waffle edge 2000 6" pads, yellow, green, blue

Waffle edge 2000 8" pads, white



Originally I had planned to have a lot of action shots, and before and afters, and a couple of comparison shots with competitors pads, unfortunately, that`s not going to happen, so this review will be a lot shorter than originally intended. So instead, I will just post some opinions and observations the edge 2000 pads.



Let me preface this review with this little tidbit. My first experience with the edge 2000 system was when the first da adapter and 6" pads were released. The adapter was too long and caused excessive vibration. The adhesive was also very poor and delaminated after a few short washes. At the time, I had not really cared about getting a replacement as I had plenty of hook and loop pads.



Fast forward to a couple of months ago when the newest PC adapter for the edge pads came out. I was intrigued and called Aaron about possibly getting an adapter even though I no longer had my original. I explained my previous experience with the edge 2000 system and Aaron quickly got out an adapter to me. I shortly ordered some pads and got to work.



Porter Cable

I can definately say that this is best system on the market, not only for the pc but for the rotary as well(more on the rotary later). The combination of the adapter and 2 sided pad is lighter than the standard backing plate+pad combination. The pad sits closer to the head of the machine, and is always center. I use a 6" counterweight, and have never used the 5" counterweight, but the vibrations transmitted through the porter cable with the edge 2000 system are significantly reduced to the point that the bone rattling vibrations are less than the standard hook and loop system. You can also apply a bit more pressure before the PC starts to bog down down as well. You also have an added benefit about not having to worry about melting backing plates, or failing velcro, etc. Also, the foam themselves are topnotch, though I prefer the standard rotary foam above anything else(the standard 6" green and yellow foams are durofoam and a bit stiff, when I later used the waffle 6" pads, I much prefered their texture, even on the PC).



Rotary

With the rotary, I am using the standard adapter, not the new shorter one. The rotary is a whole new ball game. I never knew what a difference PERFECTLY centering your pads could make not only on the balance of the machine, but on the quality of your finish as well. Changing pads is quick and easy, and the machine "feels" better, but polishing is so much easier now as I can finish perfectly with the rotary with products that I used to have to follow up with the PC with.



Waffle vs. Flat pads

With the porter cable, I found that I much prefered the flat pads. For seem reason the waffle pads created some "resistance" when polishing. I only use the PC for finishing and/or waxing.

With the rotary, I didn`t notice a difference with either the flat or waffle pads, though I slightly prefer the waffle texture.



[B]General Foam[B]

In general, all of the foams offered are high quality, and pretty much standard to everything else in the industry as far as cut/polish ability goes.



Exceptions

There are two notable exceptions however, the white ultrafine, and the orange eurofoam. I`ve never been a fan of the orange "power pad" type foams, but picked up an orange pad anyways because I was doing some pad/polish combination testings for someone else. I had a discussion with Aaron about this particular foam, and it seems the three of us(Aaron, myself, and the person I was doing the testing for) were in agreement with the pad. it is an EXCELLENT cutting pad that produces very little extra marring. I find it to be a very good alternative to wool when cutting out wet sanding marks when the appropriate compound is used, and it won`t leave the wool shedding or deep cuts that wool pads can sometimes leave. The white pad is another great product. I was originally having problems finishing with the blue pad and a rotary with a certain polish, even though if I switched polishes I could get a perfect finish. I discussed this with Aaron, and for the second time, he sent me something free of charge the alleviate my problems. Problem solved. The white pad is without a doubt the finest finishing pad I have ever used, and I have used a lot(lake country black and blue, sm arnold black/grey, buff and shine black and white, meg`s tan pad, etc.) Only the most inexperienced operator(or EXTREMELY soft paints) would not be able to get a perfect finish with the rotary and awhite pad with an appropriate polish.



Thoughts

The next thing on my list to try is the new short rotary adapter, as well as some of the edge wool pads. Hopefully I`ll be testing a new pad for Aaron, something I know a lot of people have been asking for, but we`ll just have to wait and see.



Finally, I`d like it to be known that with exception to the PC adapter and the white 8" waffle pad, I bought everything else with my own money. I posted up this review because I am extremely happy with my edge products, and just wanted to share the joy

[wannafbody]

Edge is aupposed to release interior PC brushes that attach using their quick connect system. IMO the slight concave nature of the EDGE pads work great on a rotary and reduce sling noticably.

[BigAl3]

thanks, for the input

[GeneralEclectic]

What`s their web site? "edge", "edge2000", "edgeproducts" all go somewhere else.

[holland_patrick]

dedacation to detail i bleive.



http://www.edgepads.com/E2kfoam.htm





homepage

http://www.edgepads.com/index.htm

[EMazda3S]

gbackus,

Thanks very much for the review! It is appreciated and timely for me because I was considering changing to the the Edge 2000 system for my PC. I think you pushed me over the "Edge". :waxing:

I was concerned about being able to add a little pressure and wasn`t sure if this could be done without the backing plate. Thanks for clarification.

I have read elsewhere about the incredible customer service that Edge provides and how Aaron is very easily reachable and solves any problem immediately.



I understand they will be introducing 4" pads for the PC. Did you have any discussion with Aaron on that?



Thanks again!



Eric

[Ron Harris]

I have had the Edge Wave (waffle) pad for a few weeks. Around the shop I call it the Orange Rumbler because it has a rumble to it when you use it. It is not listed on the web site yet. It is an Orange waffle pad. I have wanted to post my thoughts about it but have not had any time due to the large amount of Hail repairs I have been doing. 70 plus hours a week.



A couple of months back I was talking to David at Optimum about pads and compounding. I told him that I thought if someone would make the orange pad with the waffle pattern it would be great for compounding.



Why? Well if you have ever used an orange pad with a rotary to polish you know that it removes a lot of marring and scratches and will almost leave 0 swirls. With a compound it generates too much heat and dose not work that well. The waffle design runs cooler because air is allowed to circulate under the pad helping to keep the paint cool.



I tested with the Hyper compound the Edge waffle pad a lake country VC orange pad and a lake country VC yellow compounding pad. The test panel was a fresh repainted trunk lid for a bmw 5 black PPG paint 3 days old sanded with fresh 2000 grit 3M paper.





Paint temperature was at 73 degrees to start with.

Edge pad paint temperature when finished compounding 101. Very light swirls

LC yellow compounding temperature when finished compounding 99 moderate swirls

LC orange pad could not remove all the scratches and temperature was around 105. I finished removing the scratches with the edge pad.



I have a new kid working for me with limited buffing experience. I gave him a 5-minute training demo with this pad and let him go on a Black Honda S2000. He got great results and didn`t burn the paint. It took him a little longer than I would like but he was trying to get the finish swirl free with the compound.



The Edge Quick release buffing system is great. The pad is always centered and is double sided. Because the pad is centered it will help increase the life of your rotary and the adapter is guaranteed for life.



The Edge Orange waffle pad dose not make compounding faster however it will make your finish polishing faster with less steps. I can`t wait to try the rest of the waffle design pads. It works exactly like I thought it would and I’m sure it will perform well with a polish.

[GearHead_1]

I`ve got one of the Edge Orange Wave pads for my PC. I`m still waiting to try it.