A good Rotary polisher?

**SpoiledMan** · 02-18-2007, 11:48 AM

Yes it would be me.

As you can see, when I speak of the Edge 2K system it is because I have used it as well.

**BigAl3** · 02-18-2007, 11:50 AM

Originally Posted by SpoiledMan

Yes it would be me.

:up (insert rotary smilie) :chuckle:

**Thomas Dekany** · 02-18-2007, 01:50 PM

I used a Hitachi once and hated how it didn`t start slow like my makita.

**justin30513** · 02-18-2007, 02:13 PM

Originally Posted by tdekany

I used a Hitachi once and hated how it didn`t start slow like my makita.

The Harbor Freight has this feature. I thought it was something you all would hate! I love it.

**firegate** · 02-18-2007, 05:13 PM

Originally Posted by justin30513

I used the 9227 and mine. Not much difference in my opinion. The bodyshop owner that has used the 9227 everyday could barely tell them apart.........other than the 200.00 difference.

What was your opinion on the HF model?

Did you do any type of reviews?

I have one of the HF rotary`s as well and I don`t care for it. Unless they`ve changed it since I bought one, it lacks electronic speed control. I will admit that it does have a fairly nice weight though - just slightly heavier than the 9227. I suppose it would be a good machine for running a Dynabrade.

**justin30513** · 02-18-2007, 05:28 PM

Originally Posted by firegate

I have one of the HF rotary`s as well and I don`t care for it. Unless they`ve changed it since I bought one, it lacks electronic speed control. I will admit that it does have a fairly nice weight though - just slightly heavier than the 9227. I suppose it would be a good machine for running a Dynabrade.

Was there any other reason?

Did it correct paint flaws the same as others?

I want to make sure I`m using mine right.

**Woob** · 02-18-2007, 09:03 PM

"Powerful 11.0 Amp motor with overload protection and soft start Ã¢â‚¬â€œ preventing torque jump when starting.

Variable speed dial/trigger matches correct rotation speed to individual applications.

Electronic feedback control maintains constant rotation speed during tough applications."

Those are the reasons why I thought it was worth spending another $100 or so for my Hitachi. The Harbor Freight is nice and everything for the cheap price, but considering your a professional using this every week it`s worth spending that money! HF smelt funny, plastic felt funny, and when I started using the polisher I knew it wasn`t the quality for high speed polishing. I keep mine in the garage hidden, maybe use it if my Hitachi ever goes down, though I`d send my HF for $30 shipped in a heartbeat. I just can`t believe I spent the money and time just to grab it.

Pick up the HF if you`re playing around, if you`re truly serious get a quality Makita/Dewalt/Metabo/Hitachi. I think it`s pretty obvious how many good rotary users use a quality machine.

**firegate** · 02-18-2007, 10:36 PM

Originally Posted by justin30513

Was there any other reason?

Did it correct paint flaws the same as others?

I want to make sure I`m using mine right.

Well, the lack of electronic speed control means that the motor won`t compensate for load. With a Makita, Hitachi, etc, the motor will constantly spin at the speed you have it set to, while the HF will slow down as the pad makes contact.

Is the HF capable of correcting paint flaws? Sure. Is it worth the extra dough to step up to a better machine? That`s up to you, but it`s worth it to me at the very least.

**wannafbody** · 02-19-2007, 12:10 AM

get one with an 11amp motor and soft start. Harbor freight might have a mid priced model as well.

**SpoiledMan** · 02-19-2007, 12:17 AM

Variable trigger is more important than a soft start. It`s simply a matter of which you learn with or are comfortable with. I have both types of machines. An electronic speed control that *works* is also more important than how many amps the machine has as well.

**BlackElantraGT** · 02-19-2007, 03:02 AM

I`m somewhat torn between the Makita 9227 and the Hitachi. I`m ruling out the Metabo because its controls reminds me a lot like the PC`s and without having felt/used any rotory polisher in my own hands, from the looks of it I have a feeling I would prefer the trigger handle that the Makita and Hitachi has.

If the price was close to $100 like some of you were able to get on the Hitachi, there would be no question as to which I would buy in an instance. But at the moment, the price difference between the Hitachi and the Makita isn`t much. I`ve been wanting the Makita for awhile now, but the 5 year warranty on the Hitachi is soo tempting. I bought a Hyundai for a reason afterall lol.

For those with experience using both the Makita and Hitachi, which would you rather own and why? For those that have a Makita, has it been in use for more than 5 years without any major servicing?

**ZoranC** · 02-19-2007, 03:17 AM

Originally Posted by SpoiledMan

Not a knock on those that bought a Metabo but *I* just couldn`t see spending that kind of money on that machine with a ONE year warranty.

$231.99 is not significantly more that $150-ish is so I didn`t have a problem.

When it comes to warranty, it is not one year, it is three years. all you have to do is register it. Even if it is one year I still would get it because I have seen products that sucked with 5 year warranties and products that had one year warranty but just keep plugging away (and not as an exception, but as a rule with certain brand).

**ZoranC** · 02-19-2007, 03:19 AM

Originally Posted by justin30513

Link?

http://autopia.org/forum/machine-pol...tml#post862997

**imported_rydawg** · 02-19-2007, 04:16 AM

I have had a few makita`s 15 years ago, a dewalt, a hitachi, about 5 black and deckers, a snap on (was my favorite). The Snap-on was a great machine other than the price, The dewalts are the new version of the new style black and deckers, the very old black and deckers were bullet proof (I still have one and use it) and the makita. The newer black and deckers suck and I know they are now dewalt. I fried 3 of them and will not buy another. The hitachi was very powerful and worked nice with no problems for 3 years and after 1300 cars and boats it quit. My makita`s worked and worked and were very balanced machines. Easy to rebuild the brushes also and easy to get parts for too. If I had to purchase one, it would be the makita. Not too heavy and not too light, perfectly balanced, built to last, very durable, trigger control speed also. The metabo seems very nice other than the speed control, but could get use to it. But the 2200 rpm max is my downfall. On very hard severely beat clear coats I use wool and I need 3000 cranking rpm to bring out a dazzling gloss. I also do not like light machines and I like heavier machines. But I do like the fact that it is german made. I guess the only thing holding me back from the metabo is the rpm speed, but I do have some older machines to do that and only need that speed once in a while. It might be the makita as I have tried them all except for the metabo. German tools are my favorite though... Decisions suck!