The "Truth"

[imported_WhyteWizard]

Oooooor you could just use the two side by side and see what works best for you. What ever happened to detailing made simple?

I did that. Not just with the Flex, but with the Bosch, Festool, and every random orbital I could get my hands on. The Festool was within spitting distance of the Makita but at twice the price. If you take the big weighted handle off the Flex you`ll find it`s not as intrinsically well balanced as the others. I think that`s because of the way it creates forced rotation.



All the best,

Robert

[imported_DetailDan]

I did that. Not just with the Flex, but with the Bosch, Festool, and every random orbital I could get my hands on. The Festool was within spitting distance of the Makita but at twice the price. If you take the big weighted handle off the Flex you`ll find it`s not as intrinsically well balanced as the others. I think that`s because of the way it creates forced rotation.



All the best,

Robert

Simple and to the point.



Also should note the Makita spins counter clockwise while the Festool spins clockwise.

[Junebug]

Mr. Todd in da house! Welcome back big guy, thanks for the explanation, even a back-woods redneck like me understood it. I would like to get the Makita cause it can power 6.5" pads like a PC spinning a 4" one. Sometimes on big trucks, covering more real estate faster is life saving! And why the hell doesn`t anyone make a 4" MF pad so I can bring the Cyclo out?

[imported_dfazekas]

Centripetal force is responsible for the pad`s movement, that`s it.



I tend to agree with your last sentence but I must offer this counterpoint-



A Makita BO6040 has a 3/16th inch stroke with a maximum speed of 670 RPM & 5800 OPM.



The FLEX3401 has a 5/16 inch stroke with a maximum speed of 480 RPM & 4800 OPM (FLEX measures orbits differently, which is why it is rated at 9600, but apples to apples it is 4800).



I selected the FLEX and the Makita because they both move the pad in a similar motion, a reverse curly q. Let`s see which one is moving more, both at the outer edge and the inside.



Assuming both are running at max speed and using a 6.5 inch pad (which the stock backing plates hold comfortably)



A 6.5 inch as a circumference of approx. 20.41 inches, so every time it spins, it travels that far. In one minute the Makita can spin a distance of 13,675 inches (outer edge). The FLEX only achieves 9,796.8 inches in the same minute, due to a smaller rotational speed. BUT THIS DOESN`T include the distance created by the orbits.



The small orbit of the Makita is .58875 (3/16`s x pi) of an inch, which it does to a spot 5800 times per minute. The orbital distance of a Makita on wide open is only 3,414.75 of an inch per minute. The FLEX, develops nearly an inch of travel, .98125 inches, per orbit (5/16`s x pi) which it moves 480 times per minute for a total distance 4710 inches per minute.



At the edge of the pad, the Makita delivers a total 17,089.75 inches of moment, where as the FLEX only delivers a total of 14,506. Edge Makita....



BUT and it is a HUGE BUT, the outer edge of the pad is just one small area of the pad. As we move closer to the pads center the orbital motion becomes proportionately more significant.



Movement at 1 Inch:

Makita: 5,518

FLEX: 6,218



Movement at 3 Inches:

Makita: 9,725

FLEX: 9,231.6



Movement at 6.5 inches:

Makia: 17,089.75

FLEX: 14,506





As you can see the numbers are fairly close across the board with the FLEX holding an edge towards the inside of the pad and Makita holding an edge towards the larger surface area of the outside of the pad. From a numbers standpoint, the Makita has slightly more polishing potential....



BUT, and again, a LARGE BUT: A 5/16th stroke is going to more more deficient and transferring pad movement through the pad to the paint at the expensive of pad life. While there is no number that will substantiate the difference, I would say that would the FLEX looses in theoretical pad movement it makes up in efficiency, resulting in fairly distance per time numbers for both machines. This would be, IME, my both machines are extremely capable of producing stunning results. (Any very similar results at that).



If you want to pay more for the ability to switch between Forced Rotation and Random Orbital Mode, then the Makita is the winner. If you want something that offers different pad sizes, German build quality, and a better price, get the FLEX. There is no wrong answer. Sorry for going off topic, I just love geeky conversations.



Todd

But what about the flux capacitor!?!?





Good info, thanks for sharing.

[Ron Ketcham]

Buy the lady of the house a sewing machine and have her cut down the bigger ones.

Yeah, that will make it nice around the old homestead if you do that!!!

LOL!

Grumpy

[Woob]

Mr. Todd in da house! Welcome back big guy, thanks for the explanation, even a back-woods redneck like me understood it. I would like to get the Makita cause it can power 6.5" pads like a PC spinning a 4" one. Sometimes on big trucks, covering more real estate faster is life saving! And why the hell doesn`t anyone make a 4" MF pad so I can bring the Cyclo out?

There is a 4.25 Uber pad, or whatever main manufacturer makes it. And holy crap TH0001 is alive on Autopia!

[Leadfootluke]

Welcome back Todd!



And great thread Garry, sounds like a beast!

[gmblack3]

Pepe`s back? Do you believe in miracles?



Sent from my PG86100 using Tapatalk 2

[imported_WhyteWizard]

Todd,



Did you factor in the contact patch and working area?



Robert

[imported_ww2717]

"Thats the Truth"



DirectTV AD - That`s The Truth .. Truth ! [HD] - YouTube

[imported_RZJZA80]

Amazon has it for $285 and Home Depot has it for 299 so might as well pick it up at Home Depot, 1 year warranty and 90 day return policy

[Thomas Dekany]

Hey Troy - I posted that I saw holograms coming back from using D300 to eliminate them. That is it. I never said it wasn`t a good product. But those holograms did come back. Obviously, if the user is working with a DA, that is not an issue. Barry had the same problem. No big deal, but I`d say it is good info for someone, who is a rotary user.

Im my personal experience I would humbly disagree with you Thomas. I have found D300 to be very good at removing serious defects when used with the proper pad a technique. I also verify this by multiple IPA / Eraser wipe-downs.



Can it hide? Sure but so can almost any other compound or polish when you slather it on and let it set and don`t remove the oils and such.

[Deep Gloss Auto Salon]

Hey Troy - I posted that I saw holograms coming back from using D300 to eliminate them. That is it. I never said it wasn`t a good product. But those holograms did come back. Obviously, if the user is working with a DA, that is not an issue. Barry had the same problem. No big deal, but I`d say it is good info for someone, who is a rotary user.

I am surprised you used D300 (a compound) with a rotary to remove holograms.... That doesn`t seem like something to fault the product for but rather a mis-application for your intended purpose

[Thomas Dekany]

I was training someone and he was using Menzerna products with the rotary - polishing and finishing pads. He switched to D300 and MF system to make sure that there were no holograms left behind.



I didn`t say anything about D300 being used with a rotary.

I am surprised you used D300 (a compound) with a rotary to remove holograms.... That doesn`t seem like something to fault the product for but rather a mis-application for your intended purpose

[C. Charles Hahn]

I am surprised you used D300 (a compound) with a rotary to remove holograms.... That doesn`t seem like something to fault the product for but rather a mis-application for your intended purpose

Unless he`s saying he used D300 with a DA to eliminate holograms instilled by using a heavier compound via rotary, but that`s certainly not made clear. Even then, several of us have used D300 and NOT had defects come back or be hidden, so there`s no telling why some are having issues.