Any thoughts on using vertical polishers?

MorBid said:
Getting it first doesn't count, getting and doing/posting a write-up does :2thumbs:
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I know :D I was trying to use reverse psychology to get you to get it before I do so I can learn from your write-up before I try to use it :D My write up wouldn't be valuable at all, especially not compared to yours, as I don't have experience and knowledge needed to objectively gauge.
 
ZoranC said:
I know :D I was trying to use reverse psychology to get you to get it before I do so I can learn from your write-up before I try to use it :D My write up wouldn't be valuable at all, especially not compared to yours, as I don't have experience and knowledge needed to objectively gauge.
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Heeeyy, that was mighty sneaky :chuckle: Looks like I feel for it.



Well I got a payday comin up and like I said I was bone tired after working the doors on one side of the Audi last saturday for winter prep. I really like the idea but don't want to get snookered again.



I brought a PC last year despite having a rotary and knowing well how to use it, and to this day I get nothing but swirls in the paint when using it. So it sits in the tool box most of the time.



Stay tuned for further devlopments.



MorBiD



*** EDITED***



Actually come to think of it, this item beging talked about here is a electric version of an air tool that's been around for quite some time. Ingersoll Rand Air Vertical Polisher — 7in. Dia. Pad. You mainly see them used in Pro or Custom shops.
 
MorBid said:
Heeeyy, that was mighty sneaky :chuckle:
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:D



MorBid said:
Well I got a payday comin up and like I said I was bone tired after working the doors on one side of the Audi last saturday for winter prep. I really like the idea but don't want to get snookered again.



I brought a PC last year despite having a rotary and knowing well how to use it, and to this day I get nothing but swirls in the paint when using it. So it sits in the tool box most of the time.
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eBay PC, they are getting sold easily from what I see.



MorBid said:
Actually come to think of it, this item beging talked about here is a electric version of an air tool that's been around for quite some time. Ingersoll Rand Air Vertical Polisher — 7in. Dia. Pad. You mainly see them used in Pro or Custom shops.
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I know :D That was one of things that motivated me to start this thread. After I saw Makita I searched Google and Amazon for "vertical polisher" and saw Ingersoll's one. I said to myself "hey, they are not exactly same, Ingersoll's seems easier to use/control, mores stable, but Makita still might work, let me see what guys think".






 
ZoranC- Thanks for the fresh link, nice car. I think that the Jag has you beat in "Cyclo unfriendliness" though :D



MorBid- Heh heh, you're sure right about it not being who *buys* it first but rather who uses/evaluates/discusses it :D I never seem to get around to using new stuff as promptly as I expect.



IMO your PC problems must be product/etc. related. Much as I dislike the thing, I don't have any *problems* with it, and I use it on everything from the Audis (very hard) to the Jag (very soft). For anything except serious correction it works fine *if* I use it with the right stuff, and sometimes it's the right tool for the job.



Whichever of you gets one, and whichever one you get, I'll be interested in your impressions of it. IMO it's not a matter of how experienced you are with the "regular" rotary either. With no long-term favorite to compare the new one to, you might even give a more useful review of the vertical model in some ways.
 
Accumulator said:
Thanks for the fresh link, nice car.
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Thank you! It's mine, it's fast, it's shiny, and I love it so thank you again :D



Accumulator said:
I think that the Jag has you beat in "Cyclo unfriendliness" though :D
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I would assume so :) but I can't afford to even dream about Jag so I will never know answer on that one "hands on" :)



Accumulator said:
MorBid- Heh heh, you're sure right about it not being who *buys* it first but rather who uses/evaluates/discusses it :D I never seem to get around to using new stuff as promptly as I expect.
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Well, MorBid will have to step up his pace as I just ordered one :D $144 after $25 promotional code on Amazon.com.



Special Offer: Through October 31, use promotional code SAVEMORE at checkout to get $25 back when you spend $150, or $50 when you spend $300 or more, on items sold by Amazon.com in our Tools & Hardware Store. Restrictions apply (see details ).​



I don't either use new stuff as promptly as I expect, takes a while for everything to fall in place (for example, get polisher from place A, get pads from place B, get polishes from place C, line up time and place to do it), that's why I shop early so by the time it's time to do it I have everything in place.



So, next thing on the list is pads etc. Oh boy. More money spent.



Accumulator said:
IMO it's not a matter of how experienced you are with the "regular" rotary either. With no long-term favorite to compare the new one to, you might even give a more useful review of the vertical model in some ways.
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You are right.
 
ZoranC said:
Well, MorBid will have to step up his pace as I just ordered one :D $144 after $25 promotional code on Amazon.com.



Special Offer: Through October 31, use promotional code SAVEMORE at checkout to get $25 back when you spend $150, or $50 when you spend $300 or more, on items sold by Amazon.com in our Tools & Hardware Store. Restrictions apply (see details ).​
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Yup I saw that offer while looking it up on the net today. There are more than a dozen distributors in my area but none have it in stock. Prices range from $169.00 - $189.00 + Tax.



You may very well beat me to it I'm afraid. I've just come off holiday (cha-ching), brought a new 17" Laptop to take with me on holiday (cha-ching x 2), and now need another case for said laptop which is looking like it will cost as much as this nice tool (cha-ching x 3).



I would love to get one and Amazon doesn't have many in stock (4 when I looked today and if you got one it's down to 3).



Truth is it wasn't on my radar but we will see how things shake-out come payday.



MorBiD
 
MorBid said:
You may very well beat me to it I'm afraid.
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That's OK, you save your money and wait for my "review". It might be a bit before that happens but you are not in rush and I started it all so risk should be only mine.
 
Accumulator said:
Which size pads are you planning to run on that thing? I'm assuming it takes standard backing plates...
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It's specs say it's a 7" polisher so I am guessing backing plate would be same as on rotary (right?), which would make it standard. In that case I would use what is used on rotaries (8.5"?).
 
ZoranC said:
It's specs say it's a 7" polisher so I am guessing backing plate would be same as on rotary (right?), which would make it standard. In that case I would use what is used on rotaries (8.5"?).
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Guess you'll find out when you get it :nixweiss I'd bet that, yeah, it'll use the same industry-standard backing plate specs as other rotaries. I myself prefer smaller, 6/5" pads but then that's with a "regular" style rotary.
 
Accumulator said:
Guess you'll find out when you get it
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:chuckle: Yup!



Accumulator said:
I myself prefer smaller, 6/5" pads but then that's with a "regular" style rotary.
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I was thinking about (re)using pads I am getting for my PC, but then decided against it because I was afraid of changing two variables at the same time and I wanted to play it safe heat wise. Also, I didn't check are plates changeable. Hopefully they are. We'll know in few days :)
 
My toy is finally here. I don't have pictures yet due to insufficient lighting and fact that I got back home sick but I "played" with it for few minutes inspecting it and trying to see how it "feels".



First, specs on Makita site say 600-1200rpm. Actual specs are 600-2000rpm as said on the tool, in it's manual and on Makita pages about it (different than it's main page that incorrectly states 1200rpm). Supplied backing plate is 6.5" and thread is 5/8-11 male, just like on "normal" rotaries, so one can use plates and pads available around. Only "limitation" is requirement not to exceed 7" which might be a limitation for some but it is not for me.



In "mockup dry runs" (no power turned on, using table surface and door surface as simulation of panels) tool feels "natural" and very well balanced in hand, whether it was against horizontal or vertical surface. At 4.4lbs it is not, of course, feather light but it is as light as rotaries can get (right?) and I was not feeling it would be exerting more than absolute minimum neccessary strain on me. Of course, that remains to be verified once it is used in actual work and should be compared against light weight rotary under same conditions.



In the meantime I felt I should be able to control it with ease and that I have great field of view on "work area". So, now "only" thing I have to do is to actually start using it.
 
Well it looks like your in, congrats I really should get one too. My budget is so out of whack I might as well go down in a blaze of glory :)
 
MorBid said:
I really should get one too. My budget is so out of whack I might as well go down in a blaze of glory :)
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LOL @ going down in blaze of glory, as I definitely know how it feels (but it's more like fire from hell than blaze of glory)



As I was looking at it I was having a feeling there is very good chance experienced owner of short light weight rotary like Metabo that doesn't have any issues handling vertical and complex surfaces would not realize any benefit from getting one. This might be one of those "what kind of rotary to get" when you don't have one instead (of course, I don't have experience to say that with certainty). Therefore, I have a feeling you can take time waiting. I will let you know how things are going and depending on how things progress soon down the road I might be getting Metabo anyway because further "mock up dry runs" make me feel this thing seems to be working fine for horizontal surfaces that are at your waist level but would be clumsy to use for roof unless you climb on something. Even then you would need to lean forward to reach middle, which would make it very hard to hold it under proper angle, plus it would increase likelihood of loosing balance and falling forward.
 
ZoranC said:
..thing seems to be working fine for horizontal surfaces that are at your waist level but would be clumsy to use for roof unless you climb on something. Even then you would need to lean forward to reach middle, which would make it very hard to hold it under proper angle, plus it would increase likelihood of loosing balance and falling forward.
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Well, I've been using the Makita on the roof of the M3 (I'm 5' 10" and that's hardly a tall vehicle) and I'm sure finding my work platforms indispensable even with that. Once you get the platform(s) you'll wonder how you ever got by without them.
 
Accumulator said:
Well, I've been using the Makita on the roof of the M3 (I'm 5' 10" and that's hardly a tall vehicle) and I'm sure finding my work platforms indispensable even with that. Once you get the platform(s) you'll wonder how you ever got by without them.
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You are right, subconsciously I was using my own vehicles as reference point and roofs on them are all low to the ground (especially on MR2 Spyder :lol ) so I can reach middle of the roof on them with something like PC or rotary without need for platform even though I am 5'10" too (I have checked roof height of M3 today during lunch and while it is not tall vehicle it is taller enough than any of my Supras that I too would need platform).



I guess what I wanted to say is that using vertical polisher on the roof might be much harder (if not impossible) than using traditional "rotary", even if you use work platform, due to how you are supposed to apply pressure. Same thing that might be it's advantage on areas that are in direct axis extension of hands might be it's disadvantage when your hands are under big angle. There is a chance that some experimenting with hand positions might prove me wrong though.



In the end it might be same thing that's the case with every Cyclo vs PC discussion or with every other this tool vs that tool discussion: that there is no silver bullet tool that does it all and that you either need to compromise somewhere or get more than one tool, each best in it's respective areas.



So, I guess my comment that this might be one of those "what kind of rotary to get" is incorrect (because it was subconsciously slanted by using my own vehicles as reference points) and would be better defined as "which design is better / easier to use in which situations".
 
ZoranC- "Yep" to every point in your last post :D



The M3 isn't all *that* much taller than my Jag, but I felt like a contortionist doing its roof even with the platforms...trying to see the finish from every angle and all, and trying to operate the polisher carefully along the edges and the corners.



And yeah, I was thinking that I sure wouldn't want to have *only* the vertical polisher for such jobs, let alone on a taller vehicle!



And yeah again about how *all* these tools have their place and there isn't a single "best for everything" choice among them for most of us.



Heh heh, cars like the MR2 and my 1st-gen RX-7 sure seem like miniatures compared to even pretty small "more modern" cars, huh?
 
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