imported_agentf11
New member
JuneBug said:
I love my BO6040 but the ergonomics of the flex is a little better. Makita is a better quality machine. Can't go wrong either way but I would get the Flex if I could do it over.
Flex Dual Action or Makita B06040 DA
- Thread starter FishWagon
- Start date
I love my BO6040 but the ergonomics of the flex is a little better. Makita is a better quality machine. Can't go wrong either way but I would get the Flex if I could do it over.
Junebug
JAFO
Z06meister, consider the 9227, I'm not knocking ROB's - I'm just saying that once you get the feel for what a rotary can do, it's hard to go back. Does it take more concentration and doesn't it sling? It does and it can, but just like learning how a polish works and the technique to get the most out of it - the same is true with a rotary. Cut down the variables, if you have a dozen compounds and polishes - cut back to 3 - compound, polish and final finishing polish, cut your pads down to foam cut/wool - polish - finish. Now, practice and you'll find yourself getting betting faster than ever before. I still use my PC for light polishing on cars with spider webbing / slight marring - just switched to LC low profile orange and white pads too. Price wise - PC and 9227, equal (almost) a Flex or a B06040.
JuneBug said:
I have two in my shop that have more then a thousand hours on each. They get used every day and I haven't had a problem with either. Great machines, like the rest of the Makita line. FWIW I only use them in RO mode. Forced rotation, IMO, isn't necessary. It's cumbersome to work with and lacks the cutting power necessary for good correction work. Pad and product selection is key but if paint needs medium to heavy correction a rotary is a must. Everything lite can be handled by a strong RO machine like the 6040.
I also think the importance of higher OPM's is weighted a bit too heavily. The only reason I ever had to use speed 6 with a PC is because it bogged, if it had the power a lower speed would have been fine. I never use the BO6040 past speed 4 and get the results i'm looking for, mostly because it has the power and doesn't bog.
wannafbody
wannafbody
MichaelM said:
I think it depends on the type of defects you are removing. When I read of people using a PC for 8 hours to remove swirls on a car that tells me that the PC just ain't cutting it(and my experience agrees). The higher OPM also leaves a nicer finish by breaking down abrasives better. Some of these newer polishes are using abrasives with a Mohr rating of 9.
Junebug
JAFO
When I was starting out doing details, I spent 7-8 hours on a white 325 with scratches that looked like a brillo pad made them. They were not deep enough to catch your fingernail on but they looked terrible. All I had was a PC, some Megs #84 and a lot of time. NEVER AGAIN buddy, that one detail convinced me to go rotary.
wannafbody said:
I don't think this is necessarily true. I'm sure more speed or OPM's decreases the amount of time it takes to break down the polishes abrasives and burnish the paint but if pressure remains constant at any given speed it shouldn't have any effect on the amount the polish breaks down and the finish left behind. Speed does not create a finer finish; working time, the ability to break down a polish with any given polishing method and abrasive quality (or the amount a given polish can actually break down) does. If speed was the key we would all be using rotaries @ high rpm's to finish.
Since better is a highly subjective term, in this context the poster could mean faster=better. More breakdown in a given amount of time (a different slant on the same theme) could also be better so again higher OPM is better. Another possibility is that faster pad speed at the same machine pressure is actually more pressure on the polish grains which would equate to a finer and faster breakdown (think of hitting a baseball with a faster moving bat - the bat may have the same force behind it at the time of strike but if the bat's moving faster, more energy is transferred to the ball). The higher impact of the pad on the individual polish grains would break them down smaller. Another take on this is that the machine pressure is only vertical but pressure of the pad on the polish grains has both a vertical and a horizontal component when the rough surface of the pad horizontally impacts the polish grain against the friction of the paint. Horizontal pressure would be driven by pad speed. Finally faster pad pressure also creates more heat which could accelerate polish breakdown or achieve a breakdown not achievable at lower temps.
MichaelM said:
I was waiting for a Flex since I already own a Porter Cable and a Rotary . Since it was on back order I got the Makita BO6040 . It is an excellent tool for detailing . Since I got it I have not use either the Porter Cable or the rotary . It is very nice to be able to go both ways with just a turn of a dial . The force rotation has plenty of power to cut and polish as my rotary . One nice thing compare to the rotary is that is much more stable on the paint surface . Much easier to use for a novice but with plenty of power .
Cheers , Jean Paul
Cheers , Jean Paul
wannafbody
wannafbody
MichaelM said:
You have to remember that abrasives break down by friction. Most pads used on the PC are the firmer Euro foams which increase friction over the older open celled foams. Increasing the OPM's further increases the friction. These newer aluminum oxide polsihes have a rating of 9 on the MOHR scale. You'll never break them down by hand like older abrasives. That is why the aluminum oxide compounds leave hazing-they don't completely break down. You need to finish with a finer grade polish.
imported_WhyteWizard
New member
There's a simple test to show which of the two machines is more effective.
Use the same pad, polish and pressure with both machines. Run them equal times at full speed and see which one heats the surface more. I've done it, the Makita generates more heat, because it has more movement between the pad and the paint.
To make the Makita work comfortably put your right hand on top and left on the shaft. The 6040 spins the pad counter clockwise so you use the same technique you do with your rotary polisher only backwards.
BTW, I've started using vibration dampening gloves with all my random orbital and dual action machines. I wasn't when this picture was taken.
We get attached to the tools we use and I'm sure we all get good results.
Robert
Use the same pad, polish and pressure with both machines. Run them equal times at full speed and see which one heats the surface more. I've done it, the Makita generates more heat, because it has more movement between the pad and the paint.
To make the Makita work comfortably put your right hand on top and left on the shaft. The 6040 spins the pad counter clockwise so you use the same technique you do with your rotary polisher only backwards.
BTW, I've started using vibration dampening gloves with all my random orbital and dual action machines. I wasn't when this picture was taken.
We get attached to the tools we use and I'm sure we all get good results.
Robert
imported_DJBAILEY
New member
I have the BO6040 and use it all the time. You can run it in just DA random-orbit mode just like the PC(way more power than the PC, 7 amps I think) or you can turn a switch and the machine turns into DA random-orbit that has forced rotation. The forced rotation is definately gear driven. The top end in this forced rotation mode is 5800 OPM with 600 RPM's. This forced rotation mode is the same as the FLEX machine. However, with the FLEX machine you cannot switch to DA mode only. You have the forced rotation on all the time.
So you get the best of both worlds. It can work the polish in forced rotation mode until nearly broken down and switch over to just the DA mode to finish off the polish and attempt to jewell the paint.
I bought this machine over the FLEX specifically because of these dual modes. The BO6040 can do everything that the FLEX can do and more. It sucks that you can't use smaller pads with it unless you use the Edge system adapter but you're in the same boat with the FLEX. There are 3 different backing plates made by Makita for this machine. It comes with a medium firmness BP. I purchased the soft BP seperately. Hard to tell the difference between the 2. They are well made though.
When I bought mine about 2 years ago it as about $250, but now I see that the price has risen to about $360. The specs look the same so not sure why.
Con's - the power cord is too short...6 ft I think. I had a 15ft Porter Cable power
cord installed on mine. Cost me $36 to have it done by a tool supplier
shop.
- metal housing can get pretty hot (heard same about the FLEX)
So you get the best of both worlds. It can work the polish in forced rotation mode until nearly broken down and switch over to just the DA mode to finish off the polish and attempt to jewell the paint.
I bought this machine over the FLEX specifically because of these dual modes. The BO6040 can do everything that the FLEX can do and more. It sucks that you can't use smaller pads with it unless you use the Edge system adapter but you're in the same boat with the FLEX. There are 3 different backing plates made by Makita for this machine. It comes with a medium firmness BP. I purchased the soft BP seperately. Hard to tell the difference between the 2. They are well made though.
When I bought mine about 2 years ago it as about $250, but now I see that the price has risen to about $360. The specs look the same so not sure why.
Con's - the power cord is too short...6 ft I think. I had a 15ft Porter Cable power
cord installed on mine. Cost me $36 to have it done by a tool supplier
shop.
- metal housing can get pretty hot (heard same about the FLEX)
imported_DJBAILEY
New member
I agree with Robert. In forced rotation mode I hold the machine with the rear-end shaft of the machine pointed at about 7 to 8 o'clock. The machine will glide in this position. Weird hand positions can make it easy for the machine to 'walk', but that's true with any polisher