Need suggestion on complete kit around $300

S

Sam1

New member
Hey all just got a quick question, need to pick up a kit with a DA in it to do our vehicles and am running into a lot of confusion. I am looking for a complete set up for personal use just for a couple of vehicles, but it needs to be decent quality. Have read up on all the usual DA's and I'm not partial to one brand or the other, but it looks like most of the kits around are either Griot's or Meg's.



One thing I was semi-concerned with is the hood on our Jaguar isn't flat so I'm not sure if it would be wise to just go ahead and get a 3" and 6" machine because our other cars could probably be done with a 6" with no problem. The kit doesn't need to have the latest and greatest new tech chemicals or whatever, we're just looking for something that works good and won't break the bank.



If anyone could recommend a complete kit in the ~$300 level it would be greatly appreciated.
 
Welcome to Autopia!!!



I believe the Griot's Garage polisher has a couple of real advantages--it is more powerful than many DAs and has a lifetime warranty which is a real advantage to those of us doing this as a hobby--five years down the road if something happens to the polisher just send it back to GG for repair or replacement.



One of our sponsors, Detailers Domain, has a great package of the GG Polisher, 5" Backing Plate and mix & match 10 5.5" foam pads (you'll need them) (I think you can get a 5% discount for your first purchase) You can start with 4 Orange or yellow for correction, 4 Green for polishing and 2 black for wax/sealant application. The 5.5" flat pads are recommended by most if you're going to use foam pads. This package doesn't include allot of things you don't need. Then you can go to the HD Website and pick up a bottle of HD Polish and HD Poxy a hybrid sealant/wax that looks fantastic and protects longer than wax. In addition you are going to need allot of MF towels. (Note: if you're not in a hurry Amazon sometimes has the Groit's Garage Polisher on sale for $80, but then you need to purchase a 5" backing plate ($15-20) and pads separately ($35 for 6 pads). You may also need something with a little more cut than HD Polish in which case you could use HD UNO Advanced Cut, but it's hard to tell without knowing the type of the car, condition of the paint, etc. I'm new to machine polishing myself and have found the GG DA capable of doing anything I need to do and I've found the HD Products to be very user friendly with long working times, no dusting, great results without leaving behind oils that hide remaining imperfections. Right out of the gate I've been able to get fantastic results. I think you'd be better off just getting an assortment of 4" pads and a 3.5" backing plate for the full size GG DA rather than getting the 3" GG DA as it isn't nearly as powerful as the full size machine. Another alternative if you have to do heavy correction would be Microfiber pads for cutting then move to foam for polishing/finishing. The new Lake Country MF pads are getting great reviews.



I'm sure others will chime in with additional suggestions.
 
Thanks for the info, I'll just message one of the vendors on here and have them piece something together for me



The only experience I have with detailing is from close to 20 years ago at my uncle's body shop doing used car jobs, so a lot of stuff has changed and it would take weeks for me to look each individual item up , do some research and get it ordered. Hand waxing was working fine for our expectations but do to an accident and surgeries last year I can't put too much elbow grease into it without everything hurting and our el'cheapo orbital is just a waste of money.
 
Guy at detailer's domain got me set up with a basic kit for under $400, appreciate the info pwaug
 
Sam1- Welcome to Autopia!



One reason why I started buying polishers other than my beloved Cyclo was that the Cyclo couldn't handle the contours of my Jag all that well.



With the GG 6" you should be OK. I don't even think you'll *need* the 3"; I'd just get a small backing plate and pads and use the 3" setup (or 4"...I was a big 4" fan for years but now I'm all about the 3" instead) on the larger machine...see how that goes. Works fine for me.



If you do want a 3" polisher, I like the GG 3" *PNEUMATIC* a whole lot better than the 3" electric.
 
Got around to trying the stuff out today and that Autoscrub kit that detailer's domain sells is fantastic, especially on the glass. Probably won't ever do a car without it again :chuckle:
 
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