Iv been detailing for 2 years and have always used a rotary buffer its what i have been trained on and always have used besides a air buffer. Im wanting to buy a buffer to start doing side jobs and was wonder how good this flex random orbital really works. My co worker has a Cyclo buffer and it works good and all but when it comes to deep scratches the Makita 9227 i use can cut way deeper then his little tool can and i can get out scratches he cant even come close to. So im wondering how good this Flex XC 3401 VRG Dual Action Orbital Polisher really is and if it can cut like a rotary orbital because im thinking of getting the makita like we have at work but if someone can give me some feedback on if this thing can cut like a rotary can.
Rotary Buffer vs. Flex 3401
- Thread starter cashieboi
- Start date
JohnKleven
New member
I guess it just depends how skilled you are with your rotary. I believe if you can get a swirl free finish with a rotary, why spend the extra money, and extra time using a dual action polisher. However, the Flex is a great machine with a ton of power.
imported_Ivan Rajic
New member
From my experience:
I have always worked with the Makita rotary, with some Porter Cable orbital action thrown in the mix for finishing on some very soft paints. These two I used for about 3+ years on all the detail work.
Last year I picked up the Flex XC340 with 2 intentions: #1 To use it on some very soft black paints (Nissan, BMW, Porsche, especially Porsche) that I would get on a regular basis. The point here was to use the Flex when the client wanted a 1-step correction, because the Flex would do more correction than the PC but wouldn't leave holograms like a rotary does. I have finished down on these paints with a rotary before, but the fine polishes and pads required to actually finish down hologram free didn't do much correction, so Flex was the smart choice here. #2 reason was to train a helper/friend I had so that he could sometimes help out with polishing as well, as I don't trust anyone to use a rotary on my clients' cars' paint.
That said, Flex has replaced the rotary for me in many ways. It corrects VERY well with 5.5" orange pads and Meguiar's #105 and also finishes down great with M205 and a white or black 5.5" LC pad. I started using the Flex as a finishing step after using a rotary on jobs where I did 2 or more polishing steps. These days I would say it's 50-60/40-50 using Makita/Flex vs Flex/Flex on 2-polishing step detailing work.
Needless to say, Flex has completely replaced my PC for finishing. Actually, it has pretty much completely replaced the Makita as well in the finishing department. However the PC is still a great tool in my arsenal for work where 3" pads are necessary (HUGE negative for the Flex not to be able to use smaller pads) as well as applying sealants.
Long story short, for side work, especially if you're looking to do quality work, I would definitely recommend buying the Flex as the only tool. If it's possible, I would obviously recommend all three, but I can easily say I use the Flex the majority of the time polishing.
I have always worked with the Makita rotary, with some Porter Cable orbital action thrown in the mix for finishing on some very soft paints. These two I used for about 3+ years on all the detail work.
Last year I picked up the Flex XC340 with 2 intentions: #1 To use it on some very soft black paints (Nissan, BMW, Porsche, especially Porsche) that I would get on a regular basis. The point here was to use the Flex when the client wanted a 1-step correction, because the Flex would do more correction than the PC but wouldn't leave holograms like a rotary does. I have finished down on these paints with a rotary before, but the fine polishes and pads required to actually finish down hologram free didn't do much correction, so Flex was the smart choice here. #2 reason was to train a helper/friend I had so that he could sometimes help out with polishing as well, as I don't trust anyone to use a rotary on my clients' cars' paint.
That said, Flex has replaced the rotary for me in many ways. It corrects VERY well with 5.5" orange pads and Meguiar's #105 and also finishes down great with M205 and a white or black 5.5" LC pad. I started using the Flex as a finishing step after using a rotary on jobs where I did 2 or more polishing steps. These days I would say it's 50-60/40-50 using Makita/Flex vs Flex/Flex on 2-polishing step detailing work.
Needless to say, Flex has completely replaced my PC for finishing. Actually, it has pretty much completely replaced the Makita as well in the finishing department. However the PC is still a great tool in my arsenal for work where 3" pads are necessary (HUGE negative for the Flex not to be able to use smaller pads) as well as applying sealants.
Long story short, for side work, especially if you're looking to do quality work, I would definitely recommend buying the Flex as the only tool. If it's possible, I would obviously recommend all three, but I can easily say I use the Flex the majority of the time polishing.
Donavin629
New member
i love my flex.. so that gets my vote.. i still have my makita floating around my work truck but i rarely use it... one thing i have been seen here in austin is really crappy paint jobs.. probably from dealerships trying to cover up stuff.. or just body shops not taking the time to do it correctly.. .i have burned 2 cars since i moved here to austin and both i found out later was because of it being not the factory paint job... so i stick with the flex to be on the safe side and my customers love my results and my time has been cut in half since i got that machine... i was using the cyclo and rotary before.
well basically heres what it comes down to.. can a flex 3401 cut down to the paint if i wanted it too? does it have the cutting power a rotary has? im sure its not as fast cutting power but does it have the capibility? Because i still want to be able to cut a scratch out of a car that i know i can get out and not have to tell the customer on my side jobs oh i tryed but i couldnt get it out when i know i can. So can it do the job? if so im going to get this machine
Alexshimshimhae
New member
AFAIK It does, I mean granted, I used a Vector Rotary. The beauty about hte flex compared to say the PC is that the flex, even when you put down pressure, it still oscillates and spins which makes the cutting power greater (the PC on the other hand just.......jiggles) and with the SurBuf and PFW pads...you'll get're done...
Not as fast..but it's safer...and well..it very well may be faster because you don't deal with holograms
Not as fast..but it's safer...and well..it very well may be faster because you don't deal with holograms
imported_Ivan Rajic
New member
In my experience it does have the power to cut but just not as fast. How much slower it depends on the polish & pad used and your goals but I didn't notice too much of an increase when doing a 2-3 step correction with all Flex as opposed to Makita/Makita/Flex or Makita/Flex/Flex. I would venture to say about an hour to 1.5 hrs longer is the worst case scenario if you're doing a 3 step and instead of doing all 3 steps with rotary, you do all 3 with the Flex.
Accumulator
Well-known member
cashieboi said:
Yes. You could cut all the way down to the primer or the bare metal. And yeah, the Flex 3401 is in a whole 'nother league compared to machines that don't offer powered rotation.
No, simple as that. The rotary is more powerful because all the force is more directly applied (via the purely circular motion).
Might seem like I'm nit-picking, but note how I broke this up into two questions. Yeah, it does have the *capability* to do whatever needs done.
Example- My '97 M3 gave me fits, incredibly hard clear (wondered if its rare Byzanz Metallic paint, 1-of-100, had anything to do with it..like the way Jet Black is often super-soft :think
. I was using the rotary with high speeds, harsh pads, and 3M EC compound, because lesser measures weren't aggressive enough. After I got the Flex, I was able to do the work with that instead.I can't say if you'll like it since it's just a very different machine, and I can't say if you oughta consider buying it since you sound competent with the rotary.
In my case, I simply don't like using my rotaries and I can't finish out 100% hologram-free with them. So the Flex is perfect for me. But that's just me :nixweiss