Rotary Question

N

NYV6Coupe

Livin' the good life
I'm still getting my feet wet using a PC and now a friend has given me his old rotary 'cause he's moving away and no longer needs his "backup".

No name (worn off) and it's a 2-speed. Pull the trigger a little & get low speed, depress it fully & get high speed which is 1600 rpm.

The backing plate has a single flat-head screw in the middle so what kind of pad is used with this set-up? Foam? Wool?

I know DeWalt, Makita and some other big name products are better quality but does it matter with a rotary.

It's pretty much agreed that many other orbital-type polishers are a waste of money (and your car's paint) compared to a PC but I don't know how to access the quality (or lack thereof) of this rotary.
 
I'd go with foam on the pads wool is a heavy cutting pad and you should have some experence with. Look for a velcro backing plate for your rotary. I'd suggest using on low end speed to start, 1600 RPM's is quite quick. Look for a car that you can pratice on this way you wonlt ruin your car trying it out.
 
NYV6Coupe,
The backing plate has a single flat-head screw in the middle

So are you saying that the rotary machine doesn't have a bolt coming out of it that the pad can be screwed to?
If the rotary has a bolt coming out of it is it a 5/8x11 bolt? If it is a 5/8 bolt then just buy a velco backed pad and you can go with foam or wool pads.
If it is not 5/8 bolt then the best thing you can do is to get it to 5/8x11 bolt.
I had an old B&D rotary that had a spindle shaft of 3/8x24. I took a 5/8x11 bolt and put it into a lathe. I drilled out the bolt and taped it for 3/8x24. Once that was done I put it on the B&D rotary and bought a backing plate with velco that was 5/8x11 just so I could go with foam or wool pads.
From the way you wrote your ? it sounds like your backing plate is just a piece of rubber and your are trying to figure out what type of pad will work with it. I hope this helps. If you can try to stay with foam pads.
 
The buffer came to me with a bonnet-type wool pad so I think it's useless if I can't get the
backing plate off & replace it with a velcro backing plate.

I was planning on trying a foam pad on it if my velcro backing plate from the PC would fit. I'm too much of a novice to use a wool pad & I don't have the discretionary income to pay for paint damage .... the PC is looking better all the time. I really like the precise speed adjustment.

Got a problem with the buffer: the screw in the backing plate will not budge.
 
Have you tried some Wd-40 or something similar on the thread to get it loose? If the rotary is not worth anything what about cutting the pad away to get at the bolt? Once the pad is away maybe you can get at the bolt with some wrenches to get it out. Just an idea, maybe not even a good one.:dunno
 
Don't know if it's RH or LH thread, I've tried it both ways. There's nothing to grab hold of when I'm trying to loosen the screw. It would help if the shaft had a couple flat spots on the shaft between the rubber pad & the housing so I could get a 3/8" or 7/16" wrench in it.

I've had WD-40 on it for a couple days & no luck.

I'm going to try & cut off the existing rubber pad, it's the only way I can get some vice grips on the shaft. As it stands right now, there's only about 1/4" to 3/8" of the shaft exposed and that's not enought room for vice grips.
 
Real stinker cutting the old backing plate, again there's nothing to hold on to, but it's off & the flat head screw came right out. As I expected, it's RH.

No idea what size/thread pitch the screw is but it's bigger than the screw in a std. flexible backing plate for a PC so I'll stop by a hardware store tomorrow & find out.

This is what I get for trying to resurrect a mongrel.
 
Hey you got over half the battle done. Find out what size thread it is and get it converted to 5/8x11 since it is a rotary. That way a standard rotary plate will fit. By the way is there a bolt sticking out of the rotary?
 
Not a bolt or threaded end on the buffer shaft, I have a female 3/8x24 fitting on the buffer. Told you it was a mongrel.

Looks like I'll need an adapter of some kind for a backing plate to step-up to the pads made for rotaries or step-down to the pads made for a PC.

Anyone know of any such animal or is this a custom made piece? Perhaps not even worth researching
'cause I'm going to be hovering this thing over my paint & I don't want anything to break at an inopertune time.

Pad rubbing paint ... good, buffer rubbing paint ... bad.
 
Go to a metal working shop. One that has a metal lathe and they should be able to make you what you want. You can cut threads with a metal lathe. I had an old B&D with 3/8x24 male threads on rotary. Took a 5/8x11 bolt and put it in a metal lathe. Drilled out the center and tapped it for 3/8x24. Instant adapter. Good luck.
 
Called my buddy & he told me he's pretty sure the buffer was made by WEN .... never heard of 'em.

I emailed WEN, gave them the model # & they have a 7" flexible plate that fits the buffer & it takes velcro pads so there's no need to cobble-up an adapter which may or may not be reliable.
 
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