Rotary Speeds

I

Imatk

New member
So before I went into using a rotary I read all the stuff I could and watched all the vids I could.



Much to my surprise the rotary did not turn out to be the evil beast machine I had always feared it to be.



Maybe because I had used a PC a lot before, or because I had, in-fact, read all the stuff and vids. But in any case...



Since I've been using it I always use the lowest speed. It's a Metabo so I think the lowest speed is 1000rpm. I haven't really ever upped the speed as I never really needed to.



But all I've read has people starting slow... going to a higher speed then finishing back slow.



Just wondering what the logic behind this is. I mean I would understand it if you needed the speed, i.e. the lower speed wasn't correcting, but if not then why do it?



Also would you guys up the speed before you upped the pad or up the pad before the speed?



I find myself using an orange pad kind of exclusively. Maybe my paint is harder, I don't know.



Anyway just figured I'd throw it out there and see what everyone thought.
 
Personally, I'd rather use a higher speed and a less aggressive pad than an orange cutting pad. Same cut, less chance of hazing. Plus the faster speeds and somewhat higher heat break down the polishes more completely.



I find that for me:



Meguiars #105 works best in the 1000-1200 rpm range

New Optimum Polish, Meguiars #80/83 works best in the 1200-1500 rpm range, finishing at 1000 rpms

3M Ultrafina specifically recommends starting at 1000 rpm, working it in at 1800 rpm and finishing at 1000 rpms.
 
Generally, the higher the speed the more cutting power you get from the pad you're working with. Depending on the product, it also activates the agresssive nature/breaks down the polish faster. Can you cut at low speeds - Yes. I know 1 Senior member here that actually developed a method of slow speed "tumbling" that works on certain advanced applications of correction. I usually tend to go up to around 1800 for cutting and 900 for finishing.
 
I like using 4 and 5" orange pads with a rotary. I have better control and use slower speeds without any heavy marring or holograms.



PFW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 
today i used PFW with 83 at 1100-1200 then backed down to 700

followed up with lc blue and 80 at 1000 and it worked like a charm
 
You start slow to spread the polish/compound then speed up to work the polish and break it down, this is the stage that does the majority of the work to remove swirls. After the polish is broken down you need to slow the rpms down to refine the finish. This lower rpm ensures the finish has no buffer trails or holograms. Today I used a black LC pad with 106FA to remove light marring on a black TSX. Started at 900 rpm's moved up to 1200 till polish had broken down then finish out at about 1000 rpm's.
 
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