To Rotary... Or Not to Rotary

Tyler@Poorboys said:
Just curious have any of you guys tried the Milwaukee 5455? There is also the Harbor Freight route if you want something a little less expensive.... never tried one myself.

http://www.harborfreight.com/interests/boating/7-inch-variable-speed-polisher-sander-92623.html
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I won't speak for the HF version but I will comment on what I have, Makita. The Makita is flawless and well worth every penny spent. The Makita will last forever and has power to do anything. Be careful, you might get what you pay for. I paid for the more expensive polisher and got a great polisher. My .02
 
I had a Harbor Freight machine that turned out to be the best $40 I ever spent. I did end up burning it up, but I probably done 200 wetsanding jobs with it before it died. Im currently on my second ATD. They are just as powerful as machines 3 times the price, but I question the quality. My last one lasted about as long as the Harbor Freight machine did. I would say the HF rotary would be a great choice for someone who don't plan to use it everyday, or someone who wants to advance their skills before moving up to a truly powerful machine. They serve a purpose imo.
 
My thoughts are a rotary is for true correction and a PC or orbital is a finishing machine. I see the need for both in how I detail.

I'm getting ready to a car this weekend, rotary in the first stage of compounding, the polishing on two stages with the PC.

That said you can get great results with a pc it just going to take much longer IMO
 
I ran a Milwaukee back in the day...heavy beast of a thing but then I was a kid at the time. Oughta last forever like all their other stuff.

As I'm always posting on these threads, my two rotaries just sit unused on the shelf. Doubt I'll ever run either of them again. Eh, guess that's just me...but IMO most people will never do enough work with a rotary to attain true expertise (e.g., no holograms when finishing out, let alone the chance of an "oops!") and the time spent just learning a rotary would be sufficient to do an entire lifetime's worth of polishing with something else.

IF somebody's a Pro and has the right mindset, or is working on boats, then OK I can see a justification. But otherwise...nah.
 
I started with rotary in the late 90s. I have six of them including what I believe is the worlds best one. Ultra low speed to 1500 rpm,30% fiberglass bodied trigger less machine.
i use them for orange peel reduction or removal without a single hologram, haze or marring. For correcting the worst defects and jewelling at well under normal speeds and applying paint sealants without hologramming
Whilst I also own plenty of DA's and use them a lot, the rotary is still the king IMO. The days of burning paint (pad burning it) are pretty much over and their a very safe tool when used with common sense.
the slicing action of them can give a different look than a da but I do love both types of machines and can't wait to see the future with adjustable orbital throw machines and maybe offset da and rupes making forced rotation and random orbital in one units or linear machines
 
Detailology Oz said:
I started with rotary in the late 90s. I have six of them including what I believe is the worlds best one. Ultra low speed to 1500 rpm,30% fiberglass bodied trigger less machine.
i use them for orange peel reduction or removal without a single hologram, haze or marring. For correcting the worst defects and jewelling at well under normal speeds and applying paint sealants without hologramming
Whilst I also own plenty of DA's and use them a lot, the rotary is still the king IMO. The days of burning paint (pad burning it) are pretty much over and their a very safe tool when used with common sense.
the slicing action of them can give a different look than a da but I do love both types of machines and can't wait to see the future with adjustable orbital throw machines and maybe offset da and rupes making forced rotation and random orbital in one units or linear machines
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What machine is this you're raving about?
 
Whilst the rupes system is a great thing, there is always a place for rotary and these days it's not compounding so much as it is perfecting paint and going beyond using abrasives to enhance paint by machine.

Just because all the defects are gone and its glossy doesn't mean the paint can't be made even better

Time consuming yes, people buying that service often, no but having it there on offer and doing it once to ten times a year is fine by Me
To some degree da has taken the artisanry out of the Industry? I love da but it can't do it all and it's not as much fun as a rotary at low speed

Imagine if All some do in this industry in five years is one step or two and that's it.good for making money but nothing special, unique or exclusive.

Love doing ones a lot but not forever
 
Seems like a rotary will do anything a da will do.

seems like the rotary is the more versatile machine, if you just want one.

also seems like a rotary works with some sense and a bit of respect toward the power of the machine.

seem about right?
 
All four types of machine polishers can do a lot. It's up to the User which machines they use and with what services as a pro
I wouldn't one step with a rotary most often but mid range to high end services, yes absolutely.
My favourite thing about a rotary is no vibration and won't bog down or stop on certain curves and can be tilted to fit any shape panel.

I have all bar drum polishers and love using all the ones I own. The more the better
Da - no mess, powerful, very versatile, less heat most often, safe.
 
I think rotary is the tool for me, in the right hands it finishes better and smoother than the Double Action, just listening the DA noise I get bored.
 
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