What Happened to the UDM ?

EdLancer

EdLancer

New member
I haven't been on these forums during the winter months, but I see the UDM is no longer the polisher of choice ...any reasons ?



I want to pick-up a UDM locally for $20 as a backup, supposedly there is intermittent on/off problems with it. I know there was a carbon brush problem with them in the beginning of 2006, is there any other issues I should know about ?



Even the UDM site is not stocking them and instead calls the PC the "Ultimate Detailing Machine" ! :nixweiss



ultimatedetailingmachine.com
 
the older and newer UDM's are not the same. the older one's had a little more power (similiar to the G110) than the current ones IIRC...
 
Ed, there is an explanation here somewhere in the ACC forum, but what happened was the supplier for the parts for the original UDM raised the price so much that ACC felt it would be unsellable...so instead they decided to sell a badge-engineered version of the PC as the "UDM" (like Meguiar's used to with their G100). The Meguiar's G110 seems to be a lot more like the old UDM, if that's what you're looking for.
 
Setec Astronomy said:
Ed, there is an explanation here somewhere in the ACC forum, but what happened was the supplier for the parts for the original UDM raised the price so much that ACC felt it would be unsellable...so instead they decided to sell a badge-engineered version of the PC as the "UDM" (like Meguiar's used to with their G100). The Meguiar's G110 seems to be a lot more like the old UDM, if that's what you're looking for.
Click to expand...



Which really sucks, cause the creators of the UDM were not just trying to make money, but make a difference as well, by employing as many physically and/or mentally challenged adults as they could. It's not often you see a company put making a difference in their community as high on the priority list as they did.
 
SuperBee364 said:
Which really sucks, cause the creators of the UDM were not just trying to make money, but make a difference as well, by employing as many physically and/or mentally challenged adults as they could. It's not often you see a company put making a difference in their community as high on the priority list as they did.
Click to expand...



that right there is one good reason i like to shop the autopia store... :up
 
Setec Astronomy said:
Ed, there is an explanation here somewhere in the ACC forum, but what happened was the supplier for the parts for the original UDM raised the price so much that ACC felt it would be unsellable...so instead they decided to sell a badge-engineered version of the PC as the "UDM" (like Meguiar's used to with their G100). The Meguiar's G110 seems to be a lot more like the old UDM, if that's what you're looking for.
Click to expand...



Well there is a guy from a local car club trying to sell his UDM for $20, he said he used it for less than a month and it died and the distributor just sent him a new one and now he is trying to rid old one. I guess the weight of shipping the old back was more expensive. If it is just the carbon brushes or an electrical problem then I can fix it with no problem, but I want to know what were the known issues with these machines first.
 
I think one of the issues with the early UDM 1000 models (or the only one I ever knew about) was the power switch...crazy easy to turn it on accidentally. I got a UDM through the 'geek when they were first released.
 
I wish the original UDM were still for sale...



I'd also like to know more about the people who make the company products. I work with children who have developmental disabilities and take an interest in the subject. Good work ACC.
 
EdLancer said:
Well there is a guy from a local car club trying to sell his UDM for $20, he said he used it for less than a month and it died and the distributor just sent him a new one and now he is trying to rid old one. I guess the weight of shipping the old back was more expensive. If it is just the carbon brushes or an electrical problem then I can fix it with no problem, but I want to know what were the known issues with these machines first.
Click to expand...



$20 is a heck of a deal, i would buy one for that price to have as a backup...
 
I loved the UDM but unfortunately they just wouldn't last. Also, I had the backing plate assembly fall off while working on the front end of a Vanquish and put a six inch scratch into the plastic. IT cost me much money to have it repainted. The machine works great it just doesn't last. I went through three of them in a year.



I will tell you this though, Lynn here always took great care of me and got a new one out to me everytime. Thankfully this last one is still working but I use it very little for tight spots.



I read about the KB method but wouldn't dare try it with the UDM. The high speeds and the pressure would spell doom for the UDM.
 
I haven't been able to track all these changes. Is the G110 built by Porter-Cable? Is it physically larger than the 7424 machine ?
 
No one knows who builds the G110. Meguiar's swore up and down that it was NOT built by the same factory that built the original UDM...which is kind of difficult to parse, since the original UDM was assembled in San Diego at the ARC facility for ACC from parts made in China...and the G110 is assembled in China. So Meguiar's could be making a true statement, while the parts for the original UDM were made in the same factory that produces the G110 (some members felt the original UDM and the G110 were too similar to be a coincidence). Porter Cable is coming out with a new polisher (see thread elsewhere) and I don't think there is any word yet where that is made, although I posted an opinion in that thread.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top