buffer reconmendations..

[digitaldrifter91]

is there a way i can buy a foam buffing pad and attach it to my cordless drill? i dont want to buy a buffer...i just want to try out a buffer for once...

anyone have tips or techniques?

[ October 13, 2003, 11:57 PM: Message edited by: digitaldrifter91 ]

 

[4DSC]

Sure you can. Go to a hardware store and buy a velcro backing plate that you can chuck into a drill. Should be pretty common. Then go and buy a few foam pads of appropriate grade for your job and stick them on.

Just be careful and watch your speeds (maybe set the drill to "high torque/low speed"?) and keep it moving because what you basically have is a cordless ROTARY polisher now, so watch the surface temps too. Rotary users suggest keeping the RPM under 1000 if you're learning IIRC.... Good luck.

 

[shortyb]

IMHO, look around for a used Porter Cable Random Orbital buffer. I saw one on ebay a few months back that went for $20. If you have no buffer experience, I would stay away from the direct drive approach. I have seen what they can do in "hands of the unwashed". Not pretty.

 

[shortyb]

quote:

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Originally posted by HOndaGuy:
Always start with the least aggressive product first to get the job done.

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Sage advise my Autopian brother

 

[HOndaGuy]

i have both the porter cable random orbital and the makita rotary. All I can say is, if you want awesome results and arent afraid to to practice on some neglected paints, then the rotary is definitely for you. If you want a polisher that will do better than by hand, or have a vehicle that is basically flawless, then go with the pc. Both these polishers have their pros and cons, but having both, you can decide which one youll need when say the pc isn't cutting it, its time to move up to the rotary. Also keep in mind that most of the heavy duty polishes like #83 meguiars dual action cleaner polish need to be broken down b4 removal, and a rotary is the best for doing that, but it can be done by a pc(just takes longer because it is not direct drive). As a fellow autopian, and many others on the board, Start with an orbital polisher first b4 you move up to the big tools. Always start with the least aggressive product first to get the job done.

 

[digitaldrifter91]

thanks fellas. well today i found some foam buffer pads from mequires....i bought a bigger one for my drill so that incase it does go too fast, the bigger diameter will run slower.

i will have to get some velcros to fit it to my drill though. i also got the mquires professional line of cleaners that are less abrasive, so i will try it out on my moms neglected van later i hope.

but i also found a add on foam piece that goes on to a standard buffer...i bought that as well just to try it....its about 1/4 of an inch thick compared to the mequires one that i will custom fit thats like 4 inches thick of foam.

14 bucks...wow. hehe.

 

[Smitty]

Drifter,
Correct me if I'm wrong, but the outer edge of a bigger diameter buffing pad would travel faster at any given RPM over a smaller one.

 

[Scott P]

quote:

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Originally posted by Smitty:
Drifter,
Correct me if I'm wrong, but the outer edge of a bigger diameter buffing pad would travel faster at any given RPM over a smaller one.

---

A bigger pad will make the same RPM's as a smaller pad. However, the bigger pad may be harder for the drill to turn. Although the outer edge will be turning the same RPM's, the actual speed of that section of pad will be slower.

This harkens back to one of my favorite Calvin and Hobbes cartoons. The father puts two pennies on record player, one near the center and one on the outside. He then says that when the record spins, notice that the path the outside penny takes is much longer. They make the same RPM's, but the outside one is going much faster.

The next pane shows Calvin wide awake in the middle of the night thinking about this concept.

 

[4DSC]

Wait, this isn't making sense to me...

Let's say you have one of those metronome things. You move the pendulum with your hand left to right really slowly. The speed of the tip of the pendulum is pretty low, almost as slow as you moved your hand. Then you stick a new pendulum onto it that is 10 miles long reaching up into space. Won't moving the thing now at the same speed as you did before cause the tip of the pendulum to move incredibly quickly because of leverage?

I'm pretty sure larger pads create more friction, so you would want smaller diameter pads to be safer...

 

[Smitty]

4DSC,
You hit the nail square on the head. here's an analogy using NASCAR that may drive it home.

Say you have a race car at Bristol, 1/2 mile track and then one at Daytona, 2 1/2 mile track. To make 1 lap at Bristol (1 RPM) in 1 minute you would have to go 30 MPH, but at Daytona it would take a 150 MPH trip.

So, I'll stand by my original statement:

Small pad=Slower, Large pad=Faster at same RPM's

If Drifter "Jacks that drill up", he'll be burning up Daytona, when he should be "Buffing at Bristol".

 

[labman]

This is simple math. The linear feet per minute of any point traveling in a circle will be the feet covered in one circle, the circumference, times the number of circles made in a minute, the RPM. Unless the greater friction drags down the speed of the drill, the greater the diameter and circumference, the greater the speed at the outside edge.

Believe me. Expecting to get away with it, I was surprised to be stopped by a state cop a few years ago. In asking some details, he explained he stops lots of people with new, bigger tires. Nine is fine; 10 you'r mine.

 

[digitaldrifter91]

ahh..ic now....bigger pad...faster but at the same rpm while the smaller pad is slowerer and normal...ahh great....now to do more shopping tomorrow =)