Buffer
 

Can anyone recommend a battery or corded buffer?
thanks

I have a 20 year old Black and Decker that probably has a couple of thousand hours on it that is still serving well. I am considering retiring it in favour of a rechargeable one though. Not sure it matters what brand it is as long as you get certain features.
Make sure it is a random orbital. Some are really just low speed grinders and only go in circles.


Check the availability and cost of pads. There is nothing worse than getting a tool that you can only buy the needed accessories at one place (and usually at a premium).
Variable speeds are very nice.
Watch carefully for what brand they are. Often an off brand name is the exact same tool as the branded one at half the price.

This is what I used for years and years (it wasn't mine I borrowed it from a friend):

Ultimate Detailing Machine™ Dual Action Orbital Polisher

https://www.autogeek.net/udm-ultimat...g-machine.html

The BRZ panels are kinda thin so I haven't used a buffer on it, only applying compound by hand.

BTW battery will never beat a proper corded power tool.

Agree with krayzie, go with corded, battery is significantly heavier and you will feel that extra weight quickly.

Maybe, but based on the performance I'm getting out of my Milwaukee M18 Fuel tools, I'd be willing to give their polisher the benefit of the doubt if I used buffers. That line of tools is fantastic.

Maybe I should rethink my cordless plan then. I have never used a cordless one but there are some pretty lightweight batteries out there now so I figured they may be easier.
I guess ol' Buffy get's to hang in until her death by natural causes.

What about Griots?

LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL
Google ads is right on the ball!

Just make sure it's a DA, right angle-type something like what @krayzie mentioned.


Safer than a rotary.

I have a 18V Festool cordless drill and it's fantastic on the field (although it will never beat my corded Ryobi hammer drill from the 80's for real work) but I'm not sure if I want to deal with the extra weight as a DA polisher is already quite heavy. I always remove the product by hand and it's tiring, the machine is only used to apply.

The porter cable is pretty much the standard:

https://www.portercable.com/products...olisher/7424xp

I was curious about this, so I looked up some weights on the manufacturers' websites to see for myself. There were three corded polishers mentioned in that buyer's guide Tcoat posted:

Porter Cable 7424XP - 5-1/2 lbs
Meguiar’s G110v2 - 5.5 lbs.
Griot’s Garage - 7.73 lbs.

Here are three cordless polishers:
M18 FUEL™ 7” Variable Speed Polisher - 6.4 lbs w/ 5.0 Battery
Ryobi 18V ONE+™ ORBITAL BUFFER - 4.2 lbs (not indicated whether that's with or without battery)
Makita 18V Cordless 5" Random Orbit Sander - 3.6 lbs (with battery)

So whether it's corded or cordless doesn't seem to be the determining factor in the weight. Although I haven't used any of these myself, I have used grinders quite a bit in my welding, and it seems to me the ergonomics would be similar. With that in mind, NONE of those corded buffers look comfortable at all. They're too heavy and don't seem to be shaped correctly to use one-handed, but there doesn't seem to be any thought at all in the design of the case for the second hand. We had a big 7" grinder at the shop that was designed that way, and despite it being the most powerful grinder we had, nobody would use it because of how unwieldy it was.

Maybe you guys who use them regularly see something else I don't, but from what I'm seeing online the only disadvantage I see in cordless is that the Milwaukee only goes up to 2200 RPM. The two cheap cordless ones both go higher, though, and still seem like they'd be easier to handle than the corded ones.

Damnit now I am back to thinking cordless. The Makita was on my shortlist before and it is the lightest.

Mine's still in the box. I'm thinking that learning to like the swirls is an easier solution.

In checking out video reviews of orbital buffers I have found several by professional detailers speaking well of this Harbor Freight offering. It will be on sale soon for $59 I believe

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3-mHKBj31Ig"]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3-mHKBj31Ig[/ame]

I have a Griots 6" which I purchased 5 years ago. The speed control works great and the locking trigger feels decent.
I used it a few weeks ago on the FRS and Saab, no signs of quitting and still feels solid.

https://www.autogeek.net/porter-cable-meguiars-kit.html

I use a Porter Cable PC7424XP which is a very good entry-level tool, Autogeek.com sells complete kits for it. I've had mine 10+ years.


[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Et6Egpw-f-s[/ame]
.


I recommend using smaller pads on this car, 3"-5" as there are a few tight corners around the car, namely the front and rear bumper, fender areas, and along the door sill. You will want to tape these areas as there's a lot of stuff you don't want the buffer to buff against such as the headlights and trim pieces (tell that to the guy who detailed my car in 2013 and left marks everywhere!!)

The pads I use: Meguiar's DMC5 5" microfiber pads , Lake Country 5.5" White pads, and Griots Garage 3" pads. I typically go through about 10 pads polishing my entire car, using a fresh pad over each section.

Meguiar's M205 Finishing Polish is usually enough to clear most swirls and light scratches on this car. I use M105 or Ultimate Compound when necessary for tougher scratches.

The other polishers and recommendations might do fine, but I recommend you make sure that you can switch out the backing plates to use high-quality pads and sizes that can fit the curves and angles of this car. Good brands for polishing pads include Meguiar's, Lake Country, Griots, Chemical Guys.

Take a look at this review. I think it is a good comparison review:

[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kvljpsp0tNc[/ame]



For me, I currently using the one below, very impressive in terms of smoothness and ease of control. It helps speed up my polishing process by far.

[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PzGHFujkHVU[/ame]

I think the Harbor Freight polisher looks great for the budget. If you want a brand name entry level polisher, the Porter Cable PC7424XP is a great choice (for $50 more). Just make sure you get a good pad set and backing plates like the reviewer said and you'll get great results.

The downsides to the cheaper tool is that they vibrate more, your hands might be numb by the end of a detail.

i have the griot's garage DA polisher along with 3 different sets of pads... works great so far