PC question: spinning

[advs1]

good morning all. I was using my PC yesterday and noticed that if i put any pressure on the machine it seems to not spin? It is jiggling, for lack of correct terminology, but it seems to not spin in a circular motion, I tried just using the weight of the machine and it seems to bog down. If I lift it a bit I can see it start to spin. Am I doing something wrong? Or is my machine broken?

Of and I love this place, thanks for a lot of great info.

[budman3]

Nope, that's normal. If you turn the PC up to speed 6 you'll find it a lot harder to get the pad to stop rotating. Also, it all depends on the pad and product combination. A grabby polish will stop the pad from spinning and heavy pads like the Edge 2000 will also prevent the pad from spinning. Some say that the spinning really doesn't do much for correcting but I find that hard to believe... Also, try to keep the pad flat as possible, that'll help too. Good luck and Welcome!

[advs1]

Thanks for the quick reply budman, i also find it hard to beleive that spinning does not do much. Especially when orbital buffers just spin. And i was just using Meguires #1 to take of some old wax and get rid of some swirl marks. I am going to order one of the kits from the website this week and try those out on a different car.

[D&D Auto Detailing]

I agree with budman. When I was just starting to learn the PC a few years ago, the rule was put enough pressure until the PC starts to bog, or if the pad stops spinning, then you're using too much pressure. Then the Edge system came out and all the sudden the pad doesnt need to spin in order to correct. Like budman said, I have a hard time believing this. A pad that doesnt spin simply cant correct nor break down the polish as efficiently. This is why I dont use the Edge system with the PC anymore. Unless Im using the orange pad, or 4" pads.

[MikeyC]

The machine does not actually force the pad to spin. The spinning is a by-product of the jiggling motion and the fact that the pad is mounted on a spindle. When you're using a rotary buffer, the machine is actually causing the pad to spin.

Personally, I feel the spinning is not necessary for polishing. I just use it as an idicator of how much pressure I'm using. If it's spinning then I'm using the right amount. If it's not spinning then it's too much pressure. I use Edge pads and have no problem with getting them to spin.

[Grimm]

MikeyC said it perfectly.

[advs1]

Thanks for the replies guys. I am still learning the PC and need to order a pad system with some polish. I still have spider web looking scratches all over the place.

[Surfer]

Originally Posted by MikeyC

The machine does not actually force the pad to spin. The spinning is a by-product of the jiggling motion and the fact that the pad is mounted on a spindle. When you're using a rotary buffer, the machine is actually causing the pad to spin.

Personally, I feel the spinning is not necessary for polishing. I just use it as an idicator of how much pressure I'm using. If it's spinning then I'm using the right amount. If it's not spinning then it's too much pressure. I use Edge pads and have no problem with getting them to spin.

Agree, the PC barely spins, its a by-product, I use Edge pads and have used LC pads as well, the LC spun just as little as my Edge's, but the spinning motion of the PC is nothing like a rotary and doesn't do much (a lot different from the heat and circular motion of a rotary). PC's more or less "grind" the polish in with their jiggle motion.

[Jimmie]

Originally Posted by Surfer

Agree, the PC barely spins, its a by-product, I use Edge pads and have used LC pads as well, the LC spun just as little as my Edge's, but the spinning motion of the PC is nothing like a rotary and doesn't do much (a lot different from the heat and circular motion of a rotary). PC's more or less "grind" the polish in with their jiggle motion.

That's the best explanation that I've heard. I stopped worrying about spinning a long time ago when I could see that the "jiggling" was making the corrections. Good one Surfer.
However: Always wondered why it wouldn't spin much.

[D&D Auto Detailing]

Originally Posted by Surfer

Agree, the PC barely spins, its a by-product, I use Edge pads and have used LC pads as well, the LC spun just as little as my Edge's, but the spinning motion of the PC is nothing like a rotary and doesn't do much (a lot different from the heat and circular motion of a rotary). PC's more or less "grind" the polish in with their jiggle motion.

Edge 6" orange and green will spin similar to LC yellow and orange. However, 6" blue doesnt really spin at all, but LC white and blue do. Usually you arent doing correction with those pads anyways, but it still bugs me.