In an effort to be fair, let me just point out that not everyone that wants to get into machine polishing wants to, or intends to do serious correction work. Some people just want a good polisher to help make the job of applying a finishing wax, or even a cleaner/wax to their daily driver or toy a little easier.
Last night I spoke with the owner of a new-to-him 2007 black Porsche and he explained he did all his work by hand because he's read a lot of bad things about buffers and burning paint. That's actually pretty common, that is people that work by hand hearing horror stories about buffers/polishers.
I took a few moments to explain to him a little bit about paint technology and what's involved with removing swirls, (you have to remove a little paint and level the surface), and how a machine will do a better job than your fingers pushing down on some kind of applicator pad.
I shared this link with him as an example of this topic,
Man versus Machine
And then suggested perhaps looking into getting a DA style polisher just to make it easier to create a very nice finish on his black Porsche. Not a 100% swirl-free, RIDS-free, flawless finish, but a very nice looking finish which ANY of the current DA style polishers are more than capable of creating.
Summary
Not everyone needs or wants the most powerful DA style polisher on the market because their car care goals may be different than all the swirl monsters we create on this forum, i.e. swirl monster being the person that wants 100% of all the swirls out of their car's paint.
Theres room for everyone's needs and wants.
That said, side-by-side, I would have to give the edge to the Griot's polisher for power. The XP is a very close second and the Meguiar's G110 is third. First generation DA style polishers would all be at the 4th place spot, this would include the PC 7424, PC 7336 and first generation Meguiar's G100's which were re-badged PC 7424s and the current UDM which I think is a PC 7336.
If I'm wrong on any of the above someone can please feel free to correct me but I think the above is correct or close to it.
This isn't meant to lead anyone to purchase the Griot's Garage polisher over the new XP or the G110 as these tools are all more powerful than the first generation PC DA Polishers which are actually tools from the wood sanding and finishing industry.
But the question begs for an answer from someone that's used all of these polishers and my intent is to simply state the answer but do it in a way that doesn't dis everything else on the market.
So in order of most powerful to least powerful
Griot's Garage Random Orbital Polisher Porter Cable 7424XP Meguiar's G110
PC 7424, PC 7336, G100, UDM
If you're looking for a powerful DA style polisher and you're not ready to make the jump to the Flex 3401 or a rotary buffer, then either the Griot's Garage ROP or the new PC 7424XP would be a good choice. They're powerful little tools that are easy to learn how to use and master.
And just to note, I'm not trying to steer anyone away from the Meguiar's G110 as I've used this tool for years to do serious correction work and it does offer more power than first generation PC style polishers. This is more feedback and observations, not anything more.
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