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  1. #11
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    Re: Just got my Flex PE14...

    Quote Originally Posted by alko View Post
    The following had me confused a bit too:




    The only complaint about the trigger, for me, is that it takes some getting used to locking it. I'll pull the trigger and try to lock it and sometimes it doesn't lock. But I think the previous comment was from your description of the "dead trigger" and having to hold down "keep the trigger pulled down with out fatigue"
    Quote Originally Posted by SonOfOC View Post
    There are many of us that use the trigger lock for polishing and even more when jeweling. I've used the trigger lock on every car for the last 20+ years.
    The first time you catch an edge and burn it, sling a panel, or have the polisher rip out of your hand you'll wish you'd never locked it.

    I was always told to keep the trigger fluid, so that the polisher can be backed down near creases, curves, edges, etc. I don't encounter many huge perfectly flat areas on vehicles anymore, so I have never locked the trigger because it would be an almost constant charade of lock/unlock/lock/unlock. Plus, as you said..many of these polishers lock buttons are not consistent at all.

    I learned all my polishing/sanding/cutting/buffing techniques thru my PPG certification courses. We were always told never lock the trigger, ever. Of course, this was way before it was "hip" to have 400 dollar polishers, and the only one making poilshing compounds was 3M. WELL before anyone knew what a D/A polisher was.

    Maybe some guys get away with it...but the first time I caught the edge of a hood and about broke my wrist, I vowed to never do it again and understood why I was warned about locking the trigger.

    As always..I say use what works for you. If you have done it for 20 years, obviously you have mastered it.
    Last edited by BLKZ06; 05-17-2012 at 11:22 AM.

  2. #12
    Super Member alko's Avatar
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    Re: Just got my Flex PE14...

    You make a very good point...I'm new to rotary's and hope I never encounter burned edges or anything of that nature. I will have to keep in mind what you said, and I'm sure you've helped other add little tid bits of information to remember...I know I'll keep it in mind.
    Alex
    ...."Do the right thing...even when no one is looking"

  3. #13
    Super Member truckbutt's Avatar
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    Re: Just got my Flex PE14...

    Tried mine out for the first time two weeks ago. Loved it! It is well balanced and incredibly easy to handle.
    Best Regards,
    Scott Muscle Car Detailing - Mod and Shine
    Detailing supplies aren't cheap, but they're a lot cheaper then therapy

  4. #14
    Mike Phillips
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    Re: Just got my Flex PE14...

    Quote Originally Posted by BLKZ06 View Post

    The first time you catch an edge and burn it, sling a panel, or have the polisher rip out of your hand you'll wish you'd never locked it.
    Been there done that but I still use the trigger lock. I don't use it all the time it just depends upon the panel I'm buffing.

    Quote Originally Posted by BLKZ06 View Post
    Of course, this was way before it was "hip" to have 400 dollar polishers,
    I remember cutting my teeth using a Milwaukee sander/polisher, probably weighed 20 pounds. Also used an old Sioux sander/polisher, I think both were two speed models as the variable speed model had not been introduced yet. They were heavy, noisy and bulky and no fun at all to use all day long buffing out cars.

    I bought my first variable speed Makita in 1987, shortly after it was introduced and buffed out thousands of cars with it and compared to the old battle wagons of days gone by it's a real gem.

    Today I have a Flex PE14, the number #2 unit off the production line given to me by Bob Eichelberg and I love it for it's compact size, lightweight and especially how quite it is. It's also the best rotary buffer for doing what I call surgical buffing. If owning the Flex PE14 is hip then I'm happy to be hip.

    Quote Originally Posted by BLKZ06 View Post
    and the only one making polishing compounds was 3M.
    Meguiar's introduced #1, #2 and #4 way back in the early 1940's, maybe earlier, no one around breathing air any longer that you can talk to that knows for sure. I tried to discuss this with Barry Meguiar and Ken Meguiar but both are hard to corner for any type of lengthy, in-depth conversations about the old products from the old days.

    Meguiar's called these product "cleaners" and avoided the word "compound" because back then compounds scoured the paint because of the types of hard, sharp abrasives they used. Meguiar's pioneered the use of diminishing abrasives and thus used the term "cleaner" instead of compound but I can assure you 3M as great a company as they are were not the only people with compounds dating back to the early days of the automobile.

    Quote Originally Posted by BLKZ06 View Post
    WELL before anyone knew what a D/A polisher was.
    When I started calling on body shops I showed them how to use the foam pad sitting on the shelf next to my desk here, it's a Meguiar's W-6000, it's a foam pad designed to fit into an air DA Sander to remove swirls on fresh paint after the sanding and rotary buffer work is over.










    When the Porter Cable was introduced I started showing this tool and that was probably the late 1980's. I have a catalog from Meguiar's that dates back to 1994 that shows the PC with the PC name on it before they started re-branding it.

    Here's some pictures of my oldest catalogs... am trying to find out if there's any older catalogs than this...

    The one on the left is from 1995 and the one on the right is from 1996, the catalog from 1995 documents Meguiar's introducing the G100 at least 13 years ago and before this we were showing people in the Professional Trade how to use air powered DA Sanders to polish paint by using our W5500 Foam Polishing Pad, which if you look closely is the actual pad on the Porter Cable unit pictured below, not a W-8006 on a W64 DA Backing Plate.






    The lettering is kind of fuzzy but you can make out that it says Porter Cable






    Quote Originally Posted by BLKZ06 View Post

    Maybe some guys get away with it...
    There's a time a place for everything the trick is to know when to use it and when not to use it but it's definitely a nice feature to have the option to use should a person choose.

    I know I would rather have a trigger lock on a rotary buffer than not have one.

    Quote Originally Posted by BLKZ06 View Post

    As always..I say use what works for you.
    I know that saying...

    "Find something you like and use it often"




  5. #15
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    Re: Just got my Flex PE14...

    Great info Mike!

    I never knew about Meguiars offering "compunds" that early on. I only heard about the 3M "compounds" for clearcoat probably back in 88-89. I think the first one I used with a rotary was the Fineese-it II. Really good stuff!

    I learned about these D/A polishers right here on AG, by watching your vids- I was not sold at first because I had been so successful with a rotary. I didn't think a little puny D/A could touch the results I was getting with a rotary...boy was I wrong.

    I do remember trying out stuff by hand, and had a few "mishaps" along the way..can you say major scratches?

    I love the new Flex..I got to work with it a little more last night- I gingerly tried locking the trigger on the hood of my Range Rover- and I won't lie..I think it gave me butterflies a little.

    Glad to say..no stories to report today.

  6. #16
    Mike Phillips
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    Re: Just got my Flex PE14...

    Quote Originally Posted by BLKZ06 View Post

    I learned about these D/A polishers right here on AG, by watching your vids- I was not sold at first because I had been so successful with a rotary. I didn't think a little puny D/A could touch the results I was getting with a rotary...boy was I wrong.
    DA tools and pads and products to use with DA's have come a LONG way since the late 1980's, in fact I've seen more cool products introduced in the last 3-4 years than in my entire life in this industry and I expect to see even more cool new products introduced moving forward.


    Quote Originally Posted by BLKZ06 View Post

    I do remember trying out stuff by hand, and had a few "mishaps" along the way..can you say major scratches?
    I've spend a lot of years teaching people how to work by hand because sometimes you have no other options as I explain in this thread...

    Can you achieve perfection by hand?


    But if I can work by machine... I do work by machine as the human hand can never outperform the machine.



  7. #17
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    Re: Just got my Flex PE14...

    Quote Originally Posted by BLKZ06 View Post
    The fact you would even ask that...I'll guess I'll just say I hope you aren't buffing your car with a rotary.

    Dude you're high.... if you are honestly manually controlling the trigger as you are buffing, I hope YOU are not using a rotary to "buff" a car. If you are scared to burn paint you can just step it down and use a lower speed, I don't see any time you would not be okay with using the trigger lock. Prove me wrong.

  8. #18
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    Re: Just got my Flex PE14...

    Quote Originally Posted by BLKZ06 View Post
    The first time you catch an edge and burn it, sling a panel, or have the polisher rip out of your hand you'll wish you'd never locked it.

    I was always told to keep the trigger fluid, so that the polisher can be backed down near creases, curves, edges, etc. I don't encounter many huge perfectly flat areas on vehicles anymore, so I have never locked the trigger because it would be an almost constant charade of lock/unlock/lock/unlock. Plus, as you said..many of these polishers lock buttons are not consistent at all.

    I learned all my polishing/sanding/cutting/buffing techniques thru my PPG certification courses. We were always told never lock the trigger, ever. Of course, this was way before it was "hip" to have 400 dollar polishers, and the only one making poilshing compounds was 3M. WELL before anyone knew what a D/A polisher was.

    Maybe some guys get away with it...but the first time I caught the edge of a hood and about broke my wrist, I vowed to never do it again and understood why I was warned about locking the trigger.

    As always..I say use what works for you. If you have done it for 20 years, obviously you have mastered it.
    That's the dumbest thing I have ever read. You honestly let off the trigger near every edge? dude.... no offense but ###.

    You keep doing that, but don't come in hear preaching that type of ####.

  9. #19
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    Re: Just got my Flex PE14...

    Quote Originally Posted by Kaban View Post
    That's the dumbest thing I have ever read. You honestly let off the trigger near every edge? dude.... no offense but ###.

    You keep doing that, but don't come in hear preaching that type of ####.
    I absolutely let off the trigger and slow the buffer down near edges and creases. Some guys tape their edges and creases, some guys use a slower speed near possible trouble areas.

    You don't agree that's fine. Im not preaching any more #### than you claiming it's OK to lock the trigger without and reasonable explaination as to why.

    At least I have a certified industry giant who teaches that and taught me to slow down my buffer near edges and creases because the clear is the thinnest there.

    What do you have? Your word?

  10. #20
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    Re: Just got my Flex PE14...

    Quote Originally Posted by Kaban View Post
    Dude you're high.... if you are honestly manually controlling the trigger as you are buffing, I hope YOU are not using a rotary to "buff" a car. If you are scared to burn paint you can just step it down and use a lower speed, I don't see any time you would not be okay with using the trigger lock. Prove me wrong.
    Keep an eye out for The pics in Show and Shine for my 2011 Z06 I just finished with a rotary using my method. Seemed to work "ok" for me. if I didn't have faith in my abilities I sure wouldn't pick my 100k limited production Vette to try it out on.


    Who said I didn't use a lower speed? I simply said I didn't lock the trigger.

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