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  1. #1
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    Forced Rotation VS Free Spinning...

    I certainly understand the benefit of forced rotation, Being able to power through a tough compounding/correcting session without stalling is easy to understand. When is it better to have a free spinning machine?

    I ask because I have been looking at the Makita PO5000 polisher. It can run in either forced rotation, or free spinning mode. So, obviously there is demand for two distinctively different features. why?

  2. #2
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    Re: Forced Rotation VS Free Spinning...

    The free spin mode on the PO5000 is worthless.


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  4. #3
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    Re: Forced Rotation VS Free Spinning...

    IMO free spinning is pretty worthless in general with the curves and contours of newer freaking vehicles. Just did a 2012 Cruze and unless you have a every pad in 1 inch increments you will stall all over the place. The only thing free spin is good for are flat panels such as the roof. Ive barely touched my GG6 since getting the 3401.
    "Dirt likes detergent so much better than the surface that it's attached to, it'll leave that surface to go hang out with the soap"...aim4squirrels

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    Re: Forced Rotation VS Free Spinning...

    Well if that is the case, why isn't every polisher manufacturer going to forced rotation? Seems like most of them are sticking to the free spinning design, at least for now. Also, why would a manufacturer like Makita go through all of the R&D and cost to develop the industry's first and only machine that can operate in both modes? There must be a good reason...right?

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  7. #5
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    Re: Forced Rotation VS Free Spinning...

    Quote Originally Posted by dcjredline View Post
    IMO free spinning is pretty worthless in general with the curves and contours of newer freaking vehicles. Just did a 2012 Cruze and unless you have a every pad in 1 inch increments you will stall all over the place. The only thing free spin is good for are flat panels such as the roof. Ive barely touched my GG6 since getting the 3401.
    Hilarious

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  9. #6
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    Re: Forced Rotation VS Free Spinning...

    Would be very interesting to see a match up between 2 detailers and a longthrow 21mm polisher and a direct driven DA polisher. They do a half of the same car. With the same pads and polishes. I will not go into battle with which is what. Since I have only polishing with a 21mm longthrow polisher and not a direct driven DA polisher. I can only say that I don't have a big problem with stalling when polishing. Sure it happens but the more time I get behind the polisher the less it's stalling for me. And calling a free spinning DA as useless is a big statement to do. It sounds like you are not being able to polish with it. Even that many only uses free spinning DA. And some of them also has a direct driven DA polisher. Why would they reach for a free spinning DA if they are so useless and they have a direct driven DA too?

  10. #7
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    Re: Forced Rotation VS Free Spinning...

    Quote Originally Posted by dcjredline View Post
    IMO free spinning is pretty worthless in general with the curves and contours of newer freaking vehicles. Just did a 2012 Cruze and unless you have a every pad in 1 inch increments you will stall all over the place. The only thing free spin is good for are flat panels such as the roof. Ive barely touched my GG6 since getting the 3401.
    And on a similar vehicle, and similar situation, my 3401 sits in the bag. The only time I really need it is on huge flat surfaces. I just need it to comfortably spin a 6.5" pad.

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  12. #8
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    Re: Forced Rotation VS Free Spinning...

    Personal preference.

    The industry had a rotary, and a Porter Cable 7424. Essentially what happened was Flex introduced the 3401 to the industry as a combination of the two. It blended the power of the rotary and the safety of the random orbital. This was back in 2007.

    Since those days pads, and polishes have evolved to maximize the cutting potential of the free spinning random orbital tool.

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    Re: Forced Rotation VS Free Spinning...


  15. #10
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    Re: Forced Rotation VS Free Spinning...

    IMHO if one's free spinning DA keeps stalling, then that person is using either a bad technique (holding the machine at the wrong angle, or going on the panel in the wrong direction), or he's using a pad too large, and has to go down in pad size (including possibly switching to a "mini" polisher).

    That said there are things forced rotation polishers are useful for (besides avoiding stalling, that is), like for polishing glass, where you
    1. simply do not have any flat surfaces (like on a windshield) which are pretty much a requirement for the free spinning DAs to work properly, where
    2. you have to put a lot of pressure to achieve some decent results (because paint is very, very hard), and where
    3. you just don't have to worry about burning through (because most automotive glasses are at least half an inch thick, if not more, compared to around 100-200 microns for the paint).

    Polishing a windshield with a free spinning DA is just a nightmare.

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