Thoughts on Flex PE8 Kompakt Rotary

[Trevine]

Long story short...I grew tired of the constant stalling of my Rupes Bigfoot because I wanted more cutting efficiency to get get things knocked out quicker so I went with the Flex 3401. it was the perfect upraged for what I was looking to accomplish. I thought about keeping the Rules but after using the Flex for a while, the Rupes went to a new home. perhaps the Mille would have accomplished the same thing but I was very frustrated and wanted to try something different. This isn't intended to bash Rupes or start a Flex Vs Rupes debate thread. I am just looking for some advice and experience.

Now that I have seen what the forced drive can do, I am very frustrated with my Rupes 75 for the same reasons. Its nice and smooth and reaches those smaller area but now I hate the stalling even more. I have started to look around at replacing the 75 with some sort of gear/positive drive compact. It looks like the random/DA compact versions of both the Rupes and Flex lines are free spinning but Flex does have the PE8 Kompakt Rotary.

Some questions for folks:

Are there any other compact positive/gear drive models I should consider?

With the Flex PE8:

Is it truly a positive drive system? Meaning no stalling?

Is it easy to work with? Not with noise or vibration rather moving in the tighter areas. Part of me thinks the little extension would make it better while part of me thinks it might be a little awkward.

What pad/plate combinations are the better ones to use with it? I feel that I would want a pad either foam, micro, or wool that is a little larger than the backing plate to help avoid the plate making contact with the surface while trying to maneuver around the tighter spaces.

What adaptors/modifications would you recommend?

Any other thoughts?

Appreciate any feedback or opinions. I want to make an educated decision.

Thanks

[Mike Phillips]

Long story short...I grew tired of the constant stalling of my Rupes Bigfoot because I wanted more cutting efficiency to get get things knocked out quicker so I went with the Flex 3401. it was the perfect upraged for what I was looking to accomplish.

Most of my pro work is done using the BEAST. Here's my quote,

With the FLEX 3401 you can power through a detail job - Mike Phillips


8mm gear-driven oribial is Top Gun in my opinion and experience buffing out car. If you want to go fast and maintain the highest quality results the BEAST is the way to go. I don't have time for pad stalling with any brand. There is a time and place for free spinning oribitals like soft or sticky paints on the finishing step. So you should always have some brand of free spinning orbital in your tool collection and a 8mm free spinning works for this.

I thought about keeping the Rules but after using the Flex for a while, the Rupes went to a new home. perhaps the Mille would have accomplished the same thing but I was very frustrated and wanted to try something different. This isn't intended to bash Rupes or start a Flex Vs Rupes debate thread. I am just looking for some advice and experience.

I can appreciate you're just looking for accurate helps and advice. The gear-driven RUPES Mille or the Makita PO5000C, both 5mm gear-driven orbitals are also great tools to avoid pad stalling. I've used both and still find 8mm gear-driven faster than 5mm gear-driven. For what it's worth.

Now that I have seen what the forced drive can do, I am very frustrated with my Rupes 75 for the same reasons. Its nice and smooth and reaches those smaller area but now I hate the stalling even more. I have started to look around at replacing the 75 with some sort of gear/positive drive compact. It looks like the random/DA compact versions of both the Rupes and Flex lines are free spinning but Flex does have the PE8 Kompakt Rotary.

Some questions for folks:

Are there any other compact positive/gear drive models I should consider?

No small compact gear-driven orbitals on the market yet.

With the Flex PE8:

Is it truly a positive drive system? Meaning no stalling?

Yes. All Rotary buffers or rotary polishers are gear-driven and thus zero pad stalling. The problem is they tend to leave holograms in the paint. This can easily be cleaned up by following with any orbital.

Is it easy to work with? Not with noise or vibration rather moving in the tighter areas. Part of me thinks the little extension would make it better while part of me thinks it might be a little awkward.

What pad/plate combinations are the better ones to use with it? I feel that I would want a pad either foam, micro, or wool that is a little larger than the backing plate to help avoid the plate making contact with the surface while trying to maneuver around the tighter spaces.

What adaptors/modifications would you recommend?

Any other thoughts?

Appreciate any feedback or opinions. I want to make an educated decision.

Thanks

I don't have time to type out a ton of in-depth answers to the above and I all over this forum I have answered those questions in the past. I'm packing for my Texas Roadshow Class and that's a priority as I need to get 1,200 pounds of tools to Texas.


Here's my recommendation. Skip the Kompact 3 and just get the FLEX PE14 rotary polisher. It dials down to 400 RPM on the trigger and 600 RPM locked. The lowest the Kompact 3 goes down to is 1,100 RPM.

The trade-off in a slightly larger body is negligible.


See my class using the PE14 to remove sanding scratches on a streetrod on page 2 of this thread,

Pictures: May 2019 Detailing Bootcamp Class at Autogeek with Mike Phillips

[JustJesus]

Some questions for folks:

Are there any other compact positive/gear drive models I should consider?

Well, there is one: The Meg's DA Power System. Unfortunately, it's actually an attachment tool that you mount on a drill. This could kind of defeat the purpose in your case, if you wanted something compact.

With the Flex PE8:

Part of me thinks the little extension would make it better while part of me thinks it might be a little awkward.

What pad/plate combinations are the better ones to use with it? I feel that I would want a pad either foam, micro, or wool that is a little larger than the backing plate to help avoid the plate making contact with the surface while trying to maneuver around the tighter spaces.

What adaptors/modifications would you recommend?

Thanks

I use the PE8 with the 1" hex extension Buff and Shine Rotary Backing Plate Extension and 1" Flex pads FLEX PE8 Rotary Foam Pads 1, 2, 3 Inch Diameter but you can also use the 2" and maybe even the 3" with no problems.

It's not awkward at all. Not for me, anyway. I use it in really tight spaces as needed. Just use caution as with any tool.

For the PE8, mine hasn't been modified in any way.

As Mike said above, the PE8 *is* a rotary machine, so you may leave some small holograms behind.

[FUNX650]

To recapitulate:

I’m here to report that I’m so glad to
have purchased FLEX’s PE8 Kompakt
Rotary Polisher—what a godsend!


Bob

[joleyred]

To recapitulate:

I’m here to report that I’m so glad to
have purchased FLEX’s PE8 Kompakt
Rotary Polisher—what a godsend!


Bob

I couldn't agree more, I love mine and I use it on every car that I do any buffing work.

Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk

[Trevine]

It’s ordered. Just couldn’t stand my Rupes 75 any longer. Hopefully this is as good of an upgrade as it was going from my Rupes LHR to the Flex 3401.

[Dr Oldz]

Love the Mini Spinny. My only con is I would rather a trigger than a switch to turn it on but it’s not a huge deal.