Fired up 3401 for the first time...

[BudgetPlan1]

Umm, "wow" pretty much sums it up.

Kinda went into a polisher buying frenzy when AG had discounted gift certs last month. Have been using GG6 for last year but wanted to try something new so snatched up a LHR15 Mark 2, Rupes LHR75 Mini.

Still had some $$ left over so figrd I see what all the hullabaloo was about the Flex so ordered up one of those too kinda as an afterthought after the big holiday sales were over. So I thought, anyway; of course the week after I click 'Buy' AG has a 15% sale...doh! Eh, such is life, or at least my life anyway.

Regardless, with living in NE Ohio the 'garage' season is over so the only place I have to play is at work w/ the fleet of service vans that have likely recd no attention aside from occasional tunnel washes...but it seemed like a excellent place to start with the Flex, ya know kinda that whole 'production' detailing environment thing.

Grabbed a couple of sets of LC Force Hybrid pads, 6 each of 6.5" gray & orange as well as 6 each of the 5.5" gray, orange and white and the smaller Flex backing plate (4 3/8").

Picked out a fine 2008 Ford E250 outta the fleet, 151K hard miles on it. Paint is totally beat, oxidized a bit, dull, scratched, swirled, water spots...you name it. Had previously worked a similar condition truck last month with the GG6, D300 and micro cutting discs. Would take a set or two of 6-8 passes to get it looking nice enough to move to polish step, with nice being a relative term given paint condition. Twas' a bit of work for sure.

So yesterday I get the chance to haul out the Flex, slap on a 5.5" grey cutting pad and give it a go with a small bottle of M105, which I had never used before either and was curious about as it seems such a popular choice. Had read all the various methodologies regarding M105, from the KBM method thru various posts regarding the best way to use it without it being difficult (Prime, mist with water and such). Musta missed something in translation as first section that stuff was stuck like glue to the paint. Fortunately it was a smaller bottle of M105 which made it easier to hit the garbage can with it; homey ain't got time for that nonsense!

Grabbed another gray pad, slathered on some M101, speed 5.5, medium pressure and 4 passes later had the same results as the GG6/D300/Microfiber combo, that is, perfectly delightful considering the paint condition I was working with. Wow, that was certainly easy...well with respect to the GG6 combo anyway. Followed up with M205 w a white pad but, quite frankly, the M205 didn't improve all that much as far as gloss/clarity goes. The M101/Gray combo finished remarkably well...and with surprisingly little effort.

Items of note, to me anyway:

1. The 3401 is kinda like a GG6 that has been gulping steroids and spending lotsa time at the gym. Calling it 'The Beast' is pretty much spot-on.

2. Recessed body line, smaller area, weird contours? No worries...just tip it up on edge with that nice, thick Force pad and just keep on chugging with that pad happily spinning away without so much as a care in the world, making those defects run away and hide in short order. Amazingly easy.

3. Counter rotating pad? To tell ya the truth, if I wouldn't have known before hand i probably wouldn't have even noticed. Non issue for me.

4. Ease of operation? Love the progressive trigger, can spread on slow and move right up to speed without needing to adjust speed dial. Not sure on the weight but the longer handle made it easier for me to maneuver than the GG6, seemed able to stick it more easily into more areas. As for vibration it can seem a bit rougher than the GG6 at times but I snagged a pair of Mad Grip Impact Gloves a tech had in his van and that seemed to make it at least 50% less more pleasurable to use, if not more. Maybe I'll grab some of the GG Gloves on this weekends sale...it certainly makes a big difference for me.

Will have to check but maybe the speed selection dial is the opposite of the GG6 as without thinking about it I always seemed to move it the wrong direction when changing speeds.

I can certainly see why this is a good choice for not only production work but delicate jobs as well. Technique and attention to detail will certainly need to be adjusted when doing final polishing work but if you gotta compound and bust up some severe defects in short order, this thing will handle your business quickly.

While a Rupes will dance those defects away, the 3401 is gonna bust down the door and stomp 'em into submission quickly before exiting with a knowing smirk on it's face.

Can think of a few jobs last year where a Flex woulda saved a significant amount of time, in some cases likely 30 to 40% in the compounding step. It's gonna be a bit more taxing on these old bones but I think a lot of that can be minimized with further use/experience, body positioning and movement.

Got a little interesting when trying to extend my reach without moving my lazy butt (like when sitting on ground doing lower/rocker panels and such) but that's not machines fault...it's just telling you "Hey, we got work to do so quit messing around and get yourself over here so we can get outta here ya slacker!!"

Was kinda on the fence with this purchase, thinking maybe it was kinda redundant with the GG6, Rupes 15 and Rupes Mini but pretty sure this will have a very worthwhile seat at the 'efficiency table'. For once the little voices in my head that were casting doubt regarding a somewhat redundant purchase were WRONG. Dead wrong. This thing is a cold blooded defect killer. Can't wait to try it on some less abused vehicles with some other pads/combos and see how nice I can get it to finish out.

Also a lot easier to clean pad on fly with this constant rotation.

Winner.

Edit: The HOW TO USE FLEX POLISHER book that came with it is an invaluable tool to get a feel for the techniques and possibilities of using this thing. Saved me much effort going in as to what to expect, how to maximize efforts and tips and tricks. Didn't have to learn the hard way.

I did change plates and give the 6.5" pads a try too. Interesting...very interesting. Best be paying close attention unless you want the machine to take you on a quick trip to wherever IT wants to go.

[java]

Great review! Did you ever felt the 3401 was controlling you or you were in complete control (no walking the dog)?

[fly07sti]

Enjoyed reading your first time with the 3401. I know I love using mine.

[kevincwelch]

While a Rupes will dance those defects away, the 3401 is gonna bust down the door and stomp 'em into submission quickly before exiting with a knowing smirk on it's face.

Fantastic description. I think you're gonna love the Flex over the years. It certainly has changed the way I approach correction, even though I get all my devices out when it's time to hit the paint.

[boosteddub69]

Great review! Great info and an entertaining read at the same time. Well done Sir!

I just pulled the trigger on one and it should be here in a couple days.

[Aaryn NZ]

Great review!

I have many polishers, & three of those are 3401s - they're my first choice & even after buffing, polishing & waxing thousands of vehicles, I've never been let down. I did have to replace the switch on the one that sees the most work but hey, with the amount of work its done, thats hardly a failure to me, in fact - if it hadn't started again I would've hung it on the wall in my shop & retired it with full honours.

Pleased you had a good experience with your Flex, thank you for a great read.

Aaryn NZ.

[DaveT435]

Great review. It will be interesting to see which machine becomes your "go to" machine over the next few months. I assume both will see a fair amount of time before you decide which is best for you. I would think the mini will see action on almost every detail.

You've mentioned your age a few times now. I'm wondering how old you are. I see a lot of 40 year olds making these kind of comments and reality is they have no idea what's ahead of them. I'm 55 and it was a ver rough first 45 which has left me with a lot of plates, screws, and bolts holding me together and a really bad back. So how old are you?? More importantly how old do you feel?? lol I feel a lot older than my years unfortunately.

[fightnews]

so have you used the rupes fifteen a while and think the flex is a lot better?

[Kamakaz1961]

WOW!! What a great review!! Love my Flex and glad you do too! Keep on rockin!!

[Aaryn NZ]

so have you used the rupes fifteen a while and think the flex is a lot better?

These tools are completely different machines, I'm not sure why people keep trying to compare them. Both are great tools, I achieve great results with either . . . heck, I have an old Cyclo that will get the desired results too. Sometimes I use Megs. sometimes I use Pinnacle, Sometimes I use CarPro, sometimes . . . . the list is endless. There will never be only one tool, pad & product for every job.

Aaryn NZ.