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Re: How many here are still using the Porter Cable DA?
I'm not a professional just an enthusiast. I bought mine back in 2006 after reading and learning about the advantage of using a Porter-Cable for polishing on this website. I use it every six months on two personal vehicles and it continues to perform reliably and satisfactorily. I am able to achieve so much better results than I used to by hand thanks to all I've learned here. Thanks to all.
Nick
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Super Member
Re: How many here are still using the Porter Cable DA?
I have seriously considered upgrading to a higher wattage machine because I don't really like my PC anymore.
I've had my Megs G100 (PC 7424) for at least 15 years and I feel that it just doesn't work efficiently for me. Now mind you, I am not a professional and don't often machine polish. I have only polished a few of our vehicles during this time frame for very minor correcting. I've tried to tweak my technique according to how-tos and videos I've seen but its never really felt right to me.
For example, just recently I decided to give a light paint cleaning/polish to my very well maintained 2012 Cruze (switchblade silver) that has never been machine polished. Using HD Speed along with LC 5.5" pads on a speed of 4.5-5 the machine just felt like it was struggling when I applied any sort of pressure other than its own weight. And then I was getting this odd skipping pattern (for lack of better term) that left visible dots on the working panel.
Image 1
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Image 3
How is this possible with a rotating motion of the pad? Unless it actually wasn't really rotating and just bouncing (I do have the backing plate marked with a sharpie for rotation visibility). I was perplexed. I had to kick up the speed to the highest setting to avoid this odd behavior (albeit still occurring but very faintly). In the end the paint finish was *ok* but I wasn't completely blown away by any noticeable transformation in gloss or paint clarity.
This is why I may just pick up a higher powered Maxshine or Harbor machine and convert the PC to 3" for smaller sections.
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Super Member
Re: How many here are still using the Porter Cable DA?
Originally Posted by
evo77
I have seriously considered upgrading to a higher wattage machine because I don't really like my PC anymore.
I've had my Megs G100 (PC 7424) for at least 15 years and I feel that it just doesn't work efficiently for me. Now mind you, I am not a professional and don't often machine polish. I have only polished a few of our vehicles during this time frame for very minor correcting. I've tried to tweak my technique according to how-tos and videos I've seen but its never really felt right to me.
For example, just recently I decided to give a light paint cleaning/polish to my very well maintained 2012 Cruze (switchblade silver) that has never been machine polished. Using HD Speed along with LC 5.5" pads on a speed of 4.5-5 the machine just felt like it was struggling when I applied any sort of pressure other than its own weight. And then I was getting this odd skipping pattern (for lack of better term) that left visible dots on the working panel.
Image 1
Image 2
Image 3
How is this possible with a rotating motion of the pad? Unless it actually wasn't really rotating and just bouncing (I do have the backing plate marked with a sharpie for rotation visibility). I was perplexed. I had to kick up the speed to the highest setting to avoid this odd behavior (albeit still occurring but very faintly). In the end the paint finish was *ok* but I wasn't completely blown away by any noticeable transformation in gloss or paint clarity.
This is why I may just pick up a higher powered Maxshine or Harbor machine and convert the PC to 3" for smaller sections.
Did that wipe off?
I used speed for an "Option 1" Wash + Wax yesterday.
I used the 1st gen 7424, and some 7" Rupes Yellow pads had lying around (they were supposed to be for a 21 that ended up being beyond repair). Speed 4 - 4.5 was all I needed to keep that thing rotating. Removed the light swirls, and overall dullness. Dodge Charger.. I used a 3" plate and 4" Rupes Yellow foam to get the smaller areas.
I'm not a huge proponent of using a lot of pressure though. I call it "light but firm" pressure.
It could be the foams though. I never liked the orange and white LC foams. I found that with those pads I had to use a lot of pressure to get anything going. They always left me wanting more cut and more finish.
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Super Member
Re: How many here are still using the Porter Cable DA?
I do. But i'm a hobbyist and all my vehicles are newer. It can handle the correction work that i feel comfortable attempting. Meaning, any serious correction work could also do harm if you're not skilled and knowledgeable and it's hard to screw up correction work with a PC. I'm going to try and work on my sisters seriously neglected sentra this summer and I'm sure it'll show its limitations then.
2009 Pontiac G8GT
2015 Ford Explorer Limited
2019 Chevy Silverado RST Z71
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Super Member
Re: How many here are still using the Porter Cable DA?
Originally Posted by
dlc95
Did that wipe off?
Yes, it wiped off easily.
It could be the foams though. I never liked the orange and white LC foams. I found that with those pads I had to use a lot of pressure to get anything going. They always left me wanting more cut and more finish.
I tried 3 different pads. Unfortunately they all exhibited the same spotting behavior.
-Orange LC flat
-Orange LC CCS
-Meguiars yellow DFP5
I did fail to mention that I ended up switching to Megs Ultimate Polish at speed 6. This ended up being more workable for me personally and behaved slightly better than HD Speed (with respect to the spotting issue).
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Super Member
Re: How many here are still using the Porter Cable DA?
Originally Posted by
evo77
Yes, it wiped off easily.
I tried 3 different pads. Unfortunately they all exhibited the same spotting behavior.
-Orange LC flat
-Orange LC CCS
-Meguiars yellow DFP5
I did fail to mention that I ended up switching to Megs Ultimate Polish at speed 6. This ended up being more workable for me personally and behaved slightly better than HD Speed (with respect to the spotting issue).
Ultimate Polish is awesome! ONE of my favs!
Looks like there might not have been enough Speed on the pad to stay spread out?
Why her way, I'm glad UP worked.
Personally I never really fell in love with the classic orange and white pads. They didn't like to rotate as well, they seemed kind of grabby unless primed, which in turn increased pad saturation, and required more frequent changes. they didn't seem to cut or finish all that well for me either. I needed a lot of pressure to get them to do anything. I used green and blue Buff and Shine pads for years, and got great performance out of them. I just recently started using the Buff and Shine Uro-Tech line, which is a lot like the Rupes pads. Those foams get great rotation and have an excellent cut/finish ratio. Reminds me of the LC Hydrotech in that way. The only issue is that the blue coarse tends to wear fast - much like the green and blue Rupes pads.
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Super Member
Re: How many here are still using the Porter Cable DA?
Still use my PC7424XP. I converted it to my mini-DA and my dedicated sealant or wax applicator. Runs great with 3" or 4" Pads. Corrects well too with those sizes. IMO this little DA just ROCKS and is extremely reliable! My 1st DA and it still rocks!
CJ
2013 Mustang GT w/Track Pack 6-Speed Manual
Save the Manual!
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Super Member
Re: How many here are still using the Porter Cable DA?
I use it all the time. I use it a lot on wood to sand and with 3” pads. It’s a good machine - especially if you like to refinish furniture
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Re: How many here are still using the Porter Cable DA?
Originally Posted by
ZeroDfx
I'm not a professional just an enthusiast. I bought mine back in 2006 after reading and learning about the advantage of using a Porter-Cable for polishing on this website. I use it every six months on two personal vehicles and it continues to perform reliably and satisfactorily. I am able to achieve so much better results than I used to by hand thanks to all I've learned here. Thanks to all.
Nick
Mine is PC 7335 and I think it is more than 20 yrs. old.
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Re: How many here are still using the Porter Cable DA?
I use my PC solely for applying waxes and sealants with one hand
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