Harbor Freight DA Polisher - New

[tuscarora dave]

Well that makes sense!!! I forget those of us doing this for a hobby might be inconvienced for a couple of weeks if our polisher breaks down, but it we're not in a situation that it costs us money.

Hope the Sandy doesn't hit you too hard--at least we're somewhat inland!!

Yeah, down time is a bad bad thing in any business. I have about 8 polishers to work with but I just bought a bunch of 5.5" UltraFiber pads and am trying to do most jobs with a DA. With the G110V2 as my only decent DA I'd like to have a few back up DAs even if they're cheapo models. Regardless of having DAs to use or not, the show must and will go on.

I hope Sandy doesn't effect you too much either. I just locked up the shop for the day and the wind and light rain is already here. This will be an interesting week as the extreme bus detail/paint repair job I'm working on needs to be done this week regardless of the weather.

[swanicyouth]

You are going to find the HF DA is as good as any other. The unit is the same as 3D is selling. The only difference MAY be the motor, or possibly the STICKER that rates the motor on the unit.

If you think the Chinese companies that make products to sell in the USA are honest ( or ethical) you should read the book "Poorly Made in China". Besides the fact it's a great read, this book explains the shenanigans Chinese manufacturers pull when doing manufacturing for agencies in other countries

These companies will stick whatever motor they can purchase for the lowest price regardless of specs and still sell it under the same rating , or any rating a buyer wants for that matter. The US company is none the wiser until the complaints (or failures) start rolling in.

It's not uncommon for a US firm to contract a Chinese manufacturer to make a high quality item after seeing a high quality prototype, only the manufacturer switches out cheaper components when the actual batch of product is made. These companies also steal artistic and mechanical designs and sell them as their own designs under a house name or even to another company all over the world. The US firm that spent the cash to engineer and develop the product has no recourse.

[tuscarora dave]

Honestly if it's just like the broken overpriced version that's in my cabinet at the shop, it's a swirl wrecking machine that is also capable of pad and backing meltdown too if you run it hard on speed 6. My G110V2 doesn't do this to pads.

[swanicyouth]

Honestly if it's just like the broken overpriced version that's in my cabinet at the shop, it's a swirl wrecking machine that is also capable of pad and backing meltdown too if you run it hard on speed 6. My G110V2 doesn't do this to pads.

HD polisher broke already? Is it under warranty?

[tuscarora dave]

Is it under warranty?

It will be once I get my hands on 2 of the HF units.

[mullet]

I picked up one of the HF DA's yesterday. I haven't had a chance to use it yet and won't until I decide and buy whatever pads I'm going to use. My local HF did not have any pads that I saw.

My observations without having used it yet are:
Extra set of brushes is a nice touch
Feels a bit on the heavy side but I haven't held any other DA's in quite some time so I could be wrong.
Did not notice the "wobble" from a manual spin that SubieMonte mentioned
Switch leaves a little to be desired. Feels a little cheap, no noticeable "stop" at labeled levels.

Overall, so far, it SEEMS to be fairly well put together, worth the $50 I spent on it, and should do a good enough job on the 3 cars I'll be using it on after a 5" BP and some 5.5" pads.

Now off I go to research the million+ options I seem to have for pads to use on this thing so I can put it through its paces sooner rather than later.

[ski2]

Stopped by my local Harbor Freight to pick up some shop towels they had on special so took the opportunity to look at the new DA polisher. I have to admit I was impressed--seems very solidly built and felt good in the hands. Speed switch is a continuous switch without detents at each speed. On/Off switch seems about the same as on other DAs. Power cord was soft and much more flexible than the cord on my GG6 (my biggest complaint with the GG--cheap plastic cord--kinks easily). The wobble of the backing plate mentioned by others seems clearly to be the lack of quality of the backing plate itself which shouldn't be a problem since most users will replace it with a 5" plate anyhow.

Have to say if I was purchasing my first DA for use on personal cars I'd seriosly consider this unit so for $68 (with the 20% coupon) you'd get the polisher and at least a 2 year warranty. Only problem that puts it within $12 of a GG6 which are frequently on sale for $80 with a lifetime warranty which I think is valuable to those of us just doing this as a hobby--3,4 or 5 years down the road if my GG breaks down, just send it to Griots for repair, but I understand how this would be a pain for a pro who needs his tools every day.

A note to those considering this unit---the price tag said it was only on sale for $59 until 11/30/12. Who knows what the price will be after that.

On another note: if you go by the rope and cord section of HF you'll find a nice selection of spring loaded "S" hooks--a two or three inch "S" hook makes a great cord clip to keep the polisher cord from falling off you shoulder. One side of the S clips to your shirt and the other holds the cord. Can't beat it for $1.99

[Success]

What!!! Good idea! Can't believe I never thought of that. Thanks

[pcrjunkyamd]

i bought my HF DA few weeks ago and it works alright. the only other one i have tried is a SH DA comparing it to that its OK for a newbie like me. but HF is not for professionals.

[dbowma]

I bought the HF DA and the pads on sale ($48 for the polisher and $3.99 a piece for the pads). It performed like a champ with the same results I have achieved with PC, Griots , and Shurhold. Only negative from this one vehicle sample size is that on speed 6 the polisher vibrates pretty bad, and probably has more torque than needed which could be a problem for most.