Re: Malita Rotary pad sizes
You can run a 5" bp on the Makita for your 5.5" pads. As a matter of fact you can run 4" or even 3" pads on the Makita. The Flex rotary will accept all rotary bp, but the 3401 DA Flex will not accept any bp but the Flex... which I believe is for 6" pads.
Re: Malita Rotary pad sizes
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Rsurfer
You can run a 5" bp on the Makita for your 5.5" pads. As a matter of fact you can run 4" or even 3" pads on the Makita. The Flex rotary will accept all rotary bp, but the 3401 DA Flex will not accept any bp but the Flex... which I believe is for 6" pads.
Thanks Rsurfer for the reply..........I could have really dug in and did the research, but I figured someone would know the answer quicker than researching.......again thank you for the response
Re: Malita Rotary pad sizes
I use all the sizes on my Makita without any problems.If you want a really nice Bp look into the Meguiars line of backing plates.The W64/65/68 are really nice
Re: Malita Rotary pad sizes
I'm in the exact same boat as you Wendell. I was interested in the Lightweight Flex and Makita------im almost leaning towards the flex now because i feel like it might be easier for someone like myself to learn on. However, the question about the pads you asked is something i was wondering as well......sorry if i made it sound like i was stealing the thread lol
Re: Malita Rotary pad sizes
Quote:
Originally Posted by
AudiTTman
I'm in the exact same boat as you Wendell. I was interested in the Lightweight Flex and Makita------im almost leaning towards the flex now because i feel like it might be easier for someone like myself to learn on. However, the question about the pads you asked is something i was wondering as well......sorry if i made it sound like i was stealing the thread lol
I have both the Makita and the 3403. for a beginner i would go with the Makita hands down. The Makita is the slowest at it's lowest speed setting. As a beginner I have found the slowere you go the better you are it helps prevent holograms.
Re: Malita Rotary pad sizes
Quote:
Originally Posted by
memnuts
I have both the Makita and the 3403. for a beginner i would go with the Makita hands down. The Makita is the slowest at it's lowest speed setting. As a beginner I have found the slowere you go the better you are it helps prevent holograms.
True, but are you going to get any correction at 600rpm? The Flex starts at 1000rpm which should be the minimum for correction. If you keep the machine moving and stay away from edges and ridges (tape these areas) you will be hard pressed to do any damage at 1000rpm.
Re: Malita Rotary pad sizes
In a perfect world, the Flex Lightweight 3403 would offer a lower RPM range for those that like buffing slow.
I purchased a Makita Rotary Buffer in 1988 and still have it today, most of the detailing work I've done in my life has been with a rotary buffer, not a dual action polisher. Most Newbies to machine polishing are using dual action polishers and that's why I type more about them than I do rotary buffers.
I agree with Ron that for correction work you need to be around the 1000 RPM range and I buff almost everything around the #1400 to #1600 RPM range.
The only people I know that use the lower RPM's like the 600 RPM setting on the Makita 9227c are people that are doing a technique that Todd Helme made famous called Jeweling.
The Flex Lightweight is so light weight that with small pads it's very easy to control and learning to control a rotary buffer is learning to master the rotary buffer. The Makita 9227C is a full size buffer and while and while it's only 3+ pounds heavier than the
Flex Lightweight, it is still larger in size than the Flex Lightweight RB and the extra size and weight does make it more difficult to control as compared to the Flex Lightweight rotary buffer especially for Newbies to the RB.
- Small buffing Pads = 6" Diameter and smaller
- Medium Buffing Pads 7" Diameter
- Large Buffing Pads 8" Diameter and larger
If we use the above sizes for dividing buffing pads into three categories, then as long as you are planning on using small foam buffing pads I would suggest the Flex Lightweight 3403 Rotary Buffer. If you plan on doing a lot of serious rotary buffer work including buffing out a lot of entire cars, (not just the hood), and using large buffing pads, then I would suggest the Makita 9227C
Or if you're into this for the long run, purchase the Lightweight first and learn the way of the rotary buffer and then a few months down the road purchase the full size Makita Rotary Buffer.
:)
Re: Malita Rotary pad sizes
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Rsurfer
True, but are you going to get any correction at 600rpm? The Flex starts at 1000rpm which should be the minimum for correction. If you keep the machine moving and stay away from edges and ridges (tape these areas) you will be hard pressed to do any damage at 1000rpm.
Just to note, the Flex 3403 starts at 1100 RPM and goes to 3700 RPM
The Makita 9227C starts at 600 RPM and goes to 3000 RPM
The DeWalt 849 and Flex 603 both start at 1000 RPM and got to 3000 RPM
:)
Re: Malita Rotary pad sizes