Again, thank you for your time!
The route I want to take and refine are, firstly the mirror finish which yes, would firstly require working through the grades down to probably P3000 Trizact and then the various polishing/compounding grades. The other avenue would be the "freshening up" of dreary tired paintwork, the bush 'scratches' and general wear and tear.
What would be your suggestions in regards to machines to fulfil my needs? Or more importantly the compounds and heads? Coming from a Bodyshop the majority of my experience is with the 3M green, yellow and blue, the G3 compounds and ROAR. So I am all ears to any recommendations
Thanks!
Also, steampunk for £500 what would you recommend. For my needs including polishes and heads?
Thanks
Thank you for outlining your needs... This helps. It seems you'll be working on a mix of fresh, well cured refinishes, and OEM finishes, as well... So you'll be dealing with a mix of hardness levels.
Starting with machines, what types would I recommend? That's a pretty big question... Honestly, you can make any type of machine work for you, but which is the best place to start depends on a variety of factors...
Let me run down some pros and cons with the different tools based upon my experience, to help you figure out what might match your application:
Rotary Polisher -
Pro: High speed allows for fastest compounding/polishing set-times, lowest vibration, widest selection of pad sizes that cover both very tight and very large areas, machine can be tilted extremely to allow for correction in cramped confines on exotic cars, can polish right up to edges as there is no oscillation. You also already are familiar with this tool, so for your job, you can hit the ground running. Also, typically the most durable tool.
Con: Generates most heat for the paint (not good) when using pressure to chase deeper defects in 1-hit, requires greatest thoughtfullness around panel lines and other delicate areas, most challenging to use on soft/sticky paint types (2-3 steps often needed, and some trial & error with technique, where a DA might be able to do it with greater ease in just 1-2.), does not have as much capability in 1-step polishing as a DA (Narrower band of finishing/cutting potential.) when only 1-step is on the cards due to time/money.
Best suited to: 2-3 stage correction, correcting heavy defects with wool, low-pressure working style, medium-very hard (less heat sensitive) paints.
Forced Rotation DA -
Pro: Maintains full correction power under heavy pressure, in concave panels, and tight sections, with much less heat buildup than a rotary (Even when using heavy pressure.), less chance of holograms, and a wider band of cutting & finishing performance in 1-step polishing. Halfway point between rotary and DA in terms of style and abilities.
Con: Less versatile in regards to pad/backing plate sizes, on the
absolute softest of materials (Gloss plastic trim, the odd paint.) still more difficult to finish flawlessly than a free-rotating DA [unless you are using a dual-mode machine, like Festool or Makita, which has both free and forced modes], polish cycle-times still slower than rotary.
Best suited to: 1-2 stage correction, correcting heavy defects with wool or foam, medium-high pressure working style, soft-hard paints (Unless dual-mode; then very soft-hard paints.). These are having a resurgence of late.
'Standard-Throw' (8-9mm) DA -
Pro: Cheapest entry price, master of none capable of [almost] all, easiest and safest to use, some backing plate size versatility (Though not as much as rotary, and there is a vibration penalty.), and can double as a sander if you ever need to work away from air. Can be made to work on pretty much any finish, no matter how tricky.
Con: No professional upgrade path, slowest cycle-time, must be observant to avoid rotational stall, typically highest vibration, cannot work products as hard to extract maximum potential due to low power. Acceptable for professional application only as an incidental tool; not main.
Best suited to: 1-2 stage correction, correcting heavy defects with microfiber, medium-high pressure working style, very soft-normal paints.
Long-Throw (12-21mm) DA -
Pro: Almost as safe and easy to use as standard-throw DA, but much faster cycle times (Similar or faster than forced-rotation; still a little less than rotary.), still a good choice for tricky materials due to free-rotation (Though not always as easily as shorter-throw machines.), widest cut/finish ratio for 1-stepping, excellent training support for professional upgrade, good pneumatic tool options available if you never work away from air (More power, less weight, less vibration, lower entry price, longer life.).
Con: Zero backing plate versatility (Must buy multiple machines to use different pad sizes.), expensive 'system' to buy into, bad in tight areas, cannot polish up to the edge of obstacles, easiest to stall in concave sections (Lots of care required.), very sensitive to pad and compound/polish selection regarding vibration/kickback.
Best suited to: 1-2 stage correction, correcting heavy defects with foam (Microfiber and wool also, which cut even better, but sometimes with penalty in machine kickback.), low-medium pressure working style, fairly soft-hard paints. This is the direction a lot of the industry is going.
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Once you narrow down a direction that sounds good to you, pads/polishes can be figured out. Since you're only looking for some tool/tools to play with, something like the more affordable rebranded machines sold by CYC would be a good place to start probably (UK/EU members might be able to help you more, there.):
https://www.cleanyourcar.co.uk/paint-correction/polishing-machines. The first step is just figuring out what type(s) you want to try...
If a rotary suits you as your main tool (The one you'll have in your hands at least 70% of the time.), having a DAS-6 or DAS-6 Pro to back it up in rarer situations would be a good combo. Then upgrade and switch to a forced-rotation or long-throw professional machine if you end up using it more than 20% of the time, and need the extra power/speed/smoothness.
If you want to go long-throw, you're going to want both a 5-6" and a 3" version, and it would probably be better to focus your energy on building that 'system' rather than adding a rotary into the mix, as well...
Hopefully this helps to narrow things down. Happy to help as much as I can with pads/polishes once the playing field is narrowed a bit... :thumb:
- Steampunk
P.S. Since you're using the Trizact system (My favorite for P1500 & above, though I like Mirka for heavier work; Abranet is awesome if you need to go P1000 & below.), I would check out the P5000 or P6000 discs sometime... You can finish afterwards in 1-step with a medium polish/polishing pad combo on a DA. Awesome stuff.