What buffer to get for a decent price?

[boostedprozac]

I wash my car by hand only....but in the winter, I will only have the car wash as an option. I wanted to get a decent rotary buffer to get rid of the swirly marks that will appear. I have some now due to the dam service guy running my black car through the car wash. Any suggestions? looking to spend about 30-50 bucks.

 

[J.A.]

Honestly, if you can only spend $30-$50 for a buffer on your $35k+ rig, then just hold off and dont get one.

Dont go to the car wash either just because its winter.

What I used to do was to fill a 5gal bucket with warm water and car wash soap and bring it to the self serve wash places. Once there just use thier sprayer to wet and hose off the vehicle only. Use your own sponge and soap to clean. Now that I have a driveway, I just wait for warmer (warm enough so the water wont freeze ) weather.

Never, ever let the dealer wash your ride, even if, and probably especially if, its free.

I special ordered my 4R partially so as to get one that was never touched by the dealer. Told them not to do the initial dealer prep / wash process. And by not having it sit on the dealer lot for a few weeks/months avoided many daily scrub downs.

But back to your question the two buffers to get would be the Flex XC 3401 VRG or the Megs G110. Flex is a lot better but double the price. But even the megs is 3 times your $50 price.

 

[boostedprozac]

wow...didn't think it'll be that much for a buffer? I thought 50 should be sufficient. Maybe I should look into this again.

 

[Uneek]

Not sure if J.A.'s recommendation of the Meg's is Meguiar's one. The Meguiar's one use to be very similar, if not identical to the Porter Cable 7424. The Porter Cable 7424 is highly regarded by many DIY detailers. It was mentioned here (on T4R.org) a while ago, there's another model that's higher than the PC 7424. I forget what the feature(s) was/were.

Autogeek has it for $120.

Autopia.org has it for a bit more. Autopia is a great forum if you're looking for detailing info.

I'm probably going to invest in the PC 7424 next year. Winter is approaching, getting cold to go out and work on the 4Runner. I just need to do research on what types of pad I should get. I'll probably need some aggressive pads and polish to help others restore the finish on their cars after they see mine shine.

 

[J.A.]

Yes I was referring to the Meguiar's G110 which has a little more power than the PC. Just do your research first before purchasing, as with anything. You should be looking to spend no less than $200 for an overall polishing kit. The PC/G110 plus the pads, compounds, polish and sealer/wax stuff will kick you easily over that amount and perhaps way, way more.

As a side note, further research will show that neither the G110/PC/Griots/UDM polishers are true Dual Action machines though they are always referred to as DA's. They oscillate but do not rotate. That is not necessarily a bad thing as these machines are pretty much foolproof and they will do a great overall job.

The FLEX XC 3401 VRG Polisher on the other hand is a true DA as it both random orbits and rotates. It has way more power than the PC type machines. You can do a greater level of paint correction in a quicker time and the machine will never bog down under pressure. It is positioned between a true rotary and the basic PC orbital machines.

These machines may not get used often especially if you have only one vehicle so justifying the price is hard. But they last a long time. You have to decide what is better for yourself cost, and performance wise.

 

[pickerdd]

You might want to consider the Porter-Cable 7424. Autogeek.net has one on sale here - I've had mine for 2 years and it's excellent.

 

[truckhigh]

i got a harbor freight buffer... As long as you use quality foam pads from meguirs or 3m and the right polish you will be happier

 

[kellogg]

I wouldn't go with a rotary polisher if you are just starting out. It takes practice to do it correctly and you almost always are going to burn through your paint the first few times. I would go with UDM or a random orbit polisher like it. Its almost impossible to burn paint with a random orbit and its much easier for beginners.