11 replies to this topic

[LXCHEV]

I'm on the verge of buying a DA (Dual Action) polisher to play with. Not looking to spend big bucks. Just curious to hear if anyone else has moved away from the old traditional rotary style to a DA? Any suggestions on product choice? Also size (5", 6", 7")??

 

I'm looking to use it for minor cutting (compound work), and of course final polishing. Looks like most machines will have a 'hook and loop' style attachment that accepts pads of various styles (eg. different grades for the different stages of paint correction).

 

Keen on something that will suit Joe-average (me) for DIY at home style jobs, and yes, I'm learning as I go - certainly no previous experience with machine cutting/polishing. But it's time to move away from manually hand polishing.

 

Thoughts?

Edited by LXCHEV, 29 October 2021 - 01:42 PM.

[Hatchback13]

Hi Brett, I’ve used both style buffs and from my experience the da is fantastic for not leaving swirls. I’ve found the rotary best for the real hard cutting especially with a lambs wool pad but use the da for final cut and anti swirl/ glazing. There are about 4-5 grades of pad for the da and polishes to suit each one. The rupes is a great brand but very expensive some of the supercheap/ Repco ones look very similar and would probably do the job at home, I think pad and polish combo makes the big difference too. Hope my experience helps but it’s only mine. Haha. Cheers

[LXCHEV]

Yeah I have my eyes on the Supercheap one as a starting point. Thanks for the feedback.

[Mitchyboy]

Have a look at trade tools.
I just purchased a d.a sander and tge brand was renegade.
I have used a mates rupes sander and this renegade one was half the price and I honestly can't fault it.
Maybe they do a polisher as well worth a look.
Good luck


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[originalglenn]

https://www.carcarep...as6-v2-kit.html

 

https://www.carcarep...2-kit-plus.html

 

Check these out. A bit dearer but does include some sample packs of Menzerna polish and some pads

 

You will need extra pads. Depending on what your doing pads need to be cleaned  as they "load up " with used polish and removed paint

 

I use the lake country brand like these

https://www.waxit.co...833770752&_ss=r

 

my go to compound is

https://www.waxit.co...66f67217b&_ss=r

 

Works well as a one pass polish, easy to clean up. Would be perfect for a daily driver(practice on the missus car) she will be happy

[Cook]

Hi Brett. I would be interested in your final decision and thoughts. I'm getting to that age where hand polishing sucks. I have got a Milwaukee on the radar but only because my son has a few cordless tools and I could interchange batteries but price and results for an amateur are a higher priority. Also I think form what I read the DA would be a safer bet for me. Cheers Ron

[sibhs]

I've used both and found the DA much better. The DA you use flat on the panel but the rotary you tend to angle so the edge does most of the work.

I spent a few hundred on a medium quality brand which I'm glad I did. It's something you can keep using for the rest of your life if you like shiny paint.

 

Marty

[71xu1]

Rotary takes years of experience but you can achieve excellent results and it's much quicker especially if cutting back repaints. DA is simple to use, you will get good results and it will generally stall on edges and curves so you will avoid burn through and the halo effect also more suited to polishes and finishing off. Look at oscillation rather than pad size. Rupes in my opinion is the Rolls Royce, user experience is unbelievable, you know from the get go its quality, no vibrations, all of the bells and whistles and they have an entire polishing system of what polishes to use for what colour pads etc, pretty fool proof. In saying that maybe choose a polisher within your budget but look at the Rupes system as a starting point to achieve the results you want matched to pads and polishes.

Edited by 71xu1, 12 June 2023 - 01:15 AM.

[Cook]

Thanks gents for the heads-up. I'll jump back down the rabbit hole (lol) and see what I can find. Cheers Ron

[LXCHEV]

Hi Ron.

I did end up getting a cheap DA. From memory it’s a ToolPro (purchased when on sale at Supercheap).

Unfortunately I got lazy and have barely touched it.

My idea was to rejuvenate the paint on my daily driver (an Alaskan White VS Berlina) - an outdoor car with neglected paint, so perfect practice car. I did the rear half of the car before getting distracted by other jobs.

The DA certainly felt nice to use and I was getting pretty good results (considering the neglected paint which has a lifetime of scratches / swirl marks in it. I’d actually like to have another crack at it to be honest and see if I can cut it a bit harder to get into the swirls more.

So much easier than hand polishing, but to be good at this stuff, it’s all about technique and knowing how much product to use, how long to work each panel etc. I’d found some pretty good YouTube videos back when I was in the zone. And it’s a zone I need to dive back into.

[Cook]

Thanks Brett. I have a similar plan. try it on the misses daily driver and progress from there. My son also has a work ute in need of some tlc so another option for trial before I even contemplate using on my cars lol. I've ordered a cheap DA with a small throw (8mm) which should keep me out of trouble to start with. Cheers Ron

[Heath]

DA's from my experience are pretty gentle things. They did fuck all to fix the problems on my hatch, where as the rotary unit did a ripper job.

 

But for on-going maintenance type detailing, I imagine a DA is the right tool for the job.