Detailing - Porter Cable 7424

I'm looking at buying this polisher and was wondering if anyone has tried one out or even owns one. I've always just used High speed orbital buffers but I think this may be better for removing swirls and general upkeep on the cars paint.

Porter Cable 7424 (http://www.autogeek.net/hk7424.html)

id like to know that too cause that was the same one i was looking at awhile back....just always had something more important tp put the $200 into...damn bills.

I use one - you can see my work at http://gtaindetail.com. It's probably yhe best $100 I've spent re: my car. Oh, speaking of price they're $109 at Lowes. :)

damn i wish my black paint looked like that....but thats already a new paint job on a new car isnt it???

ORIGINAL: picus

I use one - you can see my work at http://gtaindetail.com. It's probably yhe best $100 I've spent re: my car. Oh, speaking of price they're $109 at Lowes. :)


That's the best price I've seen....what are you using for a back plate and pads? I've been looking at Lake Country Pads but their spendy!

Picus....you wetsand that G35? Looks way to smooth to be factory ;) My Si has some major Orange Peel and I plan on wetsanding it soon. I'm guna take some before and after pics to show how much better it makes the paint look.

Heya fellas - answers:

n8te81 - that's a 2003 G35 with 91,000 km on it. When I bought it it looked like this:

http://gtaindetail.com/dyi/before1.jpg
http://gtaindetail.com/dyi/bumperbefore1.jpg
http://gtaindetail.com/dyi/hoodbefore2.jpg

It'll never be perfect, but it's better than it was.

RaskyR1 - I use Lake County and Sonus DAS. I have a Sonus backing plate. I don't prefer either set of pads, they're pretty similar. The Sonus are a tad more aggressive on a pad vs pad basis, and I really like the aggressiveness of their yellow pad. I would say of all my pads I use them in this order (most to least):

Lake County Orange (medium abrasive)
Sonus Yellow (highly abrasive)
LC white (low-medium)
Sonus blue/LC black (finishing pads)

The LC orange is my go-to.

I did not wetsand that paint to remove OP, I have wetsanded quite a bit of the hood and front fenders to fix rock chips and scratches (you can see some examples on my site) - the side effect was that the OP was definitely lessened. I still have miserable OP on my trunk and doors (http://gtaindetail.com/fp/blackg35sedan/op.jpg). Oh, and I will say this - if you're going to sand to remove OP *but a paint guage*, it's saved me more than once. Going through the clear is a huge bummer.

Cheers

damn i wish i had some money to get all that stuff but im strapped right now so i have to deal with doing the best i can with my own hands for now....DAMMITT

Thanks Picus...I ordered a kit which came with the 7424, 5" backing plate, 7 pads from LC and 2 micro fiber towels for $189...not to bad.

I've thought about getting a paint thickness gage just never have....My old man has been doing body work for 40yrs and I grew up helping him buff cars at 14....I then got into detailing and have been doing it for 16 years now...I’m sure we've all had are share of rubbing through on an edge but it's been a very long time since I've rubbed through on a car. ;) then again most my wet sanding has been with body shop cars where I know exactly how much material has been laid down...how much a gage cost and what brand do you use?

where did you get all that from for that price cause i might be looking into that as well????

ORIGINAL: n8te81

where did you get all that from for that price cause i might be looking into that as well????



lol...better hurry and get your free bonus pad! a $8.99 value! :D

http://www.superiorcarcare.net/porter-cable-kit.html

I seen it on a few sites but found this to be the best deal in my opinion.

I use a PosiTest DFT, it was $495 online (Ya, I know... $$$). I kind of dilly-dallied with the idea of getting one for a long time then I started doing a lot of wetsand repairs. I haven't rubbed through yet, but I got mighty close on an old stang once. I didn't want to chance it again so I just broke down and got one. It's been pretty helpful - I've had to turn down some work because of it (some folks want hood wetsanded, and they're paint will already be below 50% of factory), but I think in the end it's probably better safe than sorry.

Oh, and sweet deal on that PC/pads. Grab one high agressive pad (like sonus yellow or Megs purple) and you'll be all set.

Ouch! $495! Yeah I'm guna have to wait on that one. There should be plenty of material on my car since it is a new car...I'll probably just take it easy on the sanding just want it a little better...the tops really aren't that bad but the rear quarters look like sh1t! Especially under florescent lighting.

yes these are great. I got one a year or so ago, and will never go back.
Make sure you have enough extra pads so that you don't mix products. ie..one only for polish, one only for wax etc...

Here are a couple of pics of my truck.
http://www.dodgetruckworld.com/gallery/dogmeat/203682.jpg
http://www.dodgetruckworld.com/gallery/dogmeat/203685.jpg
http://www.dodgetruckworld.com/gallery/dogmeat/90120.jpg

Congrats Rasky! I've had my PC for about 2.5 years now and would never go back. It has never given me any problems and with the right combination of pads and compound can prove very useful in defect removal. I use Meguiar's pads but am changing as the velcro attachment backing tends to come off the pads, so that is a word of caution on Meg's pads. Enjoy!

ORIGINAL: RaskyR1


ORIGINAL: jake11375

Rasky, you're going to love the PC 7424 kit. Makes detailing a dream.;)


I hope i'm not disapointed...I've always buffed with a rotery buffer. I have a DA with a 3M foam pad but it runs off air and I don't have a comressor at home yet so I can only use it at my work.


I grabbed this quote from Baker's birthday thread and pasted it here so not to jack his thread. If you are used to rotary buffers, then the PC may dissapoint you if you expect it to provide the same results on paint defects; removing swirls, scratches etc. Rotary is by far the fastest and easiest way to remove defects in the hands of an experienced user such as yourself. Granted the PC will remove defects, but at a much slower pace. I just got my first rotary Chicago Electric (http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/Displayitem.taf?itemnumber=92623) as suggested by some for a budget rotary on Autopia.com. I've found it is much more effecient in removing defects because of the higher revolutions, and one directional spinning. I am trying to learn and be careful with it and not burn the paint. The PC is better for removing light defects or for the detailer who is concerned about burning paint with a rotary. For the tough jobs now I pull out the rotary no doubt, but the PC has its place as well. The PC will not leave buffer trails, marring, or holograms even in the hands of an inexperienced user. I'm sure you know how much damage can be done with a rotary. ;)

Ya that^^^. I actually rarely even bring the rotary to jobs unless I know it's going to be a tough one. The PC may be slower, but it'll take out most light to moderate marring and it's really fool proof. I think the only way you could damage paint with it is to chuck it at the car.

ORIGINAL: picus
I think the only way you could damage paint with it is to chuck it at the car.


:D No doubt. You do good work Picus. I remember that G35 thread on Autopia. Awesome job with it as well as the recent Civic you just did. [sm=smiley20.gif]

Yeah I will never put down the rotary...especially if you seen the type of cars that come through the shop I work at....90% of the work I do is for "Car Jockies" who by the crap people trade in that the dealerships don't want....and my boss gives me all the cars he wants extra attention on (he buys a lot of older vetts) I want the PC for my own personal use and for cars that don't need a full on buff. I will also use it to remove any swirls that may still be left in the car after using the rotary...3M's perfect it line with the foam pad works wonders but it's not always 100% swirl free. ;)

Ditto on 3M's perfect line... 3M PI II has become my right hand man, that and Meg's DACP. I think I'll have to try some of Lake Country's pads. I need to get some more pads anyway and everyone has had good things to say about them. A good polisher, pads, and compounds can make the difference between a nice car and a WOW! that is clean, did you just get that painted, doesn't look 11 years old car. :) Just to think, I used to remove swirls by hand all day long. Looking back, I don't know how I did it. I love my PC.:)

Well she just arrived to day! I ran home at lunch to try her out quick on my black R1. I haven't done a good polish on her yet this year and there were a few fine scratches here and there. WOW! not only did it get out the fine scratches but it added so much more depth to the paint! It has some metalic in it too which just sparkled! It used to take a long time to hand polish the bike...and it was to hard to use my normal buffer with all the funky curves on it. Can't wait to try it out on a car with some paint in need of help. So far I give it 2 thumbs up! [sm=smiley20.gif][sm=smiley20.gif]

Woot! Glad you're loving it man! How do you like the LC pads?

Well the pads came in a clear bag with no markings what so ever....so I really don't know what kind they are? The only foam pads I've ever used are 3M, Meguires and Car Brite but they were all on a rotary buffer. I'll give a more in depth review after I've used it on a few customer vehicles. ;)

Well superior car care carries Lake County pads, so my guess is that's what you got. If so this is their cut order:

Yellow - high cut
Orange - medium cut
White - polishing pad (low to medium cut)
grey/black - finishing pad (no cut)
Blue - wax/sealant application or removal pad.

I think in their kit you get one orange, two white, 3 grey? If so that's a solid start. I might get one yellow and one more orange in the future. I use the orange the most for swirl removal, yellow for tough jobs, white for finishing and light cleaning (AIO, etc) and grey for glazes.