My Festool is vintage 2006. Never used it before. Had my Toyota repainted, and waited the required 90 days before buffing.
I spent 3 hot hours yesterday morning on the hood and trunk areas, and to my eyes, the finish had more luster and depth before I started this crazy dance. Used Griot's rubbing compounds and Lake Country pads. This morning, I watched a few instructional videos on AutoGeeks website. And I think I was shooting blanks yesterday. Probably because of the terminology of machines. It didn't ease my mind.
My Festool was often called a Rotex. To me, that meant it could rotate (with a flip of lever) or it could jiggle. The Icons on the machine switch show a Circle with a rotating arrow in one position of the switch. The other position shows a Circle, and then a bunch of smaller circles inside --- each with a much smaller rotating arrow.
I was in the latter mode. The terminology from years past would term that Random Orbital Sanding mode.
Back to my unsuccessful polish of the car. In watching the AutoGeeks videos, they use the term Dual Action Buffer for other brands of machines. And they explain that action as being enabled by a clutch mechanism. Press down real hard and the clutch stalls. For safety. Press sort of hard and the pad rotates and simultaneously oscillates. So it makes the big circle, and then dances the small circle dance at the same time.
The demonstrator of a Porter Cable DA buffer advised viewers to make a black marking pen dot so you can verify that the pad slowly goes around, while it jiggles. I think I wasn't 'cutting' the paint at all. And needed to. The video said that by relieving pressure on the pad, it would then only oscillate and not be cutting.
The compounds I was using were the ultra fine. When that got me nowhere, I backed down one step to fine compound and then finished again with ultra fine. So one machine has Rotex. Others have Random Orbital. And several other brands have Random Orbital. What am I missing here?
I spent 3 hot hours yesterday morning on the hood and trunk areas, and to my eyes, the finish had more luster and depth before I started this crazy dance. Used Griot's rubbing compounds and Lake Country pads. This morning, I watched a few instructional videos on AutoGeeks website. And I think I was shooting blanks yesterday. Probably because of the terminology of machines. It didn't ease my mind.
My Festool was often called a Rotex. To me, that meant it could rotate (with a flip of lever) or it could jiggle. The Icons on the machine switch show a Circle with a rotating arrow in one position of the switch. The other position shows a Circle, and then a bunch of smaller circles inside --- each with a much smaller rotating arrow.
I was in the latter mode. The terminology from years past would term that Random Orbital Sanding mode.
Back to my unsuccessful polish of the car. In watching the AutoGeeks videos, they use the term Dual Action Buffer for other brands of machines. And they explain that action as being enabled by a clutch mechanism. Press down real hard and the clutch stalls. For safety. Press sort of hard and the pad rotates and simultaneously oscillates. So it makes the big circle, and then dances the small circle dance at the same time.
The demonstrator of a Porter Cable DA buffer advised viewers to make a black marking pen dot so you can verify that the pad slowly goes around, while it jiggles. I think I wasn't 'cutting' the paint at all. And needed to. The video said that by relieving pressure on the pad, it would then only oscillate and not be cutting.
The compounds I was using were the ultra fine. When that got me nowhere, I backed down one step to fine compound and then finished again with ultra fine. So one machine has Rotex. Others have Random Orbital. And several other brands have Random Orbital. What am I missing here?