Buffer Week at DetailedImage.com

Detailed Image · 08-08-2008, 12:08 AM

Buffer Week from 8/8 - 8/13
For the next 6 day's, we'll be running the Porter Cable 7424, the Flex XC 3401 VRG and Metabo PE 12-175 on sale at our LOWEST PRICES!

The schedule for the Daily Specials is as follows:
8/8/08 - Porter Cable 7424
8/9/08 - Flex XC 3401 VRG
8/10/08 - Metabo PE 12-175
8/11/08 - Porter Cable 7424
8/12/08 - Flex XC 3401 VRG
8/13/08 - Metabo PE 12-175

We all know that a majority (90% or more) of results from detailing stem from properly prepping your paint, which includes washing & drying, using a clay bar, and most importantly, polishing your paint to remove as many imperfections as possible. Imperfections are essentially dips and valleys in your clear coat that does not allow light to pass through to the paint. Common imperfections in the paint are swirls, scratches, holograms, hazing, water spots, sap and bird dropping etchings. All of these can be treated by using a quality buffer along with the proper polish and pad combination. By polishing your paints surface, you'll be smoothing out your clear coat, allowing light to pass through to your paint offering the deepest and wettest reflection. In an idealistic world, the perfect detail would be one with 0 paint defects. Using a quality buffer correctly allows you to remove paint defects, making your clear coat as smooth and as even as it can be. Here's an example of what the Flex XC 3401 VRG can do on some neglected paint and the right polish / pad combos.

Comparing the 3 Buffers:
Porter Cable 7424

The Porter Cable 7424 quickly emerged as the goto buffer for auto detailing enthusiasts. It's biggest draw is how safe it is to use. By utilizing a random orbital motion, it is nearly impossible to damage your paint with some common sense. The downside of the PC7424 is that it can take a long time, lots of coats and passes, to correct severely neglected paint. The Porter Cable 7424 is lightweight and easy to use. It has a maximum speed of 6,000 oscillations per minute (OPM), which compared to a hand application, you can only imagine how much faster the PC is operating. Your results will escalate if you currently polishing by hand. This buffer is perfect for people just getting into polishing their vehicles.

Flex XC 3401 VRG

The Flex XC 3401 VRG changed the way serious enthusiasts tackled polishing their vehicles when it was introduced in the states roughly 1 year ago. This machine is a dual action machine, which means it oscillates as well as utilizes what's called forced rotation. This offers more correction abilities in less time when compared to traditional random orbital that just oscillates. This German built machine is a tank. With a motor twice the size of the Porter Cable (7.5A vs. 3.7A) and 60% more oscillations (9,600 OPM vs 6,000 OPM) this buffer can correct twice as many imperfections in half the time. Some other key features of this machine is the variable speed trigger, the ergonomic handle and hand positioning and the lightweight design. The Flex is the perfect upgrade for the Porter Cable 7424 and is perfect for the serious auto detailing enthusiast.

Metabo PE 12-175

The Metabo PE 12-175 rotary buffer has quickly emerged as a favorite amongst professionals and serious enthusiasts. The Metabo rotary offers a low starting speed of 700 RPM, which gives the first time rotary users a safe starting speed. Rotary buffers have the highest potential for results, but also the largest risk of damaging the paint. When your shooting for perfection, this is the tool of choice!

Don't Forget Pads and Polishes
I always recommend matching the aggressiveness of the polish with the aggressiveness of the pad. Reason being, if you use too aggressive of a pad with a lighter polish (ie. PO106FF with an orange light cutting pad), you may be filling in light holograms or hazing and not realizing it. If you're seeing improvement with the current polish / pad combo, then you can jump to a more aggressive pad for faster results. If the results are minimal with a current polish / pad combo, I'll jump to the next level of polish / pad combo.

We recommend following these rules:

Compounds use purple foamed wool, yellow cutting pad, orange light cutting pad
Medium cutting polishes stick to purple foamed wool (on rotary) or orange light cutting pads or white polishing pads (on DA / random orbitals)
Finishing polishes stick to white polishing pads, black finishing pads or blue fine finishing pads.

Also important to note, change your pad out for a new one after every few panels or at least clean it out. The more caked up the pad becomes, the harder it is to finish down as clean as the first panel when the pad is fresh. Excess product can lead to difficult product removal, not being able to break down the polish completely, and excessive dusting. I usually use about 4 pads per coat of polish, swapping them out roughly every 3 panels or so. On some paint I use even more.

Here are our Lake Country Pads in order of Most Aggressive to Least Aggressive:

Here's a list of Menzerna's best polishes in order of Compound to Finishing Polish:

Thanks for reading! If anyone has any questions on anything, or needs a hand putting together a package to best fit your needs, please do not hesitate to ask.

George

SpecC · 08-08-2008, 03:02 AM

killer deal for anyone who doesn't or would like to add one of these buffers to their arsenal

Big Windy · 08-08-2008, 05:08 AM

most definitely...going to buy today.

Former_Boosted_IS · 08-08-2008, 05:22 AM

George, this is awesome, but you jacked the price of the Flex starter kit up by $15.00. What is the discount you are going to offer on the Flex? I have been waiting for this discount, but now it seems the discount will do nothing more than bring it back to its original price.

Detailed Image · 08-08-2008, 07:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Former_Boosted_IS

George, this is awesome, but you jacked the price of the Flex starter kit up by $15.00. What is the discount you are going to offer on the Flex? I have been waiting for this discount, but now it seems the discount will do nothing more than bring it back to its original price.

Cost of fuel and shipping charges has forced us to raise prices on some of our items. This is a permanent change, not just for the sale. We tried to hold off for as long as possible, but unfortunately we had to make the move. As far as I know, we still offer the lowest advertised prices available on a 10 and 20 pad combo for the Flex.

I don't have the exact numbers on what the Flex will go off at as it's all auto calculated through our Daily Special Program, but I'd venture to guess it'll be around $255 for the Flex. I guess now would be the time to pull the trigger.

George

Raz335 · 08-08-2008, 09:36 AM

Good stuff George, and very nice writeup. It clearly explains the basics of polishing.

onehappydad · 08-08-2008, 10:23 AM

George, any way to take advantage of the daily speacial on the Flex today or do I need to wait until tomorrow (8/9)?

Detailed Image · 08-08-2008, 11:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Raz335

Good stuff George, and very nice writeup. It clearly explains the basics of polishing.

Thanks for the kind words!

Quote:

Originally Posted by onehappydad

George, any way to take advantage of the daily speacial on the Flex today or do I need to wait until tomorrow (8/9)?

Have to wait unfortunately. We have our system fully automated and I don't even know what the exact price will be until 12:00am. Let me know if there's anything else I can help you with.

George

onehappydad · 08-08-2008, 12:11 PM

I figured, but what the heck. Doesn't hurt to ask...

I'll be ordering tomorrow for sure!

ChaneRZ · 08-08-2008, 02:14 PM

killer deals! get them while they're hot!

Detailed Image · 08-09-2008, 09:22 AM

For those who were waiting...
Today's Daily special (August 9, 2008) is Flex XC 3401 VRG.

Regular Price is $279.99. Today's price is $251.80!

SolidSnake2634 · 08-09-2008, 07:02 PM

thanks George. i just ordered a PC 7424 with all the pads, pad cleaner, backing plate, and 6" counterweight last night. killer deal

Detailed Image · 08-10-2008, 11:31 AM

Today's Daily special (August 10, 2008) is Metabo PE 12-175 Rotary Buffer.

Regular Price is $269.99. Today's price is $245.40!

Detailed Image · 08-10-2008, 11:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SolidSnake2634

thanks George. i just ordered a PC 7424 with all the pads, pad cleaner, backing plate, and 6" counterweight last night. killer deal

Thanks for your support! Keep us posted on how things turn out for you when you get a chance to use everything

George

SolidSnake2634 · 08-10-2008, 03:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Detailed Image

Thanks for your support! Keep us posted on how things turn out for you when you get a chance to use everything

George

i'll be sure to keep you guys posted

Detailed Image · 08-11-2008, 11:26 AM

Last chance to get the Porter Cable 7424 at this price!

Today's Daily special (August 11, 2008) is Porter Cable 7424 Random Orbital Buffer.

Regular Price is $114.99. Today's price is $107.80!

ScheerSpeed · 08-11-2008, 08:39 PM

great deals on these buffers guys!

Detailed Image · 08-12-2008, 12:04 PM

Today's Daily special (August 12, 2008) is Flex XC 3401 VRG.

Regular Price is $279.99. Today's price is $251.80!

onehappydad · 08-12-2008, 02:43 PM

Ordered my Flex on Saturday.

Great price!!! Can't wait for it to arrive!!!

SolidSnake2634 · 08-16-2008, 01:00 AM

received my porter cable today. thanks for the fast shipping george. i'll be looking forward to using it next week. i'll keep ya posted

EDIT: oh yeah george, to change the backing plate, i have to buy a separate hand tool? O_o

Detailed Image · 08-16-2008, 01:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SolidSnake2634

received my porter cable today. thanks for the fast shipping george. i'll be looking forward to using it next week. i'll keep ya posted

EDIT: oh yeah george, to change the backing plate, i have to buy a separate hand tool? O_o

There's a thin wrench that should be included with your Porter Cable buffer. If I'm not mistaken, it's usually in one of the plastic bags. PM me if you don't find it.

Thanks,

George

SolidSnake2634 · 08-16-2008, 01:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Detailed Image

There's a thin wrench that should be included with your Porter Cable buffer. If I'm not mistaken, it's usually in one of the plastic bags. PM me if you don't find it.

Thanks,

George

oops. i meant to change the counterweight. i need to go buy a torx screwdriver right?

08-08-2008, 12:08 AM	#1
Detailed Image 360 Rep 5,052 Posts Drives: Detailed by Detailed Image Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Albany, NY iTrader: (5)	Buffer Week at DetailedImage.com - Lowest Prices of the Year Buffer Week from 8/8 - 8/13 For the next 6 day's, we'll be running the Porter Cable 7424, the Flex XC 3401 VRG and Metabo PE 12-175 on sale at our LOWEST PRICES! The schedule for the Daily Specials is as follows: 8/8/08 - Porter Cable 7424 8/9/08 - Flex XC 3401 VRG 8/10/08 - Metabo PE 12-175 8/11/08 - Porter Cable 7424 8/12/08 - Flex XC 3401 VRG 8/13/08 - Metabo PE 12-175 We all know that a majority (90% or more) of results from detailing stem from properly prepping your paint, which includes washing & drying, using a clay bar, and most importantly, polishing your paint to remove as many imperfections as possible. Imperfections are essentially dips and valleys in your clear coat that does not allow light to pass through to the paint. Common imperfections in the paint are swirls, scratches, holograms, hazing, water spots, sap and bird dropping etchings. All of these can be treated by using a quality buffer along with the proper polish and pad combination. By polishing your paints surface, you'll be smoothing out your clear coat, allowing light to pass through to your paint offering the deepest and wettest reflection. In an idealistic world, the perfect detail would be one with 0 paint defects. Using a quality buffer correctly allows you to remove paint defects, making your clear coat as smooth and as even as it can be. Here's an example of what the Flex XC 3401 VRG can do on some neglected paint and the right polish / pad combos. Comparing the 3 Buffers: Porter Cable 7424 The Porter Cable 7424 quickly emerged as the goto buffer for auto detailing enthusiasts. It's biggest draw is how safe it is to use. By utilizing a random orbital motion, it is nearly impossible to damage your paint with some common sense. The downside of the PC7424 is that it can take a long time, lots of coats and passes, to correct severely neglected paint. The Porter Cable 7424 is lightweight and easy to use. It has a maximum speed of 6,000 oscillations per minute (OPM), which compared to a hand application, you can only imagine how much faster the PC is operating. Your results will escalate if you currently polishing by hand. This buffer is perfect for people just getting into polishing their vehicles. Flex XC 3401 VRG The Flex XC 3401 VRG changed the way serious enthusiasts tackled polishing their vehicles when it was introduced in the states roughly 1 year ago. This machine is a dual action machine, which means it oscillates as well as utilizes what's called forced rotation. This offers more correction abilities in less time when compared to traditional random orbital that just oscillates. This German built machine is a tank. With a motor twice the size of the Porter Cable (7.5A vs. 3.7A) and 60% more oscillations (9,600 OPM vs 6,000 OPM) this buffer can correct twice as many imperfections in half the time. Some other key features of this machine is the variable speed trigger, the ergonomic handle and hand positioning and the lightweight design. The Flex is the perfect upgrade for the Porter Cable 7424 and is perfect for the serious auto detailing enthusiast. Metabo PE 12-175 The Metabo PE 12-175 rotary buffer has quickly emerged as a favorite amongst professionals and serious enthusiasts. The Metabo rotary offers a low starting speed of 700 RPM, which gives the first time rotary users a safe starting speed. Rotary buffers have the highest potential for results, but also the largest risk of damaging the paint. When your shooting for perfection, this is the tool of choice! Don't Forget Pads and Polishes I always recommend matching the aggressiveness of the polish with the aggressiveness of the pad. Reason being, if you use too aggressive of a pad with a lighter polish (ie. PO106FF with an orange light cutting pad), you may be filling in light holograms or hazing and not realizing it. If you're seeing improvement with the current polish / pad combo, then you can jump to a more aggressive pad for faster results. If the results are minimal with a current polish / pad combo, I'll jump to the next level of polish / pad combo. We recommend following these rules: Compounds use purple foamed wool, yellow cutting pad, orange light cutting pad Medium cutting polishes stick to purple foamed wool (on rotary) or orange light cutting pads or white polishing pads (on DA / random orbitals) Finishing polishes stick to white polishing pads, black finishing pads or blue fine finishing pads. Also important to note, change your pad out for a new one after every few panels or at least clean it out. The more caked up the pad becomes, the harder it is to finish down as clean as the first panel when the pad is fresh. Excess product can lead to difficult product removal, not being able to break down the polish completely, and excessive dusting. I usually use about 4 pads per coat of polish, swapping them out roughly every 3 panels or so. On some paint I use even more. Here are our Lake Country Pads in order of Most Aggressive to Least Aggressive: Here's a list of Menzerna's best polishes in order of Compound to Finishing Polish: Power Gloss Super Intensive Polish PO106FF/FA PO85RD Thanks for reading! If anyone has any questions on anything, or needs a hand putting together a package to best fit your needs, please do not hesitate to ask. George Last edited by Detailed Image; 08-08-2008 at 09:14 AM..
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08-08-2008, 03:02 AM	#2
SpecC Completely obsessed with detailing 299 Rep 15,442 Posts Drives: E90 SG 330i, white Scion tC Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: San Francisco and Davis iTrader: (4)	killer deal for anyone who doesn't or would like to add one of these buffers to their arsenal
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08-08-2008, 05:08 AM	#3
Big Windy Major General 152 Rep 5,124 Posts Drives: None Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Bay Area iTrader: (0)	most definitely...going to buy today.
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08-08-2008, 05:22 AM	#4
Former_Boosted_IS Major General 307 Rep 5,175 Posts Drives: 4 Wheels Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Planet Earth! iTrader: (15)	George, this is awesome, but you jacked the price of the Flex starter kit up by $15.00. What is the discount you are going to offer on the Flex? I have been waiting for this discount, but now it seems the discount will do nothing more than bring it back to its original price.
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08-08-2008, 09:36 AM	#6
Raz335 Major 53 Rep 1,162 Posts Drives: BMW M3 Convertible Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: LI,NY iTrader: (2)	Good stuff George, and very nice writeup. It clearly explains the basics of polishing. __________________ Jerez Black/Fox E93 M3 - Prem 2/Cold/Conv/DCT/EDC/19's/Ext Lthr/Crbn Trim/Enhanced Sound/Sat Mods- 20" BBS LM's DBK/Challenge Catback/Eibachs/Trim wrapped black/Lux Angel eyes/35% Tint
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08-08-2008, 10:23 AM	#7
onehappydad Private First Class 23 Rep 115 Posts Drives: 2006 330i - Electric Red/Black Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: PA iTrader: (0)	George, any way to take advantage of the daily speacial on the Flex today or do I need to wait until tomorrow (8/9)? __________________
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08-08-2008, 12:11 PM	#9
onehappydad Private First Class 23 Rep 115 Posts Drives: 2006 330i - Electric Red/Black Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: PA iTrader: (0)	I figured, but what the heck. Doesn't hurt to ask... I'll be ordering tomorrow for sure! __________________
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08-08-2008, 02:14 PM	#10
ChaneRZ If You Aint First, You're last !!! 81 Rep 2,509 Posts Drives: 08 BMW 335i, 01 Honda Prelude Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: California iTrader: (0)	killer deals! get them while they're hot! __________________ 08 BMW BSM 335i 6MT (Sports, Premium, NAV, PDC, AS, IPOD, HD Radio, Rear Sunshade, OEM Alarm) Angel iBright V3, Luminics Fog Bulb, Turbo Tuner, K&N Drop in Filter, Dinan Exhaust, Dinan Pedals, Vorsteiner CF Front Lip, and CF Rear Diffuser. Ordered:08/25/07 Started: 09/09/07 Finished: 09/14/07 On Ship: 09/15/07 Arrived: 10/08/07 Delivered: 10/10/07
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08-09-2008, 09:22 AM	#11
Detailed Image 360 Rep 5,052 Posts Drives: Detailed by Detailed Image Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Albany, NY iTrader: (5)	For those who were waiting... Today's Daily special (August 9, 2008) is Flex XC 3401 VRG. Regular Price is $279.99. Today's price is $251.80!
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08-09-2008, 07:02 PM	#12
SolidSnake2634 cantoguy 203 Rep 11,115 Posts Drives: LSB E46 M3 Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Arcadia, California iTrader: (3) Garage List 2001 BMW M3 [6.06]	thanks George. i just ordered a PC 7424 with all the pads, pad cleaner, backing plate, and 6" counterweight last night. killer deal
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08-10-2008, 11:31 AM	#13
Detailed Image 360 Rep 5,052 Posts Drives: Detailed by Detailed Image Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Albany, NY iTrader: (5)	Today's Daily special (August 10, 2008) is Metabo PE 12-175 Rotary Buffer. Regular Price is $269.99. Today's price is $245.40!
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08-11-2008, 11:26 AM	#16
Detailed Image 360 Rep 5,052 Posts Drives: Detailed by Detailed Image Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Albany, NY iTrader: (5)	Last chance to get the Porter Cable 7424 at this price! Today's Daily special (August 11, 2008) is Porter Cable 7424 Random Orbital Buffer. Regular Price is $114.99. Today's price is $107.80!
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08-11-2008, 08:39 PM	#17
ScheerSpeed Major General 415 Rep 5,767 Posts Drives: '13 F30 Estoril M-Sport 335i Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Miami, FL iTrader: (14)	great deals on these buffers guys!
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08-12-2008, 12:04 PM	#18
Detailed Image 360 Rep 5,052 Posts Drives: Detailed by Detailed Image Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Albany, NY iTrader: (5)	Today's Daily special (August 12, 2008) is Flex XC 3401 VRG. Regular Price is $279.99. Today's price is $251.80!
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08-12-2008, 02:43 PM	#19
onehappydad Private First Class 23 Rep 115 Posts Drives: 2006 330i - Electric Red/Black Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: PA iTrader: (0)	Ordered my Flex on Saturday. Great price!!! Can't wait for it to arrive!!! __________________
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08-16-2008, 01:00 AM	#20
SolidSnake2634 cantoguy 203 Rep 11,115 Posts Drives: LSB E46 M3 Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Arcadia, California iTrader: (3) Garage List 2001 BMW M3 [6.06]	received my porter cable today. thanks for the fast shipping george. i'll be looking forward to using it next week. i'll keep ya posted EDIT: oh yeah george, to change the backing plate, i have to buy a separate hand tool? O_o Last edited by SolidSnake2634; 08-16-2008 at 01:38 AM..
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