Buffing alternatives

[TEETERFAN]

To those that may be revisiting this topic, I have another warning specific to power buffing. The finish will be quite warm afterwards and will mar and dent easily. I found out the hard way on my earlier refinish jobs. I would buff one side of an electric body, then flip it over to do the other side. When done, I noticed tiny pits in the side I buffed first. They turned out to be dents from the nap of the folded bath towel I was working on, they dented the warm, freshly buffed finish. After that I let things cool at least a half hour, before laying the buffed finish on anything, and never had the problem again.

[tippie53]

don't overwork and feel what the surface is like. Good advice

[banjopicks]

I tried the Surbuf on my Dewault ROS and it really wasn't up to the task. I used a 6" buffing wheel in my drill and it came out fantastic. It's a little more work than the SM arbor but I'm OK with that. I plan on getting the ShopFox model some day. I wish I could find another idiot like myself that would sell the SM for $200. I though I was done building and just started selling things I didn't need. Can you hear my foot slamming against my ass?

[bftobin]

Has anyone tried a car buffer/polisher for buffing ?? I recall reading somewhere that Jeff Elliot and Cindy Burton used one in their shop. As I recall, they would put some polish on the pad and hold it in a cardboard box when they turned it on so polish wouldn't fly all over the shop. I don't know if they still do.

Brent

[tippie53]

yes they work also a foam buffing pad in a drill works

[carld05]

I've been using an Adams Mini buffer lately and really like it. It's designed for car touchup. It's gear driven random orbit so it doesn't slow down like my Bosch RO sander. Has substantial weight so you just use that rather than bearing down on it. I'm using some 3M pads which go into the corners easily. I got it on sale for $105. It's on Amazon or the Adam polishes website. I use the Meguiar's polishes.

[TEETERFAN]

I have wet sanded and buffed out over two dozen guitars and about a dozen cars. Most buffing “burn throughs” happen on the edges. When you’re over an edge, the weight/pressure of the buffer is concentrated on a much smaller area, so it intensifies the action of compound, whether you feel it or not. This also applies to hand and block sanding. I hand polish all the edges (also about an inch in) to be safe and I work slow at that. The actual material deposited on the edges by spraying is less than the general areas, perhaps due to surface tension, so extra care is important when sanding and buffing. I also spray a few extra passes on the edges while applying all my finishes. On guitars, after spraying the final coats and allowing several weeks drying, I wet sand, starting with 1500, then 2000, then 3000. The scratches left by the 3000 don’t need a great deal of buffing, power or hand.