So the last two cars I have detailed I have noticed that after working with the Makita for a bit that there is a small amount of yellowish fluid, like an oil present near the handle and surrounding the spindle. Also, when operating below 1000rpms there is a slight crackling sound. I have not been hard on this machine and its about 7 months old and I have done around 15 cars with it. Can anyone provide some insight? It is still working fine and the substance is very minimal but noticeable in the said areas.
That is the grease packed around the gear/spindle inside the head of the unit..Are you getting the buffer really hot? You can open the head from the spindle side. I believe it has four phillips screws. Repack the grease in the center and it should be fine. I take mine apart every few months and clean it. I have special Synthetic Grease made by Amsoil that I pack mine with. It is smoother and more quiet than the yellow stuff..My friend has the same buffer and could tell the difference between his and mine. Sean,,,,
Perfectly normal, when the head gets quite hot sometimes the lube inside seeps out a little :thumb: @ BimmerSean, you have the name of the synthetic grease you using? Wouldn't mind quietening mine down a little bit
I have the same problem. It seems when the head gets hot it starts to leak a clear fluid. Wait that doesn't sound right. I think the castings warp a bit when they get hot. To remedy the problem I packed mine with a bit of Mobil 1 synthetic grease. It runs a bit quieter and I use a lot less grease since it is thicker and tends to cling better. Oh and make sure to put grease in the roller bearing in the top of he spindle.
I have owned my Makita 9227 for about a year but just attempted to polish my entire truck for the first time with it this week. I also had a little grease seap out but about half way through polishing my truck (which didn't turn out very good) the Makita started cutting in and out and then cut out completely. I couldn't believe it considering it was basically brand new. I tore it all apart before I found out that one of the wires in the power cord tore where it enters the unit from bending as I polished. I just clipped off the torn part and reattached it and it works fine now. But I'm surprised that happened after only one use?? I use Amsoil for everything else in my truck.. can I ask what type of grease by Amsoil I should use in my Makita? Also, I initially used the handle it came with but the polisher was really yanking me around.. I tried using it without the handle like you would hold a metabo and for me it was so much easier to control. Since I said that I didn't have a good experience polishing I guess I can post my experience here. I am really struggling with the middle step in polishing my truck. I have no problem with compounds as I used M105, M95, and PowerGloss just to try each out as I worked on deeper rids on my truck. And as a side note, I tried a few different pads when compounding the deeper rids on my truck including LC Pfw, a WWLC7 wool pad which shed to no end which worked well but I absolutely loved a compound pad I bought from rubbish boys. And the final finish is my favorite step but the middle step is killing me. I have tried a handful of different polishes to remove swirls but haven't had much success. For instance Menz IP flashes after 2 or 3 passes and M83 isn't much better, as well at 3M Machine Polish. It seems with polishes like these the lubricants run out before I can get the abrasives to break down and it seemed like adding a mist of water (which I have seen recommended) only resulted in barely the ability to make another pass but result in a more difficult time removing the polish with a mf. I have a nissan and am guessing that my clear is similar to the car polished in the video title "Polishing carlos style" on this forum. In that post Nica used SIP and a 3M UK pad. So after watching that video and seeing the working time he was able to get from the polish and correction I decided to try and simulate that by using those same products... When I would use Menz SIP, a 3M UK polishing pad, and setting the temp in my garage to the same temp in that vid I still struggled. I feel like I am struggling to find a balance when polishing.. for instance when I run the polisher at 1500 to 1800 SIP turns to concrete and starts dusting or spitting out clumps after a few passes regardless of how much I use. When I run the rotary at 1400ish or lower the lubricants last forever.. I can probably make 10 passes before any dusting but the polish never seems to break down. Also I should add that I tried different variations of using differing amounts of pressure. From consistent passes of heavy pressure to no pressure.. to starting with heavy pressure and backing off as I worked it.. to trying the zenith method all with no real difference. When I watch the video it kills me to see how the polish clearly breaks down and it seems like it has working time to no end.. then when I go out in my garage I just can't get anything in that polish range to cooperate. What am I missing or doing wrong? I had a similar experience with the DA but with either machine I just can't seem to work the abrasives enough to break them down without turning a polish like SIP to concrete or having a polish like IP dry up after two passes. Sorry for the long post.. I have read so many posts with advise and recommendations for similar issues and have watched so many polishing vids.. One of these days I need to go to one of these detailing seminars near me in Tampa so I can figure out what I am doing wrong. Finally, I used Menz po85rd and was really impressed at how much I was able to correct considering how little cut it is suppose to have. I was able to remove the heavy swirling with SIP but it wasn't finishing out so good due to the reasons given. But when I used 85rd after that step I couldn't believe what it was removing. I initially just assumed it was filling the swirls but after an prep sol wipe down the finish still looked great. But I am still really frusted with the middle step.
Hm, I would say my recommendation is to spritz the pad before buffing with either water a quick detailer spray that usually helps the longevity of the polish breaking down and being able to work into the paint properly. Also, I would make sure that the panel is free of any oils by doing an alcohol wipedown before polishing. I also like to keep my RPMs to 1500 even if it takes me more passes only rarely do I go up higher than that. I know some people on here go higher so its more of a preference. Lastly, I would check how your pad is contacting the panel. After talking to Dana (asphaltrocket) and having my own experience with 105 if you get some air behind the pad and it hits the polish it will dry it out much quicker so its important to keep that pads flat on the panel. I am sure other people have better advice but that's my two cents and I hope it helps.
I actually find M105 pretty easy to use and very effective but I am concerned its overkill. I don't have a paint thickness gauge and I have been trying to stick with the least aggressive method principle. On the aggressiveness charts it shows M105 as being so ridiculously aggressive that I feared it was too much.. but now that I think about it it probably wouldn't be removing any more than I am with SIP? I guess? Also, I honestly hate using the DA polisher. The shaking drives me crazy.. and I don't like to use the kind of pressure with it I get the feeling is required to do the KB Method. But for me this has also become a pride issue with being able to use a diminishing abrasive polish to remove swirls... damn you hubris!!
It is Amsoil Synthetic Grease. I will post a pic of the actual item for you guys tomorrow night. Sean,,,,
I actually opened up my makita this weekend and found some of the grease coming over the edges so I wiped it off and put it back inside the head so hopefully it wont be leaking out anymore.
I usually buy Amsoil from carquest. Do you know if I can purchase the synthetic grease there? And thank you in advance for any reply's or advice you can give me. I worked on polishing my truck over the course of about 4 days and every time I would get frustrated with something I would take a step back and take a break and look up advice here.
