Let's talk buffers II

strum456

Oldtimer
My Flex rotary is now arcing from the brushes really bad. If it is the same problem as the last time, I'm assuming that the segments of the commutator are warped, causing the brushes to skip, thereby creating arcing and intermittent running. It has always had an overheating problem. I find myself planning out my buffing so I don’t do too much in a session as to not overheat my Flex buffer. I am just sick of messing with this thing!


Needless to say, I will not be buying any more Flex products. I almost bought a Metabo last night, since Jim likes his so much. Then I read a review from someone saying that Metabo customer support is pretty much nonexistent and that parts availability is a problem. At this point, I am leaning towards the new Dewalt buffer (model 849x). I am not excited to learn that it is several pounds heavier than what I am used to.

HELP!
 
My Flex rotary is now arcing from the brushes really bad. If it is the same problem as the last time, I'm assuming that the segments of the commutator are warped, causing the brushes to skip, thereby creating arcing and intermittent running. It has always had an overheating problem. I find myself planning out my buffing so I don’t do too much in a session as to not overheat my Flex buffer. I am just sick of messing with this thing!


Needless to say, I will not be buying any more Flex products. I almost bought a Metabo last night, since Jim likes his so much. Then I read a review from someone saying that Metabo customer support is pretty much nonexistent and that parts availability is a problem. At this point, I am leaning towards the new Dewalt buffer (model 849x). I am not excited to learn that it is several pounds heavier than what I am used to.

HELP!


Which FLEX model do you own?

I doubt the newer PE 14-2 wouldn't stand to some serious use.

My older L 3403 VRG that they don't make anymore is still going strong, although in the last 3 years maybe I've done 10 complete buffing jobs at most.

On the Metabo brand, I reckon if you can find a tool place that carries the brand and sells a good volume of their tools then you'd be able to order parts from them.

Hope you can sort it out without having to go back to a heavier buffer.
 
I have the 3403. It is about 3 years old and hasn't seen much use.

Same as mine, you're probably onto something since that model was discontinued. The newer PE-14 is not as light but it's probably more durable.

My 3403 I've used for like 7hrs, on an off. I have no clue out of the 7hrs what the running time would be though. Once it bites the dust I think about getting a Metabo and use it side by side with the FLEX when I do a big buffing job.
 
my metabo hasnt missed a beat. i love the thing. its a german company so i would imagine parts arent going to be as common place as say makita or dewalt but they are a big company and make tons of tools. they are big in the metal working industry. with the internet i doubt parts would be hard to find. only thing i can say about the metabo is that it is a smaller buffer. its not really intended to do heavy buffing on big panels for long periods of time. i recently painted a 30ft boat and with a wool pad flat on the hull using some pressure, after 20+ minutes the buffer shut down for a min due to the motor getting hot. it has a safety shutdown for overtemp. in all reality i was just asking too much from a buffer that size. a full size buffer is more suited for that task.
 
Jim, I think heavy buffing may be partly what happened to my Flex. I don't do any boats or RVs, but I do mostly use wool. The flex never seemed to heat up as bad with the 7" foam pads. I always thought that if it was only meant for small foam pads, then it should be advertised as such.

Being that I don't plan to stop using wool, I ordered a Dewalt from Home Depot. They didn't have the best price, but they do have the best return policy (90 days). I am going to try out the Dewalt on a couple overall jobs that I have to do in the next 90 days. If it seems like the weight is too much, I'll just exchange it for a Metabo.

I'll post back after I put some time on the Dewalt.
 
i have a dewalt as well. its a good buffer but it is full sized and twice the weight of the metabo. each has its purpose. i bought my metabo from home depot as well.
 
my black&decker was 11.5 lbs and it would shut down it you really hammered on it. it has the same 11 amp motor as the flex but in a smaller chassis. if your going to use the big wool pads and buff out 1k scratches the flex line is not for you. mine is 10 years old and still going strong. but i use small foam pads and do not buff , i polish. meaning i make sure there are no scratches to deal with . i can promise if you use a small body polisher like a big grinder it will kick the protector every time and burn the brushes up in no time.
 
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