whykit

I was thinking about getting a PC, so I went down to Lowe's to check out the prices and if they carry them. Turns out they do, so I think that I will buy one from them. It looks as though the box only comes with the PC, some nuts and bolts, and one white pad.

My question is, do any department stores (Home Depot, Lowe's, Ace...) carry the necessary extra pads (orange, yellow...)? I don

00CivicSi

I have yet to find a store locally that sells a wide range of decent detailing products. You'll most likely need to look online for pads and polishes.

I bought this kit from Autogeek.net:


For about a hundred bucks, it comes with:
6 inch Yellow Cutting Pad
6 inch Green Medium Cutting Pad
6 inch Orange Light Cutting Pad
6 inch Blue Finishing Pad
6 inch White Ultra-fine Polishing Pad
2 Cobra Indigo Edgeless Microfiber Polishing Cloths
FREE Edge 2000 Quick Connect Dual Action Adapter
12 oz. Pinnacle XMT Polishing Pad Cleaner
12 oz. Pinnacle XMT Polishing Pad Conditioner
2 Cobra 70/30 Microfiber Bonnets

I chose this particular kit for a couple reasons.
- It came with pretty much everything to get started (except the PC and polish. I bought my PC at Lowes. You'll need to determine what kind of polish you want as well.).
- It wasn't much more money than buying three Edge DA pads and the Edge DA adapter but it also came with other products to try.
- The Edge system offers several benefits like double-sided pads, instantly centered pads, no chance of damaging paint with a backing plate, etc. Look for more info here! For the PC, you'll want their DA pads.

I'm not sure about subsituting those products. Others will be able to give you an answer on that.

IIRC, the spray that they are putting on the pad is the Pinnacle XMT Polishing Pad Conditioner (that happens to come in the kit I mentioned above). MikeC did one of his great reviews on this product. You should check it out. It is my understanding that it is not necessary. Some have suggested just damping a pad with water or quick detailer.

I hope this helps.

wanabe

agree- you do not want to buy them bundled...
buy the machine separate from the pads.
also, i am not a kit guy. i prefer to buy only the pads i want.

parkerdt

I bought the same kit as 00CivicSi. Figured it was a good way to get started in the Edge system for not much more $$ than the 3 pads and adapter that I wanted. In the future, I'll buy individual pads as needed. After a small bit of playing around, I *really* like the Edge system.

Also bought the nylon cleaning brush and the Pinnacle XMT system to try out - see if I like it more than the Poorboy's SSR system.

Dave

MikeyC

With everything that's been said so far. Buy your PC at Lowe's it will save you a couple of bucks even if you buy a complete kit.

As far as pads go, sometimes you can find them at your local paint & body shop supply stores. However, my local PBE is more expensive than buying on-line. Plus a lot of these shops stock supplies for use on a rotary buffer and not a PC because most body shops use a rotary buffer. Buying on-line IMO you have access to better products and better product variety. I also have the Edge 2000 6" DA pad kit and I am extremely happy with it. As already mentioned the Edge kit has several advantages over traditional velcro backed pads. All the pad manufacturers get there foam from a limited number of foam manufacturers. So, the foam in all the pads is pretty much the same quality. The difference really comes in the innovative Edge quick disconnect system.

Kits in general are typically a bad idea because they always include some things you never end up using. You spent money on these items too, but they essentially go to waste. I do like the Edge 2000 pad kit though. I've used every pad in the kit to this point and I like the pad cleaner and pad conditioner that come with it. Also, the two microfiber towels that come with it are high quality.