# Look what i got today UDM *UPDATED WITH SHORT REVIEW *



## 182_Blue (Oct 25, 2005)

Will test it soon if baby lets me , I hope its not as bad as the reports im hearing :-(


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## donnyboy (Oct 27, 2005)

Nice one.:thumb: 

What bad reports have you been hearing???


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## d3m0n (Feb 19, 2007)

If you dont like it i will have it!


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## Thomas-182 (Mar 5, 2006)

Cooooool! enjoy


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## Grizzle (Jul 12, 2006)

donnyboy said:


> Nice one.:thumb:
> 
> What bad reports have you been hearing???


it vibrates so much ur arm crumbles into fine dust that menzerna can use in its intensive polish!! :doublesho


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## WHIZZER (Oct 25, 2005)

I think the motor might be too powerful for the chassis ...so to say


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## BDM (Apr 25, 2007)

really so are we talking mega vibrations... compared to a pc...


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## donnyboy (Oct 27, 2005)

Grizzle said:


> it vibrates so much ur arm crumbles into fine dust that menzerna can use in its intensive polish!! :doublesho


Holy focaccia.....:doublesho Is it pretty bad then!!??? :lol: :lol:


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## Alan W (May 11, 2006)

Nice one Shaun!  

Don't keep us waiting! :lol: 

Alan W

P.S. Increased throw/orbit/offset (compared with PC) = increased vibration.


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## BDM (Apr 25, 2007)

wasnt this thing ment to vibrate less though???


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## SteveyG (Apr 1, 2007)

Looking forward to the review - seems a few people have non retail versions but no reviews or feedback on them yet.


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## Lespaul (May 23, 2006)

I'll try it out for you if you like :wave: 

Will it be at the Nottingham meet on the 1st July?

Darren


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## 182_Blue (Oct 25, 2005)

Ok, managed a quick test between nappies, firstly i did a weight test, the UDM felt a little heavier than the PC so i weighed them and the UDM weighed in at 2200g and the pc weighs in at just 2000g so its a little heavier than the PC, I'm guessing this is because of the new beefier motor.

Parts of the machine feel quite well built, others not so like the ON/OFF switch on the top which doesn't feel to strong, but it may be fine it just doesn't fill you with confidence, and on taking it to pieces :thumb: you see that they use a big slider that's about 4 inches long that fits under the new switch and slides to turn of the original switch at the bottom of the old switch (similar design as the PC), diagram below :-










The other bit that appears not to be too strong is the weight surround (which is bigger than the PC version), not sure what its made from but i feel if you drop it you could damage it (again i could be completely wrong)










I firstly suspected it to be a pumped up PC, but on taking it to bits it became apparent that although it looked very similar most parts were different to those on the PC :-



















The power switch seems a bit notchy on my version, but not unusable and again very similar to the PC.










The rest seems well built, the majority of the bodywork is being protected by a plastic outer sleeve.

In action

Ok, how does it work, well i didn't have loads of time TBH but i did a quick test with some 4" white spot pads on a sonus 3.5" backing plate, i tested this on the wing of the wife's car using Menz IP and FP2, i started on a low speed of 1 and found that the pad sort of bounced of the paint which concerned me a little but i found by reducing the pressure this stopped, i put the speed up to 3 and found it easier to use at this speed than it was at 1 , i applied more pressure and there was no bounce like there was at low speeds so i felt a bit better about that, i then pushed it up to speed 6 and again felt quite controlled and quite a bit faster than the PC was (as it is in all speeds)

I have to say after hearing a few bad reports about vibration issues i found it to be ok with spot pads (BUT I ONLY WORKED THE MACHINE FOR 5-10 MINS) , not any worse than i found the PC.

I then put on the 5" sonus backing plate and grabbed the nearest pad (which happened to be a Meguiars pad), i then attacked the door of the wife's car this time with just the Menz FP2, the machine again felt quite controlled, seemed to have more power than the PC and didn't bog down (same as when using the 4" pads too), again vibration was no worse than the PC, AGAIN OVER THE SHORT PERIOD I USED IT.

so my conclusions are (don't forget the very limited time i used it) im quietly impressed, it seems ok, i haven't tried any decent defect removal with it though (as i don't have any to test it on) but I'm reasonably sure it will do as much and more than a PC will, and it will be probably be below what a rotary will achieve, whilst still remaining fairly user friendly (and good for beginners too)
Should you buy one ??, Possibly but perhaps give it a test first and see how you get on with it, and wait for more reviews, as i may be a numb nut who is easily pleased LOL and i have worked with quite heavy and hard to work machinery in the past so i may have a greater pain threshold :doublesho










Some comparison shots























































 Please do remember this is a 10 minute review and i will need to do some serious testing before i would properly recommend it to anyone

Thank you and good night :thumb::thumb::thumb:


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## Epoch (Jul 30, 2006)

GReat write up Shaun and in between nappies and screaming too.

Intresting to see how the full car reports go, 

I guess they worked a lot on the lines of "if it aint broke don't fix it" at the design stage


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## 182_Blue (Oct 25, 2005)

PS, I'm still rather interested in the new Flex machine and the new Megs one when it arrives, if your in the market i would sit back and wait to see those first, and if i get either i will try that against it too.


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## donnyboy (Oct 27, 2005)

Good, quick review Shaun.:thumb: 

I'm wondering if the bigger weight surround would winder it in tighter spaces like under mirrors and recessed areas?


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## Alan W (May 11, 2006)

Very nice and informative review Shaun and well done on the component comparison photos with the PC! 

Look forward to the prolonged test on some poor paint if you can find some!

Alan W

P.S. If you try the Flex I'm pretty sure you'll want one!


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## 182_Blue (Oct 25, 2005)

donnyboy said:


> Good, quick review Shaun.:thumb:
> 
> I'm wondering if the bigger weight surround would winder it in tighter spaces like under mirrors and recessed areas?


yeh it didnt quite reach into some of the smaller areas that the PC did


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## 182_Blue (Oct 25, 2005)

Alan W said:


> Very nice and informative review Shaun and well done on the component comparison photos with the PC!
> 
> Look forward to the prolonged test on some poor paint if you can find some!
> 
> Alan W


 i will have to do a full car to see how it goes, its quite hard at the moment with the baby though


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## Detail My Ride (Apr 19, 2006)

182_blue said:


> i will have to do a full car to see how it goes, its quite hard at the moment with the baby though


Git on with it, can smell him from here 

Nice review there, seems to be a lot bigger/heavier than the PC, you reckon thats a problem?


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## Thomas-182 (Mar 5, 2006)

Nice update, thanks!


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## 182_Blue (Oct 25, 2005)

13yearoldetailer said:


> Git on with it, can smell him from here
> 
> Nice review there, seems to be a lot bigger/heavier than the PC, you reckon thats a problem?


Before i weighed it i would have sworn it was alot heavier so i was surprised to find it was only 10% heavier, i guess after a full detail it might start to get a bit heavy and the vibrations may cause issues, we will see :thumb:


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## Alan W (May 11, 2006)

Hmmm, I wonder if the UDM's 240v motor (with greater torque) could be made to fit the PC?  

Alan W


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## Peter D (Oct 26, 2005)

Great short review, especially all the "unclothed" pics. This is quite an exciting time what with the UDM, the Flex and potentially a Meguiar's machine.


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## parish (Jun 29, 2006)

Alan W said:


> P.S. Increased throw/orbit/offset (compared with PC) = increased vibration.


But it shouldn't do, it just needs a heavier counterweight.



13yearoldetailer said:


> seems to be a lot bigger/heavier than the PC, you reckon thats a problem?


Looks the same size to me Gaz (apart from the c/w guard which is excessively large)


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## Brazo (Oct 27, 2005)

From here it looks like a resprayed pc!


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## Alan W (May 11, 2006)

parish said:


> But it shouldn't do, it just needs a heavier counterweight.


Agreed, in theory. However, the counterweight doesn't look any bigger or heavier in this photo!










Alan W


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## Lespaul (May 23, 2006)

Nice short review Shaun :thumb: 
Do have to wonder if it would deal with VW paint a little easier than the pc  

Darren


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## m500dpp (Feb 17, 2006)

but the shroud around the counterweight looks massive, that wont be good with 4" pads?


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## Guest (May 23, 2007)

How much is this and is it any cheaper than a pc?


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## Detail My Ride (Apr 19, 2006)

Bailes1992 said:


> How much is this and is it any cheaper than a pc?


It'll be around £100 dude :thumb:


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## ianFRST (Sep 19, 2006)

well i doubt ill be buying one, unless its ALOT better than a pc

at least it eans newbies wont have to go throught the **** ache of iporting one from autopia


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## Detail My Ride (Apr 19, 2006)

ianFRST said:


> well i doubt ill be buying one, unless its ALOT better than a pc
> 
> at least it eans newbies wont have to go throught the **** ache of iporting one from autopia


It ain't a ball ache :lol:


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## BDM (Apr 25, 2007)

13yearoldetailer said:


> It ain't a ball ache :lol:


its an expensive ball ache...


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## richie.guy (Apr 10, 2006)

BDM said:


> its an expensive ball ache...


Cheap if you buy other stuff at the same time :thumb:


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## m500dpp (Feb 17, 2006)

but autopia will stop selling the PC surely!!!


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## parish (Jun 29, 2006)

Alan W said:


> Agreed, in theory. However, the counterweight doesn't look any bigger or heavier in this photo!


I agree that it doesn't appear so, but you can't really tell how thick it is or whether they are made from the same material.

Of course the other problem is that different pads may be different weights (and they don't self-centre on the backing plate so varying the effective offset) and it only takes a few grams at a few thousand rpm to cause a lot of vibration - look how much you get through the steering wheel if a front wheel is just 20-30 grams out of balance.


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## Paul-T (Nov 2, 2006)

Ok, just to add to the mix, Johnny Clean & Shiny has given me a UDM to test for a couple of days, to see what I think.

Same as Shaun, picking the thing up it immediately feels heavier than a PC. I hadn't got around to weighting yet, so interesting to see Shaun's figures there. I think it also feels more weighted to the head than the PC, possibly something to do with the unreasonably large collar that surrounds the counterwight?

Yesterday I was working on a Lotus Elise, it simply couldn't cut the mustard for any serious correction, but then I didn't expect it to. I only use my PC these days for finishing (glaze & sealants), so I did the correction with the rotary and used the UDM to apply a sealant. 

This is where it really let itself down. Not sure where these few come in the scheme of things, i.e. finished production ready or pre-production, but at speed 4 I found the frequency of vibration thoroughly uncomfortable. Not only was it affecting my hands, but it was travelling up my forearms to my elbows. I was happy the pad was centred (finishing pad), but just to experiement I used the same pad on my PC. Of course there is still vibration, but no-where near as much, or at least not at the same frequency that made it so unpleasant. Turning the speed up to 5 on the UDM just made things worse so it went back in its bag.

To be honest, thats where it would stay, but in the name of science I shall have a little experiment this afternoon with some light correction on my own car, to see how it goes.

First impression? It wouldn't be getting my money. Sorry.


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## Simoni (Mar 21, 2006)

I don't know if it has been mentioned before but are you using the same counterweight on the PC and the UDM?


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## Paul-T (Nov 2, 2006)

Using the only counterweight that comes with the UDM.


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## Alan W (May 11, 2006)

Reg,

I think your review has killed this thread stone dead! :lol:

Seriously, thanks for having the courage to write it as you found it. :buffer: 

I just hope the UDM you were given is not typical of what will be on sale very soon.  

Alan W


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## Paul-T (Nov 2, 2006)

Hmmm...apparently so. Have been feeling ill all day so not done much other than surf the net and wash my own car. But working again tomorrow so will look to give it another go.

Trouble is, tomorrow is another Lotus, an Monday's detail is an Alpina B3 BMW, both of which I would expect to be hard paint and not really suitable for a UDM/PC machine. Still, I'm happy to keep trying!


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## 182_Blue (Oct 25, 2005)

Alan W said:


> Reg,
> 
> I think your review has killed this thread stone dead! :lol:
> 
> ...


I also wrote as i found it , but im not sure i just have numb arms so didn't feel the vibration LOL, anyone is free to come and try it if they want, perhaps longer than i did though.


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## Brazo (Oct 27, 2005)

Reg Hollis said:


> Hmmm...apparently so. Have been feeling ill all day so not done much other than surf the net and wash my own car. But working again tomorrow so will look to give it another go.
> 
> Trouble is, tomorrow is another Lotus, an Monday's detail is an Alpina B3 BMW, both of which I would expect to be hard paint and not really suitable for a UDM/PC machine. Still, I'm happy to keep trying!


I have been using a UDM for years

Its called a rotary:lol:


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## riz (Dec 17, 2006)

does UDM need a transformer?


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## 182_Blue (Oct 25, 2005)

riz said:


> does UDM need a transformer?


Nope .


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## Alan W (May 11, 2006)

182_blue said:


> I also wrote as i found it


Shaun,

You sure did and I commented also about your great strip-down photos which shed a lot of light on the build of the UDM.

There was no inference in my post above about Reg's review that referred to your review and I apologise if you thought there was. It was not intended!

Alan W


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## riz (Dec 17, 2006)

I WAS PRob gonna get 1 , will have to wait and c when people use it a bit more


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## 182_Blue (Oct 25, 2005)

riz said:


> I WAS PRob gonna get 1 , will have to wait and c when people use it a bit more


You can test mine if you like


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## 182_Blue (Oct 25, 2005)

Alan W said:


> Shaun,
> 
> You sure did and I commented also about your great strip-down photos which shed a lot of light on the build of the UDM.
> 
> ...


yeh i know, but others may read it wrong you know what its like, as i said anyone is free to try it, im not sure if im just not fussy LOL, or i havnt tried it enough to see for sure (but i did post this on my review)

sorry for the confusion

if i get chance over the weekend i will try it properly


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## Paul-T (Nov 2, 2006)

I think it would be good for us both Shaun, extended use will get over the first impressions, good or bad.


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## 182_Blue (Oct 25, 2005)

Reg Hollis said:


> I think it would be good for us both Shaun, extended use will get over the first impressions, good or bad.


Very true, i had just had the mother in law here, then Baby was playing up and then i tried the machine :doublesho, but only for 10 minutes so i really need to do a few full details with it, i would really like someone with PC and even rotary experience near me to give it a try to see what they think of it, as I'm quite used to using a big heavy Wolf belt sander which is quite a handful  so in theory the UDM could be hard work but not in comparison to what im used to, or the other machines could be faulty, different weights etc etc.


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## riz (Dec 17, 2006)

182_blue said:


> yeh i know, but others may read it wrong you know what its like, as i said anyone is free to try it, im not sure if im just not fussy LOL, or i havnt tried it enough to see for sure (but i did post this on my review)
> 
> sorry for the confusion
> 
> if i get chance over the weekend i will try it properly


i dont knw how to use a Pc yet, but maybe, time is somethign i dont have at the moment though


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## Tiauguinho (May 1, 2007)

I posted the following question at the Autopia forums:

"DavidB,

On Detailing World there was a comment from a user with a pre-production unit, that the UDM vibrated more then the PC. Another one said it had the same vibration as the PC. Is this because its not a full production unit and still has some quirks?

I really want a UDM and can't wait until they are made available, but am a bit concerned with the initial reports in terms of vibration."

And got the following answer from DavidB



> DavidB
> 
> The original units we had built (ie., the model Pat has) vibrated very little. The case was 100% aluminum with a rubberized coating. When we took the challenge to have a 240V version, we changed the casing to meet world-wide safety standards (double insulated). I believe that change has introduced vibration back into the system. What I figured out yesterday is that it vibrated more with the handle off that with the handle on. So tomorrow I'm going to go look for plastic screws to fill the handle holes (clamp down the casing) when you choose not to use the handle.
> 
> ...


Reg Hollis, did you test the machine with the handle on or off? This may shed some light to why you felt it vibrating so much.


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## WHIZZER (Oct 25, 2005)

I think most people use a PC with the handle off so i would have thought Reg would have used it without the handle !


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## 182_Blue (Oct 25, 2005)

i did it with the handle off


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## 182_Blue (Oct 25, 2005)

Ok had another go today, and did half of the wifes car with FP2 on a soft megs pad, my findings today are :-

Bad
1. Speed 1 is next to useless, I.E when using it the pad bounces and vibrates like crazy shaking the whole machine and your arms etc, but i found moving it upto speed 2 (or just under) cures the bounce/ vibration issue.
2. I found there to be little if not no difference between speed 5 & 6
3. The cable is not long enough when doing roofs and high panels, so could require an extension, easily solved i guess but still a niggle.

As for the rest of my experience it was ok, i found it only really has 2 possibly 3 usable speeds but non caused *me* excessive vibration problems at the time of use, it was usable and easy to control (much the same as a PC), it doesnt seem to bog down to much and did leave a nice finish, writing this 15 minutes later i can feel the tingle in my hands from the machine, but i get this when using the PC so not overly worried about that, all in all it wasn't to bad again, and i'm looking forward to trying some defect removal with it  .


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## Ronnie (Nov 15, 2006)

See with the casing around the counterweight, could this be removed to allow access into tighter spaces? Also when using machines like it  tihs, it is advisable to wear anti vib. gloves amyway esp. if u use the machine regurarly


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## parish (Jun 29, 2006)

This is turning out to be very disappointing. It sounds like the UDM has failed to improve on any of the shortcomings of the PC, apart from the voltage.

Have there been any test reports on Autopia of the 110v version, and how do they compare?

As for vibration, I wonder if the cause is the bevel gears rather than the counterweight? If they are straight-cut they will cause more vibration than spiral-cut but they will be cheaper?


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## Alan W (May 11, 2006)

parish said:


> Have there been any test reports on Autopia of the 110v version, and how do they compare?


No reviews on Autopia yet that I've seen. The US winner's UDM's have just been shipped according to recent posts.



parish said:


> As for vibration, I wonder if the cause is the bevel gears rather than the counterweight? If they are straight-cut they will cause more vibration than spiral-cut but they will be cheaper?


The gear casing on the US version is rubber coated to aid reduction of the vibration. However, the EU version has to be double insulated and therefore the rubber coating couldn't be used from what I've read.

Alan W


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## parish (Jun 29, 2006)

Alan W said:


> The gear casing on the US version is rubber coated to aid reduction of the vibration. However, the EU version has to be double insulated and therefore the rubber coating couldn't be used from what I've read.


   Rubber is an insulator


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## Alan W (May 11, 2006)

Quote from DavidB on Autopia:

_"The original units we had built (ie., the model Pat has) vibrated very little. The case was 100% aluminum with a rubberized coating. When we took the challenge to have a 240V version, we changed the casing to meet world-wide safety standards (double insulated). I believe that change has introduced vibration back into the system. What I figured out yesterday is that it vibrated more with the handle off that with the handle on. So tomorrow I'm going to go look for plastic screws to fill the handle holes (clamp down the casing) when you choose not to use the handle.

I'm going to retract my "less vibration claim" and make every attempt to take the vibration back out of the system.

db"_

Alan W


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## Glossmax (May 9, 2007)

parish said:


> Rubber is an insulator


I think he means earthed.


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## parish (Jun 29, 2006)

Pug_101 said:


> I think he means earthed.


I'm still confused. The machine will be double insulated surely. DavidB seems to be saying that they have to leave the head/gearbox as exposed metal in order to get a CE mark. Why? Surely having a rubber coating can only improve safety?   

Having said that I've just looked at my angle grinder, which is be CE marked and double insulated, and the main body is plastic but the head/gearbox is exposed metal


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## Tiauguinho (May 1, 2007)

DavidB posted this info on Autopia:

_"Based on the feedback from the UK forums, I pulled the UK version from production to have the electrical cord (lead) made longer and beefier. This will delay the introduction of the UK version until July 15th."_

Seems that one issue is solved about the UDM. Hope they get the vibration under control now as well.


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## RobDom (Oct 26, 2005)

Sounds like a back to the drawing board job on the UDM, otherwise it will be the 'ultimate let-down machine'!


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## Sav (Jan 9, 2007)

sure does! i was hoping to get one as well, but the pc seems best bet! 

Shame....
it will simply bomb if it not any good.....it's not an open market.


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## DrWho (Apr 3, 2007)

Tiauguinho said:


> DavidB posted this info on Autopia:
> 
> _"Based on the feedback from the UK forums, I pulled the UK version from production to have the electrical cord (lead) made longer and beefier. This will delay the introduction of the UK version until July 15th."_
> 
> Seems that one issue is solved about the UDM. Hope they get the vibration under control now as well.


Strange thing though...something like this is what they could have foreseen when developing the machine, maybe even call it sloppy? Seems to be done in a rush, just to get the machine asap on the streets.


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## Glossmax (May 9, 2007)

Seems like marketing to me, bring out a couple of half decent prototypes for testing 3-4 months before the planed launch date. Give the prototypes to experts to test promising a close launch date then redesign with feedback. Meanwhile you've hooked 50% of the market who will keep waiting for the machine to come out probably close to the original launch date. Either that or the Flex and Megs machine put the wind up them. 
I bet it was common even in the USA to put a longer lead on the PC, did they talk to any British detailer during the design phase?
I so wanted this machine when I first heard about it, but I am not going to wait until at least mid July.


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## ZrS (May 27, 2007)

Good acquisition, we wait a report ^^


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