rupes pads are breaking down

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lj993

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Good afternoon, oft time lurker, sometime poster. I am an enthusiast that details my own cars and on occasion those of a friend or two. I have a Rupes 21 and an assortment of the Rupes pads, blue, green, yellow, white and some UHS pads. I am finding that the pads are starting to break down ie disintegrate. As I am using them, I find that small bits of the pads are flying off. I hand wash the pads and allow them to dry after each use. Is this normal? Do these have a limited shelf life? By the way, I used them on a buddies 2008 Mercedes S550 this past weekend. He parks it outside 24/7 here in San Diego. It was regularly washed and occasionally clayed but never polished by machine. Wow! The car is huge and it took about 7 hours total, inside and out but the car turned out great! Looks like it was glowing after I finished up. Incredible paint on those vehicles. This is a great site, however, I am hooked on Autogeek, spending way too much over there. Phil
 
Which colour pads are you finding lacking in durability? I find the Blue and Green tend to shred or shed foam but the Yellow and White are pretty durable. Only used the Grey UHS a few times as its a pain to clean.
 
How many pads are you using on a typical detail?
 
Zubair said:
Which colour pads are you finding lacking in durability? I find the Blue and Green tend to shred or shed foam but the Yellow and White are pretty durable. Only used the Grey UHS a few times as its a pain to clean.
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I saw the same thing as I was using the blue pad on the LHR15 Mark II on a test panel over the weekend. The yellows were fine.

I do agree that the UHS pads are a little hard to clean. They are easier to clean with warm water instead of cold.
 
Zubair said:
Which colour pads are you finding lacking in durability? I find the Blue and Green tend to shred or shed foam but the Yellow and White are pretty durable. Only used the Grey UHS a few times as its a pain to clean.
Click to expand...

Completely agree. My green pads are usually the first to "go". I shy away from using the blue pads so I can't really speak to their durability.
 
My problem also. A Rupes 4 inch green disintegrated and another delaminated. A 4 inch blue delaminated. I was not working at high speed, the pads were new, they were not overloaded with polish, etc. I have talked online to a Rupes rep and will be mailing 2 of the 3 (I tossed the first one after it blew apart). I expect them to get back to me sometime soon. They were busy with Detailfest. So far I have had no problems with any yellow, white, or UHS Rupes pads. I been wondering if it has something to do with the open cell design. Search posts over on Autopia.
 
I used the 4" green Rupes pads on my hood and roof after I saw that you had trouble with your pads. I used the matching green top polish with the pads and am happy to say no damage to pads and all swirls were removed quickly on Mercedes hard clear. The Rupes reps at Detail Fest told me that they stand behind all rupes products and I should use them with 100% confidence. If I did have any issues to not hesitate to contact them (Rupes). I feel you got a bad batch of pads and hope they resolve your issue.
 
thanks for the replies. The blue and green pads seem to be the major culprits. I will try to post some photos. Phil
 
I've been having issues with the Rupes blue pads. They start to fall apart. I don't think it was loaded with compound or over use as I have plenty of blue pads on hand to switch over. Still love their cutting ability though
 
Sorry to hear about the issue with the pads - I've mentioned in other threads that we've noticed the phenomena with the use of some chemicals (polish or post use cleaners) that contain solvents. Mind asking what compounds you were working with when you had the pads begin to fail on you?
 
Dylan@RUPES said:
Sorry to hear about the issue with the pads - I've mentioned in other threads that we've noticed the phenomena with the use of some chemicals (polish or post use cleaners) that contain solvents. Mind asking what compounds you were working with when you had the pads begin to fail on you?
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The blue pads I like to use the zephyr blue coarse gel, however I do at times use meguiars m101. That's a rare combination though as I prefer to use m101 with meguiars microfiber pads. I very much prefer to stay within a designed system, and I'm a firm believer of synergy.
 
usmcpab said:
I've been having issues with the Rupes blue pads. They start to fall apart.
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I think it is due to the nature of foam being so open cell. I don't get much life out of them either, but I accept it as being a high-wear item that needs to be purchased more frequently.
 
I had the same issue with my 4 inch green pad.
Brand new, i was only doing my bumper with it. the pad just fell apart.
i never had a problem with a pad like that.
 
The Guz said:
I saw the same thing as I was using the blue pad on the LHR15 Mark II on a test panel over the weekend. The yellows were fine.
Click to expand...

Dylan@RUPES said:
Sorry to hear about the issue with the pads - I've mentioned in other threads that we've noticed the phenomena with the use of some chemicals (polish or post use cleaners) that contain solvents. Mind asking what compounds you were working with when you had the pads begin to fail on you?
Click to expand...

Dylan I was using Zephir on the blue pads. Primed the pad with 3 drops as shown in Mike Phillips article regarding the blue pad. I only used that combination for a few passes as I am learning how to use the pads and polishes on a test panel. I noticed the tiniest material at but nothing to the point where the pads came off the backing material. This only occurred for a pass or two until I moved on to the next pad and polish combo. I am not sure if this was due to the pad being new.
 
I use the Rupes chemicals. Blue with blue, green with green, yellow with yellow and white with white. I clean the lads by hand using warm water and dish soap. Phil
 
What speeds, and pressure are you guys typically using?
 
I just had a new 4" green Rupes pad fail on the 1st use, 3rd section. Rather disappointing. Never used the blue, but the yellow & white are fine. Certainly hope it's from a bad batch, as my mini Rupes is an invaluable tool. Speed 5 with light to moderate pressure & Menzerna 400 heavy cut
 
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