1987 Monte Carlo Extreme Makeover with Rupes and Blackfire BlackICE

Sailfish said:
Guys the car looks great as usual, I wish I could have been there to help out, but this part time job is taking up all my time. Hope to see you guys again real soon.
Click to expand...

There's plenty of more projects coming up Paul, like this one...


Police_Command_Van.jpg




smack said:
Incredible work gentlemen.
Click to expand...

Thanks Mike...


WAXOFF said:
It's nice to see all the grey hair on these guys. just goes to show that us old guys are still keeping the clean car tradition. We learned to do things ourselves and have good work ethic. That Monte Carlo came out great.
Click to expand...

These project do seem to attract people with strong work ethics but there isn't any gray hair on this guy yet... :D


miamijd7 said:
What a fun time we had! Remember, May is the next boot camp class for those who haven't attended one, Mike is a wealth of information and well worth it !!! Thanks Mike, and as always the fun crew....
Click to expand...

Thanks for all you help John, I think you knocked out most of the passenger side by yourself and appreciate your hard work...


jwgreen6 said:
Mike, Looks really sweet.

Have you used bonnets on orbital polishers to remove wax, or do you prefer hand removal? Thanks. Jim Green
Click to expand...

I tend to remove LSP's by hand... I do show how to use bonnets and then leave it up to each person to decide which approach works best for them...

By the way, the owner Bob said it looked GREAT!

:dblthumb2:
 
Guys, those pictures speak to the quality of work you put out, great job! One question though, since I'm fairly new to this and NEED to start working with power tools, how often are you reapplying the product on the orbitals?
 
Does that car have single stage paint or clear coat?
 
First, since this is your first post to our forum..

Welcome to AutogeekOnline! :welcome:

mrlash said:
One question though, since I'm fairly new to this and NEED to start working with power tools, how often are you reapplying the product on the orbitals?
Click to expand...

Normally when using orbital polishers you work a sectioin at a time with fresh product. After working and completing a section of paint to your satisfaction you wipe off the residue on that sectoin of paint and move onto a new section.

When you move onto a new section of paint you overlapp a little into the prevous secion and add fresh product to your pad. It's also a good idea to clean off the pad after each section you work as you'll have two things builing up on the face of the pad.

I cover this in my article here,

Why it's important to clean your pads often...


And actually explain the entire paint polishing process in my how-to book here,


The Complete Guide to a Show Car Shine Paperback Book

Second_Edition_How_To_Book.jpg


:)
 
Redfireshaker06 said:
Mike, do you recommend the big brother or little brother?
Click to expand...


I like the smaller pad that comes with the RUPES 15 because most people are working on newer cars and most newer cars have smaller or thinner body panel designs. By this I mean most newer cars will have a fender and the fender will be made up of a design that includes raised body lines and edges and a smaller face pad will fit onto the panel and in-between the raised body lines and edges better than a larger pad.

For classics with large, flatter panels, you can use anything and a large size pad will get the job done faster.


I show using both in this time-lapse video on a classic car and there's a small time difference in how long it took me to do one side versus the other side.

Rupes Polisher Time Lapse Video - 1955 Ford Crown Victoria


Here's the time-lapse video Yancy took for me as I buffed this classic out from start to finish...


[video=youtube_share;v7FjGcMCTEg&hd=1"]RUPES 21ES Vs 15 ES time comparison Time lapse -...[/video]​


On the passenger side I used the Rupes 21 and on the driver's side I used the Rupes 15. There was about a 20 minute time savings using the larger pad, larger stroke machine over the smaller pad, smaller stroke machine but my opinion is that for most body panel designs on modern cars the 6" pad will be a better match.

This tool definitely has a lot more correction ability plus power over a traditional DA Polisher like the Porter Cable 7424XP.

I did find that when buffing a curved panel, either concave or convex, the uneven pressure applied to the face of the pad will slow down and even stop pad rotation. The key is to focus on the panel and keep the pad as flat as possible to the surface.




On Autogeek.net

Rupes LHR21ES Random Orbit Polisher

Rupes Zephir Gloss Coarse Gel Compound 500 ml.

Rupes Quarz Gloss Medium Gel Compound 500 ml.

Rupes Keramik Gloss Fine Gel Polish 500 ml.

Rupes Diamond Ultra Fine Gel Polish 500 ml.

RUPES Color Matched 7" Foam Buffing Pads

All RUPES Polishers, Pads and Polishes




1955_Ford_Crown_Victoria_028.jpg



1955_Ford_Crown_Victoria_052.jpg




:xyxthumbs:
 
Thanks for the info. The Rupes is not driven the same as Flex?

Sent from my MB855 using Tapatalk 2
 
Redfireshaker06 said:
Thanks for the info. The Rupes is not driven the same as Flex?

Sent from my MB855 using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...


No.

The Rupes is more like the Porter Cable 7424XP in that it uses a free rotating spindle assembly of some type. That is, you can hold the body of the tool in one hand and freely spin the pad with your other hand.


The Flex 3401 is a gear-driven, direct drive tool. If you hold the body of the tool in one hand and try to spin the pad with the other hand you have to physically GRAB the pad and use your muscles to rotate the pad.

That's what I show in all my Boot Camp Classes is this simple demonstration to show how they are completely different.

You can stop the pad from rotating on a PC and a Rupes polisher, you cannot stop the pad from rotating on a Flex 3401 or a rotary buffer.

Good question Brandon and a lot of confusion over this topic. I see people comparing the Rupes to the Flex 3401 all the time and this is comparing apples to oranges.

A more accurate comparison is comparing a Rupes to a Porter Cable 7424XP, Meguiar's G110v2 or a Griot's Garage DA Polisher.


:)
 
I had a blast! everyone was super friendly and Mike's guidelines and tips were awesome :xyxthumbs:

Thank you for allowing me to participate!! :dblthumb2:
 
Juan TW said:
I had a blast! everyone was super friendly and Mike's guidelines and tips were awesome :xyxthumbs:

Thank you for allowing me to participate!! :dblthumb2:
Click to expand...


Hi Juan,

It was great having you... I could tell in about 2 seconds that you know how to run a buffer when you picked up the Rupes and started in. Plus, after you buffed a panel it was time to stick a fork in it because it was done.



Juan on the front fender...

1987_Monte_Carlo_072.jpg



Hope to have you join us for some future projects...


:dblthumb2:
 
When you take the tape off those high spots, do you compound and polish them by hand?
 
runrun411 said:
When you take the tape off those high spots, do you compound and polish them by hand?
Click to expand...


No we run the polisher over them with the WAX and let the machine do the work of removing the tape line.


We did avoid any places with thin paint and there were a few places I did clean up by hand. I took the foam pad off the polisher and simply used it by hand.

On a car like this, if you were to compound the raised body lines you would expose the white primer as the paint on these raised body lines was already thin by whoever has buffed this thing out before us in the past.


Good question...


:)
 
What a blast roaming through this thread. Such a cool car - IMO, one of the few 80's domestics that stands the test of time - and terrific info on the Rupes. It's threads like this that makes me think the trusty PC will be retired to utility and late-inning substitution work.
 
So it was noted this Monte SS was a single stage paint- was it repaint in single stage or factory paint? The reason I ask is, I have a 87 Buick Grand National that has the same GM single stage factory paint that needs some serious attention. Just trying to figure the best plan of attack for this type paint.

BTW everyone did a great job and made this SS pop.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top