Rupes LHR15 Mark2 & Ibrid Nano - Issues Concerns and Observations

Perfectionista

Perfectionista

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Greetings everyone,

I purchased LHR15 Mark 2 few months back as I found a decent deal for it on eBay with the mark 3 is little pricey for someone who isn't using it daily. So the unit is used by a reputable detailing forum who is selling it after it had been refurbished by Rupes USA just few months before I bought it

"It came with a certificate for refurbishment".


Now I know the unit was properly used and abused but the way I got it was looking almost brand new great job on the refurbishment on the part of Rupes USA it was also greased properly. Here is my issues with it after a marathon detail of 5 days of 14 hour work per day using this machine on my personal car.

The unit was just struggling to rotate properly I mean I was using almost no pressure on side panels and still it kept on bugging down and the marker I put on the backing plate was just not spinning. it would spin but then as soon as the angle changes or I reach any edges raised or lowered it would just not spin.

The unit looks and feels fine and new so I don't think it's the unit but the design. You might suggest there is extra drag from the Rupes pads I was using, I was using a Pad Washer after every panel so the pads were nice and moist.

I cannot think of doing a detail without a pad washer anyway. So that's my experience with LHR15 Mark 2. I ordered a washer mod by Kevin Brown hoping it might help for the future yet to see it in action.


As for the Rupes Ibrid Nano I am in love :dblthumb2:

I definitely don't know how to polish without it anymore it is so versatile and effective I was blown away and couldn't wait to reach a panel to begin using it further, I even had an area with dried paint that pulled down the clear coat above so I sanded with the included disks which worked flawlessly compared if it was done by hand. I know I will be using it more for spot repairs in the future which it is so handy for!

beware though the small pads clog up super fast and without a pad washer on stand-by it would have been a nightmare.

Looking forward to your thoughts on the LHR15 Mark2 and my experience with it.
 
Perfectionista said:
G Here is my issues with it after a marathon detail of 5 days of 14 hour work per day using this machine on my personal car.
Click to expand...

Wow!

That's a lot of time to detail any car. Is this a daily driver? Or a show car?



Perfectionista said:
The unit was just struggling to rotate properly I mean I was using almost no pressure on side panels and still it kept on bugging down and the marker I put on the backing plate was just not spinning. it would spin but then as soon as the angle changes or I reach any edges raised or lowered it would just not spin.

The unit looks and feels fine and new so I don't think it's the unit but the design. You might suggest there is extra drag from the Rupes pads I was using,

I was using a Pad Washer after every panel so the pads were nice and moist.
Click to expand...

Wet pads don't rotate well or function well.

Next time try using only clean DRY pads. Switch pads often.



Perfectionista said:
I cannot think of doing a detail without a pad washer anyway.
Click to expand...

In my opinion and experience, a pad washer is for use at the end of the day, not during the machine work. Wet FOAM pads don't rotate well and when a foam cutting pad is wet it's not longer a cutting pad. When a foam "polishing" pad is wet it's no longer a polishing pad. Pads loose their cut when they are wet and don't rotate well.

Dry pads rotate best on free spinning random orbital polishers.


I use free spinning random orbital polishers for finishing out on softer or finicky/sticky paints. I use gear-driven to get the job done and plow through a car.


:)
 
Mike Phillips said:
Wow!

That's a lot of time to detail any car. Is this a daily driver? Or a show car?
Click to expand...

It is a DD Mike and I kept on thinking it is impossible some of you pro's do a show car detail in 12 or less hours
I even stopped and looked in the forums to make sure my brain is not playing tricks on me by taking this long!
I will post the detail later in the appropriate section of AG forum.

Mike Phillips said:
Wet pads don't rotate well or function well.

Next time try using only clean DRY pads. Switch pads often.
Click to expand...

wow that is new and I thought the pad washer to be used during the detail if like me you are limited by the number of pads you have.
If I had spare pads I would most likely have used 30+ yellow and white pads.
I made sure they are not dripping they are just moist on the polishing face. I kept the water level below the grit guard so you only get
the wash solution when you press/pump down firmly as to not saturate the pad and velcro.

The other issue I forgot to mention is the Rupes Pads, I really need 5" polishing face, the once I have are 6" face and kept looking
for Rupes 5" polishing face but did not find any, this could also be contributing to the rotation issue I was having.
Do Rupes make them or is it only in 1,2,3,4 inch and 6 inch face?
 
Perfectionista said:
It is a DD Mike and I kept on thinking it is impossible some of you pro's do a show car detail in 12 or less hours
Click to expand...


I knock all my stuff out really fast but I use the BEAST, the Supa BEAST or the CBEAST - all are 8mm gear driven



If you're RUPES guy - get the gear-driven Mille. Zero pad stalling = zero wasted time and 2 kinds of energy.


:)
 
I agree with Mike, don’t use wet pads. Using the washer while detailing is not good.
You might be struggling a bit with technique on a long throw machine, especially a MK II which is said to stall easier than the MK III.
 
Mike Phillips said:
Wow!

That's a lot of time to detail any car. Is this a daily driver? Or a show car?





Wet pads don't rotate well or function well.

Next time try using only clean DRY pads. Switch pads often.





In my opinion and experience, a pad washer is for use at the end of the day, not during the machine work. Wet FOAM pads don't rotate well and when a foam cutting pad is wet it's not longer a cutting pad. When a foam "polishing" pad is wet it's no longer a polishing pad. Pads loose their cut when they are wet and don't rotate well.

Dry pads rotate best on free spinning random orbital polishers.


I use free spinning random orbital polishers for finishing out on softer or finicky/sticky paints. I use gear-driven to get the job done and plow through a car.


:)
Click to expand...

Mike Phillips said:
I knock all my stuff out really fast but I use the BEAST, the Supa BEAST or the CBEAST - all are 8mm gear driven



If you're RUPES guy - get the gear-driven Mille. Zero pad stalling = zero wasted time and 2 kinds of energy.


:)
Click to expand...

I was just going to ask about that which you mentioned in the first reply, forced rotation vs free spinning DA,
again I been detailing since 2006 porter cable days and was not aware that the DA's nowadays have these 2 variations,
I was reading earlier this thread after you mentioned the concept Forced Rotation VS Free Spinning...

I don't regret the LHR15 purchase if for anything I will use it for finishing work but thank you it will have a new partner now Rupes Mille :xyxthumbs:
My last experience with forced rotation "I think it was anyway" was the Flex 3401? That machine does cunt very fast for a DA back in the day.

As for my question about the rupes pads do they come in 5" face that I was not able to find somehow?
Thank you for all the help and education, this is excellent!
 
BSoares said:
I agree with Mike, don’t use wet pads. Using the washer while detailing is not good.
You might be struggling a bit with technique on a long throw machine, especially a MK II which is said to stall easier than the MK III.
Click to expand...

Thank you and yes I heard the MK3 has more bite to it.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
I have the MK3 and I've also got KB's washer on the way in the mail, looking forward to checking the difference in the stall rate afterwards. I'll report back once it's in hand.
 
Loach said:
I have the MK3 and I've also got KB's washer on the way in the mail, looking forward to checking the difference in the stall rate afterwards. I'll report back once it's in hand.
Click to expand...

Sounds good as I dont have any detail planned to test it out with the MK2.

Note: I replied after Mike but I don't know what happened to that post.
 
Do you have an old rotary polisher laying around or even might also buy a cheap one or borrow one from a friend. After you have polished a panel or 2 and it's time to clean the pad deep. Put the pad on the high speed rotary polisher and in the pad washer. When you have it out from there mist a spray or 2 with a weak IPA or a panel prep wipe product on the pad and massage it in. In steps holding the pad face down in a bucket or the like. And start on the lowest speed setting and higher the speed setting in stages as it's drying the pad and in the finish you have the highest speed setting on the rotary polisher. You can do this with your Rupes polisher as well but a rotary polisher will reach a little higher speed. This is a way to get the pad as dry as possible and maybe have forced air and blowing out the last of the water. You maybe not getting it bone dry but maybe as dry so you don't loose the cutting ability from it by much. You can also use a pad cleaner spray on solution instead of IPA. Just a way to break down the water tension and the capillary holding ability in the pad so it's easier to be getting out of the pad.

Try to accumulate up pads going forward so you have enough of them for at least a vehical. 1 pad per panel if you are doing compounding and 1 pad per 2-3 panels when you are polishing and finishing polishing in general speaking on the pad amounts. Clean and dry pads after the day and spinn out as much as possible of the water and moisture. Dry them in a room where you have an AC or a higher temperature. So they are able to be dried over night as it takes it time for them to fully dries.

Just some tips. As Mike mentioned a wet or with a lot of moisture in the pad will degrade the effectiveness from them very much. And that's why it took you so much longer time to get the results as well. With any free spinning DA polisher it's very important to keep the pad flat on the paint and on the edges it's much about how you go up to them and at what angel. So the polishing technique is much more needed to be thinking on and also more important when you have a larger throw. It's a learning curve but try out different approaches. Kevin Brown is on an AMMO NY video with Larry and think that it's called have been polishing the right way or something like that. It's about how Kevin thinks when he polishing on curves and edges which I found very interesting to see and tried out my self with better results after a while. So it's just getting the time behind the polisher to get more experience and being thinking on what and what not boggs down the pad rotation from it the least. Even Mike Phillips has a cool technique when he take the polisher to a 1/4 rotate and polishing with a longthrow polisher on the edge of it. The free spinning rotation change the rotation to counter clockwise instead which is cool technique LOL. But there you have the Rupes Nano instead to do these places where you would go up on the edge with the polisher it self. Also a 3" polisher can come in handy to polishing the edges and raised and lowered body panels. So you then polishing the flatter surfaces with the 6" longthrow polisher.

/ Tony
 
Perfectionista said:
The other issue I forgot to mention is the Rupes Pads, I really need 5" polishing face, the once I have are 6" face and kept looking
for Rupes 5" polishing face but did not find any, this could also be contributing to the rotation issue I was having.
Do Rupes make them or is it only in 1,2,3,4 inch and 6 inch face?
Click to expand...

For your particular polisher, Rupes only makes the pads with a 6” face.

I personally suggest you to focus more on the results and less on staring at the mark on your backing plate... The more you focus on the whether the backing plate is spinning, the less you’re focused on your natural technique.

Let the polisher guide you and you’ll spend less time bogged down in those trouble areas. If those trouble areas are truly that bad, then you may need to use your smaller polisher/pad combo instead of trying to force the issue with your LHR 15.

What kind of “car” is this you spent 70hrs. machine polishing
 
Perfectionista said:
Note: I replied after Mike but I don't know what happened to that post.
Click to expand...


For some reason your posts keep going to the Moderation Queue?


When I look for and approve new forum accounts and see any posts in the moderation queue I first read them to make sure they are not spam from a spammer and if so remove the spammer and their posts. All part of keeping this place "clean".

Then I approve real posts from real people.


:)
 

Hey Tony thanks for taking the time and the suggestions!
I have noticed in allot of edges that counter rotation also I guess it the nature of free spin rotation.
Indeed I watched most if not all of Kevin and Larry videos from AMMONYC on YT.

I seen how he approach edges and his techniques in approaching a detail job.
Not to disrespect anyone but YouTube has enough share of "Product Pushers"
and fake true professional detailers who do the job right.

Kevin, Mike, Larry, White Details and few others are what I consider true professionals.

As it is the engineer in me I guess but I am a very detailed person and if I do any task
I like to do it correctly after studying the subject thoroughly.
 
Eldorado2k said:
For your particular polisher, Rupes only makes the pads with a 6” face.

I personally suggest you to focus more on the results and less on staring at the mark on your backing plate... The more you focus on the whether the backing plate is spinning, the less you’re focused on your natural technique.

Let the polisher guide you and you’ll spend less time bogged down in those trouble areas. If those trouble areas are truly that bad, then you may need to use your smaller polisher/pad combo instead of trying to force the issue with your LHR 15.

What kind of “car” is this you spent 70hrs. machine polishing
Click to expand...

I kept pressure off the polisher at all times and flat as possible it is why I am surprised of the findings,
as for using the nano during the time LHR15 was struggling, it was the case indeed, I didn't remove
the polish and reached for the nano ibrid on 3" to correct further small troubled areas.

I am extremely surprised and happy about the performance of Menzerna 2500. It did take out some nasty stuff
that I thought only the 400HC would be able to take out.

As for the car I think it was free rotation aspect of LHR15 that made me take this long, lesson learned though.
2 step and 3 step in few areas.

Shelby GT350
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wkM2dvH.jpg
 
Mike Phillips said:
For some reason your posts keep going to the Moderation Queue?


When I look for and approve new forum accounts and see any posts in the moderation queue I first read them to make sure they are not spam from a spammer and if so remove the spammer and their posts. All part of keeping this place "clean".

Then I approve real posts from real people.


:)
Click to expand...

Hi Mike yeah I just posted another reply to Eldorado2k with pictures and now it in your queue, unqueue me please permanently?
Back in the day it was 2-3 posts and your off the leash :laughing:
 
Mike Phillips said:
Try now.


:)
Click to expand...

Test test :p
Thank you

Didn't mention my experience polishing PPF or clear film.
Full hood, fenders, side skirts, and complete front.

I was using the white pad with menzerna 3500 which really made it shine
but there was no correction or little correction done.
I stepped up to yellow pad and again with Menz 3500 seemed to correct 60-80%
I didn't want to go aggressive more than that but if I wanted 100% correction on clear
film then it would be just like the paint 1st step Rupes yellow pad and Menzerna 2500 followed by
Rupes white pad and 3500. My test shows this is the path for clear film correction if someone has
different experience or ideas please share it!
 
BSoares said:
Interesting how this article goes against what Mike and I said above. Although it’s coming from a very respected detailer, I’ve personally seen how a pad does not work well and also gets damaged when you use it wet. He’s saying he uses 1 pad for the whole car and uses the washer after every section.

Yvan Lacroix - Polishing pads are a very important part of... | Facebook
Click to expand...

Interesting, from my experience I have not seen reduced cut from the pads after cleaning, or wear for that matter.
and I was cleaning after every section.
Isn't he the chemist from Optimum? seen him in few videos on YT.
 
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