Rupes Polishers Help!

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spanky1

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Hello,


this is what I have researched ,

1) Rupes LHR15 ES-----$390.00

2) Rupes LHR15 Mark ll----$535.00

3) Rupes LHR15 Mark lll----$565.00


now can someone help me to make a wise decision on which one I should go with what would be the Pro's & Cons having a hard time which one to choose I don't want to purchase a machine and have a change of heart couple weeks after using it should 've went with a different machine.


Thanks for all your help,

greatly appreciated :-)
 
Here's my 2 cents...


If you're going to go with RUPES then go with the Mark III version. I have not used the Mark III version of the RUPES BigFoot 15 but I have used the Mark III version of the BigFoot 21 and it was easily better at maintaining pad rotation than the Legacy, (original version), and the Mark II.

When removing swirls and scratches you must have BOTH actions.

Pad rotation
Pad oscillation

If the pad is not rotating it is also not oscillating, at least not enough to make the tool effective at removing paint and thus paint defects in a time-efficient manner.

So go with the Mark III

See my review of the BigFoot 21 Mark III by clicking the link below


Review: RUPES Mark III BigFoot 21 Polisher by Mike Phillips


:)
 
Here's another tip...


Mark the sides of your backing plates and the sides of your buffing pads. This makes it easier for your eyeballs to look and SEE if the pad is rotating or not. If you have good pad rotation you have good defect removal.


Here's my article on this topic,




How to Monitor Pad Rotation? Mark Your Buffing Pads


Anytime you're using a free spinning orbital polisher there is the chance that the buffing pad can slow down and if stall out to the point where there's simple no pad rotation. When this happens you are no longer removing paint defects at an effective rate, if at all. Paint defects like swirls, scratches, water spots and oxidation are removed best, fastest and most effectively when the pad is both rotating and oscillating against the surface.

It used to be you could simply place a mark on the back of the backing plate and by doing this your eyes could easily monitor pad rotation by looking at the backing plate. Now days a lot of tools have dark or black backing plate making it hard to mark and hard to see. Some backing plates are very thin or exact fit and there's simply very little backing plate surface area to mark and thus monitor. And some tools have a protective cover or shroud over the top of the backing plate covering up the majority of the backing plate blocking your view.

Here's a very simple fix - mark your buffing pads

Mark-your-pads_001.JPG


Mark-your-pads_002.JPG


Mark-your-pads_003.JPG




Even though this is an incredibly simple fix, sometimes the little things are the big things and in order to be working at maximum efficiency anytime you're doing correction or polishing work with any free spinning orbital polisher you want to visibly see pad rotation. As simple mark on the side of your buffing pad will make it a lot easier for your eyes to monitor for pad rotation.


If you don't see pad rotation then you need to change something,

  • Perhaps the way you're holding the tool.
  • The speed your buffing at - increase the speed.
  • Or if your pad is becoming saturated with product, switch to a clean, dry pad. Wet pads on free spinning orbital polishers don't rotate well.




This is one reason it's a good idea to have plenty of buffing pads ready to go before starting any full correction detail.


Buffing pads on Autogeek.com


If you don't know which type of pads you need or how many, call Autogeek's customer service help line and they can assist you.


1-800-869-3011



:)
 
My two cents...........go with the Rupes Mille LK900. /thread and thank me later. Yes....I'm biased on forced rotation units. I use both a Flex and Rupes regularly.
 
TTQ B4U said:
My two cents...........go with the Rupes Mille LK900. /thread and thank me later. Yes....I'm biased on forced rotation units. I use both a Flex and Rupes regularly.
Click to expand...

Hello,

what can you tell me about the Rupes Mille LK900 the end result is the same?
 
Honestly, you didn’t ask - but if this is your first polisher you’d be much better served by a Griots 6”. OT has more power and the ability to use smaller pads - which make it significantly more versatile, useful, and by the way cheaper.


I’ve had M1 & M2. There is a noticeable difference in power between those 2 machines. Most criticism of Rupes’ DAs is difficulty keeping the pad spinning on complex surfaces.

Is that price for a machine or a kit? If it’s for a machine they went up a lot. I think I paid $ three something for my M2 and that was pushing it for what it is for me.

Knowing what I know now as a hobbyist - it wouldn’t be worth it to pay $500+ for that machine for me. It’s nice and all, but you could buy a GG6, some good polishes, and several pads in various sizes for less.

I think the main differences between the 2 & 3 are some ergonomics. But if you’re going to spend $530 - May as well spend $560 & get the latest & greatest IMHO.

I’m surprised they are still making all of these 3 still. It’s sort of silly. They are very similar. Everyone else just upgrades their stuff prn
 
swanicyouth said:
I think the main differences between the 2 & 3 are some ergonomics. But if you’re going to spend $530 - May as well spend $560 & get the latest & greatest
Click to expand...
Nope, Rupes remapped the brain of the motors. They moved the higher OPM’s of the II into the midrange of the III.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
I have both a GG 6 inch Random Orbital that I learned on and then bought a Rupes LHR 15 Mark III and the Mark III saves me allot of time. I looked a a forced rotation unit and they are the best, but they also vibrate allot more.

You are basically trading off between Speed and Vibration.
 
would I be better off going with the Flex-3401 instead?
 
spanky1 said:
would I be better off going with the Flex-3401 instead?
Click to expand...

Yes/No. I have both and use them in my weekend business doing 1-2 per week so here's a few observations from me.

Flex is built better and is nicknamed the beast very appropriately. It has slightly better ergonomics too. The Mille is faster, cuts better and is smoother. It's now my go-to for polishing and AIO work. I keep my Flex and we use both but I like the slightly smaller orbit of the Mille for precision and the speed at which it works. It's faster in real life than the smaller numbers on paper show. If it's just for personal use you can't go wrong with either, but I would put the Rupes ahead simply for it's smoothness thus a weekend warrior on personal cars will appreciate it a lot.
 
spanky1 said:
would I be better off going with the Flex-3401 instead?
Click to expand...


I favor gear-driven orbitals for speed over free spinning orbitals for smoothness but that is just me.

I would strongly suggest trying to test both tools out before purchasing.

I bring all the tools you've listed including both the Mille and the BEAST to all my classes, even the boat detailing classes and let everyone use them and make up their own mind.


One thing for sure - from the feedback on the feedback forms, one of the best thing about our classes, unlike any vendor class, is that you get to use all the different tools. Over the years I can no longer count how many people "think" they're going to like one tool and then after using all the tools, discover a different tool that they like better.


I have 6 more roadshow classes coming up - feedback on the classes is always 100% positive and 60% of the people that take the classes are NOT detailers but simply car owners that want to learn the art and craft of car detailing. Plus use all the cool tools on usually cool cars.



:)
 
WRAPT C5Z06 said:
Nope, Rupes remapped the brain of the motors. They moved the higher OPM’s of the II into the midrange of the III.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

Are you saying that the Mark III has more OPM than the Mark II?
 
Mike Phillips said:
I favor gear-driven orbitals for speed over free spinning orbitals for smoothness but that is just me.

I would strongly suggest trying to test both tools out before purchasing.

I bring all the tools you've listed including both the Mille and the BEAST to all my classes, even the boat detailing classes and let everyone use them and make up their own mind.


One thing for sure - from the feedback on the feedback forms, one of the best thing about our classes, unlike any vendor class, is that you get to use all the different tools. Over the years I can no longer count how many people "think" they're going to like one tool and then after using all the tools, discover a different tool that they like better.


I have 6 more roadshow classes coming up - feedback on the classes is always 100% positive and 60% of the people that take the classes are NOT detailers but simply car owners that want to learn the art and craft of car detailing. Plus use all the cool tools on usually cool cars.



:)
Click to expand...

Thanks Mike,


How would you compare the Flex-3401 to the Rupes Mille?
 
spanky1 said:
Hello,


this is what I have researched ,

1) Rupes LHR15 ES-----$390.00

2) Rupes LHR15 Mark ll----$535.00

3) Rupes LHR15 Mark lll----$565.00


now can someone help me to make a wise decision on which one I should go with what would be the Pro's & Cons having a hard time which one to choose I don't want to purchase a machine and have a change of heart couple weeks after using it should 've went with a different machine.


Thanks for all your help,

greatly appreciated :-)
Click to expand...

Yes! MarkIII 125% all day every day. It simply doesn't stall compared to any other long throw machine
 
Mike Phillips said:
Here's my 2 cents...


If you're going to go with RUPES then go with the Mark III version. I have not used the Mark III version of the RUPES BigFoot 15 but I have used the Mark III version of the BigFoot 21 and it was easily better at maintaining pad rotation than the Legacy, (original version), and the Mark II.

When removing swirls and scratches you must have BOTH actions.

Pad rotation
Pad oscillation

If the pad is not rotating it is also not oscillating, at least not enough to make the tool effective at removing paint and thus paint defects in a time-efficient manner.

So go with the Mark III

See my review of the BigFoot 21 Mark III by clicking the link below


Review: RUPES Mark III BigFoot 21 Polisher by Mike Phillips


:)
Click to expand...

This is simply the fact! Any haters and doubters that want to deny, play it down, talk about technique blah, blah, blah. They solved the stalling issue with these units.

Deal with it.
 
Technique is the most important factor in a detail. You can have a $100000 machine, but if your technique sucks it wont do what it was made to do.

Sorry your technique isn't up to par and you need an expensive machine to help mask your shortcomings, but let's not down talk a brand because you don't know how to use it properly.

Sent from my SM-N960U using Autogeekonline mobile app
 
I went through all this as I have a bad habit of overkill. I settled on mark II as I didn’t want to start with a forced rotation for a noob.

I was waiting for the Black Friday sale on tools but Rupes was only brand not on sale. I read a lot about Griots boss g15 and AG has a package for 15$ dollars more that camexwith 5 boss pads (11$ ea) 3 nice MF towels and some pad cleaner. Also single polishers weren’t on sale but package was 20% off and they were including a free 50$ gift card.

Made my investment around $250 and about half the price of the mark II. Absolutely do not regret. Glad I didn’t start with a basic 8mm. Easy to use. Not to much pad stall but when their was easy to figure out. Adjust angle and contour (mikes recommendation for marking pads is a must ). Smooth as butter and have done 3 vehichles aleady.

As noob I would say definitely get the 15mm. I can highly recommend the Griots with the lifetime warranty but if you got your heart set on a Rupes go for it, Won’t be sorry. If you wanna do a Rupes I’d say mark III. Reason so easy for me to switch to the boss is I read a lot about stalling on Mark I and II.

Good luck and enjoy,


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Stalling is a non-issue for those looking to machine polish their own rides that are kept in good condition. Any machine, and I am including even the most modest 8mm will serve you just fine. Technique is key, and it is VERY simple to master.

Pro detailers (of whom I have professed my utmost respect for), have the situation of having to correct much deeper and serious defects on all different types of paints.

And time is money. Any Flex, Boss, or even a Rupes will fit this bill.

As for the weekend warrior, it is all up to you. You can achieve incredible results with a PC, or even a little better a Griot's 6.

JMO
 
DETAILROOKIE said:
Technique is the most important factor in a detail. You can have a $100000 machine, but if your technique sucks it wont do what it was made to do.

Sorry your technique isn't up to par and you need an expensive machine to help mask your shortcomings, but let's not down talk a brand because you don't know how to use it properly.

Sent from my SM-N960U using Autogeekonline mobile app
Click to expand...

Hahaha OK guy. I'm sure your technique is so much better then mine. I'm lucky I can even turn the machine on I guess. It's so hard to move a polisher up and down then left to right a small square at a time.

Griots Long throws are very expensive tools btw. They're only good for a long throw into the garbage can as far as I'm concerned.

The Griots long throws are only good for perfectly flat panels if you pay any attention to pad rotation you would see this easily.They are not even in the same class as the new Rupes Mark3's.

Listen, Rupes fixed the number one issue with all long throw polishers. They fixed the pad stalling so the tool can be used on the whole car effectively. Not just on flat panels. If you want to sit here and argue that pad stalling on curved panels with other long throw machines is not a problem go ahead. Anyone with google can see that you're incorrect.
 
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