The right Rupes for me? Duetto or 21?

The yellow pad is the best Rupes pad, IMO.


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I went for the Duetto and the complete Rupes pad and polish system. I can't wait to get it!
 
I also bought a Duetto. I was comparing the 15 and the Duetto.. I ended up reading a couple of Mike Phillips posts, especially the one with the red Porsche and decided to go for the Duetto.

Anyway.. I'll see how I like it soon I guess
 
Although I am having some second thoughts now about the Duetto vs the 15. I almost think I should have just went with the 15.

Any thoughts? It would be in addition to a PC 7336 which I hope to not have to use at all anymore on my cars really. I would like the Rupes polisher to be able to get to the majority of the car..

How does the 15 fit say under a side mirror?

I'm kind of leaning towards exchanging for a 15 at this point.. I mean I will have the 7336 around as well. Might as well have the extra throw of the 15.. and I don't need the sanding option either.
 
Goleafsgo said:
Although I am having some second thoughts now about the Duetto vs the 15. I almost think I should have just went with the 15.

Any thoughts? It would be in addition to a PC 7336 which I hope to not have to use at all anymore on my cars really. I would like the Rupes polisher to be able to get to the majority of the car..

How does the 15 fit say under a side mirror?

I'm kind of leaning towards exchanging for a 15 at this point.. I mean I will have the 7336 around as well. Might as well have the extra throw of the 15.. and I don't need the sanding option either.
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If you're used to the PC style chassis, the Duetto will feel more comfortable. The Duetto keeps the pad rotating a bit better on curves. 15 will correct a bit better on flat panels. Overall, I like the Duetto better(excluding the sanding option). Make sure you do the washer mod with either.
 
I think you should get the 15. That's what I got. Here are a few reasons:

1. Comparing the 15 & 21: pads for the 21 with the stock BP are just too big. (Rupes pads). They have a 7" face. Of course you could get the 21 and switch the BP to the 5" BP. However, now your talking almost another 100 bucks for the the 21 and new BP. Maybe it's worth it if your detailing for a living, for me it wasn't worth it.

2. The stroke of the 21 is huge. This makes it a bit awkward around edges and trim. Again, this may be worth it if your working on cars that need a ton of correction and your working for $.

3. Comparing the Duetto and the 15: I don't see any benefit to the Duetto, unless maybe your going to sand with it. The whole point of the the "Bigfoot" is the larger stroke. There is a huge advantage to using a larger stroke DA. So, I'd go with the 15 just because the stroke is a bit larger.

4. I like the body of the 15 over a Duetto type machine. Since you don't really need pressure down on the Rupes machines, the longer body makes polishing the middle of a hood or roof easier. You don't have to stoop over as much if at all.
 
The 21 blows away the 15 as far as keeping the pad rotating. Especially with the washer mod on both.
 
Hmm.. I actually had recommendations for the 15 on autopia as well. I am actually leaning towards sending the Duetto back and getting a 15 instead right now.

If you were to choose between a 15 and a Duetto as your only polisher and your just looking for ease of use, quick polishing and it is just a hobby for you.. Maybe using it a few times a year.. What would be your choice?
 
Goleafsgo said:
Hmm.. I actually had recommendations for the 15 on autopia as well. I am actually leaning towards sending the Duetto back and getting a 15 instead right now.

If you were to choose between a 15 and a Duetto as your only polisher and your just looking for ease of use, quick polishing and it is just a hobby for you.. Maybe using it a few times a year.. What would be your choice?
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Duetto. IMO, it's easier to maneuver than the 15.


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Alright, thanks. Would the 15 have any significant advantage in the amount of time it takes to polish a car?

What I'm mainly trying to get away from with my PC is just the fatigue of polishing for so long. I'm primarily looking forward to polishing without having to put a whole lot of pressure on the machine. I'm also looking to cut down on the amount of time it takes to polish a car

Thanks again
 
First off, I have a 21, Duetto and 75E mini.

While there are certain extreme scenarios where rotation will be an issue with the 21, it is a non-issue in most situations. If you are finding rotation to be a significant issue, then it means that you need more practice with the machine. It took me at least 10 cars to get semi-proficient with the 21.

It is very hard to say whether the 15 will correct faster. There are too many variables that can affect the outcome. You would have to have both polishers side by side on the same panel with the same pads/polishes/technique. And even then, the differences will probably be most noticeable on heavy corrections versus one-steps.

Lastly, the Duetto is my favorite machine of the 3. It has the best pad rotation of the 3 (if you care), is the smoothest, and I think the pad size is ideal for that chassis size. Sure, it lacks the outright power of the 21, but I think the Duetto is more than adequate.


With that said, I must end by saying that the Duetto definitely does not deliver twice the performance of a 6" GG, but I still love mine to death.
 
I am also stuck trying to decide between the duetto and 15. Right now I'm just using a PC for paint corrections but I need to order a new polisher soon to speed up the process. To many times with the pc I find myself doing a full 12 section passes to achieve full correction. Would you guys say the 15 probably corrects just a little faster than the duetto..
 
Great thread I really enjoyed reading through everybody's input . I don't really need another polisher but the duetto is very tempting especially for the sanding capability .
 
Well I got around to trying my Duetto. I got white, yellow and green pads with their respective polishes. I passed on the blue pad and polish because I thought it would be overkill for what I do. My car has light swirls with some deeper scratches after a year since its last polishing and a winters worth of snow and ice and snow brushes

I started with the white. It did remove the light swirls but left everything else. I switched to yellow and then green to see if there would be any difference. I was still seeing the deeper scratches.

Being kind of disappointed I brought out my Flex 3401 with a hydro tech tangerine and Menzerna PF2500. One pass removed everything including the deeper scratches that the Duetto was leaving behind.

I decided to give the Duetto one more shot using a meguiars microfiber cutting pad and D300. This was where it was really good. Smooth and removed everything in one quick pass. Very nice.

I'm not sure if I had bad technique with the foam pads or what but I was not seeing what I wanted to with them. Using microfiber was great and I've been using microfiber and a PC 7336 lately over my Flex anyway

I was disappointed first but with microfiber I like it a lot. I'll just keep going with my process of doing the first step with microfiber and I'll follow up with the white pad and polish
 
Goleafsgo said:
Well I got around to trying my Duetto. I got white, yellow and green pads with their respective polishes. I passed on the blue pad and polish because I thought it would be overkill for what I do. My car has light swirls with some deeper scratches after a year since its last polishing and a winters worth of snow and ice and snow brushes

I started with the white. It did remove the light swirls but left everything else. I switched to yellow and then green to see if there would be any difference. I was still seeing the deeper scratches.

Being kind of disappointed I brought out my Flex 3401 with a hydro tech tangerine and Menzerna PF2500. One pass removed everything including the deeper scratches that the Duetto was leaving behind.

I decided to give the Duetto one more shot using a meguiars microfiber cutting pad and D300. This was where it was really good. Smooth and removed everything in one quick pass. Very nice.

I'm not sure if I had bad technique with the foam pads or what but I was not seeing what I wanted to with them. Using microfiber was great and I've been using microfiber and a PC 7336 lately over my Flex anyway

I was disappointed first but with microfiber I like it a lot. I'll just keep going with my process of doing the first step with microfiber and I'll follow up with the white pad and polish
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I read a lot about people using the Rupes Zephyr (Blue lid compound) with either yellow or green pads to get a better cut. I have also read many people using MF pads with the rupes and having very good results too. I will have to try the different combinations.
 
In general, out of all the Rupes polishers and the Flex, which would you say is the smoothest and quietest dual action? TIA.
 
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