Rupes iBrid Nano comprehensive review (short neck and long neck)

[haris300]

Hi everyone! I recently got my hands on a Rupes iBrid Nano Short Neck Kit and have been taking photos on various detail jobs of the tool in action for this review. I've already been using my long neck kit since its release so I'll do my best to incorporate both tools in the review and share my thoughts on how they compare. I'll also share the thoughts and experience of my good friend Steve at Ultimate Detailing who has also been using the short neck for some time now.

For those who don't know, the Rupes iBrid Nano is a battery operated mini polisher that has multiple functioning modes including 3mm random orbital, 12mm random orbital, and rotary. It can also be plugged directly into a wall outlet using the included power adapter that fits in the battery slot.

The kit itself comes in a very nice quality bag with various compartments that keep the tool and all of its accessories neatly organized. Attached to the bag is a handle and shoulder strap for easy carrying.



Here is what is included in the kit:

iBrid Nano Short neck
Charger
BIGFOOT Premium Tool Case
Wrench
1-1/4 inch backing plate
2 inch backing plate
Sanding backing pad
2000 and 3000 grit sanding discs
Rotary connector
3 mm orbit connector
12 mm orbit connector
AC-DC adapter
2 Rechargeable power pack
6 Buffing foam pads COARSE 1-1/4"
6 Buffing foam pads FINE 1-1/4"
4 Buffing foam pads COARSE 2"
4 Buffing foam pads FINE 2"
ZEPHIR polishing compound 150 ml COARSE
KERAMIK polishing compound 150 ml FINE
Microfiber towel
Cylinder brushes



Below are some close ups of the tool itself. I personally like to leave off the plastic shroud around the head as it makes swapping out adapters and plates a little bit easier. On the other side of the head is the spindle lock button. The tool itself is fairly light and ergonomically pleasing.



The on/off switch operates like a pneumatic polisher/sander but does not have variable trigger speed. This is one feature I did wish the machine incorporated but it's not too much of an issue honestly.



The 5 speed modes and off resting position are controlled by this dial.



Here is where the battery or 120v power adapter attaches.



Side by side comparison of the short neck vs the long neck.



The adapters that control the function of the polisher are very easy to swap out with the included tool(s). Here you can see the 3mm orbit, 12mm orbit, and rotary adapters from left to right. The random orbital adapters are offset by their respective orbit length. A small bearing inside the adapters allows for the orbital rotation and a counterweight keeps the it balanced during rotation.



My short neck kit came with 2 separate wrenches (one for the adapters and one for the backing plates). My long neck kit on the other hand came with one tool that had both wrench ends attached to it. Not sure why these were different but I personally prefer the combo tool.



Attaching the adapters using the included wrench is very straightforward. You simply thread the adapter into the machine by hand, then finish tightening with the tool while at the same time holding the spindle lock on the back of the polisher head.





The backing plates as well as the rotary adapter go on using the smaller wrench. The rubber pad on the left is what holds the sanding discs that come with the kit. I'll cover that a little later in the thread.







The included 2" and 1-1/4" pads come in a coarse blue foam for heavy defect removal and a softer yellow foam for fine polishing.







Here are the Rupes coarse and fine polishes as well as some microfiber towels.



The rubber backing pad and the adhesive backing sanding discs are a unique addition to the kit. The discs are basically stickers that attach onto the rubber pad. Very handy for isolated defect removal and machine sanding in tricky areas.









Also included are 2 cleaning brushes that can be used with both orbital and rotary functions. One is nylon (white) and one is a softer bristle (brown). Seems like a boars hair brush.



The charger holds one battery at a time. Charge time is very quick at around 15 minutes. The light on the charger stays red while it is charging and turns green when it is finished.



The 120v power adapter allows for you to use the machine if you don't have any charged batteries. It makes the machine quite a bit bulkier but I hardly found myself using it like this since the batteries charge so fast and last for around 30 minutes each. You can easily cycle between the 2.



Operating the machine itself is a breeze. You simply select the speed you want and pull the trigger to activate the switch. There is a slow start similar to the larger Bigfoot polishers. This little tool definitely packs a lot of punch for something that's battery operated. It will stop rotating if you push down too hard, but if you're using the 12mm orbit or rotary function adapters you probably don't need much pressure anyways.

The 12mm orbital function with a yellow fine pad and the fine polish works very well. You can even use a compound with the yellow pad and get some decent correction without leaving behind any haze.



I hardly found any places the long neck could reach where the short neck wouldn't. The longer reach may be helpful in areas like vents on exotics and other similar tight spaces, but for the most part I found the short neck to be as versatile as the long neck. Still, if you want that extended reach you may as well spend the 30 extra dollars for the long neck kit.





The smaller pads are great for precision polishing. I personally found myself using the rotary function the most. I like my rotaries, especially my Flex PE8 and PE14. The iBrid is like a smaller, more convenient PE8 but without the crazy power of the Flex. I hardly use my PE8 past speed 1 so loads of power really isn't a huge factor for me. I hardly even use the iBrid on rotary at higher speeds like 4 or 5. It's great carrying around the iBrid by your side and knowing it can knock out some serious defects without having to plug it into a wall. The blue coarse pad is aggressive enough to knock out some pretty deep scratches too.















While the Rupes pads do work very well, I had to play around with other brands too.

The Flex foam pads for the PE8 are a real winner . (You didn't hear that from me). I also have some foam pads from Kevin Brown that work excellently.











Really love the versatility and precision of this tool.

[haris300]

These 2" microfiber cutting pads that I cut from a larger discs work incredibly well with the 12mm orbit function.







Great for spot correction.



The rotary function and foam still works just as well. You can sand headlights with the included sanding discs, but you'd probably be better off doing it by hand as this may take a very long time and use up a lot of discs.



The sanding discs with the orbital functions are very useful for isolated defect removal. The discs don't last long so I bought a couple of extra packs.









I cut a Meguiar's foam interface pad down to 2" and made some 2" sanding discs as well. This also works very well on the iBrid and allows for usage of a broader range of sanding discs if you need something other than the included 2000 and 3000 adhesive discs.



The brush attachments are good for cleaning intricate areas like motorcycle parts. They can also be used on things like interiors for stain removal.







Did I mention how much I love the precision of this thing?



This machine has and endless amount of uses but it's the portability and convenience that I appreciate the most.









Overall this is an extremely useful tool to have. The price point might be a bit high for the average weekend detailer, but if you do this for a living it's a great tool to add to your arsenal. I bring it along with me to every job. It doesn't have nearly as much power as a standard mini polisher like a Flex PE8 or a Rupes LHR 75E, but it's not meant to replace those heavier duty tools. It's like the scalpel of machine polishers and I love using it for the finer details of the job.

[FrankS]

Excellent review!

I just got the long neck yesterday, looking forward to putting it to use.

There have been times recently where I wished I had the iBrid to get into those tight spaces, now I can.

It's so convenient having it battery powered also, especially when you already have polishers, fans, lights, etc, already plugged in. You don't have to look for another outlet, just pick it up and go.

[Marc08EX]

Outstanding review Haris! Very nice photos and documentation!

I love all the in action shots of the different configurations.

So which one do you like better? Short or long neck?

[Zubair]

Nicely done.

[haris300]

Thanks guys!

Outstanding review Haris! Very nice photos and documentation!

I love all the in action shots of the different configurations.

So which one do you like better? Short or long neck?

Thanks Marc! I honestly don't feel like I prefer one over the other. I have yet to run into a situation where one machine performed better.

[Legacykid]

very cool work!

[AZ Mike]

Great review. I like all of the pictures.

[The Guz]

Great review. Hopefully this gives those an idea of the two for those not sure which one to get.

The double wrench looks nice. My long neck actually came with the two separate wrenches. I have no complaints that mine came with them instead of the combined one.

[Justin at Final Inspection]

Great review Harris! Your not helping my wallet! I have a PE8 that I like but boy the more I see this ibrid the more I want it!

Especially since I have 2 motorcycles I am correcting now. This would definitely come in handy.