So after my Initial Thoughts were less than impressive based on using the Mille vs my Flex 3401 I sat back and looked at what the options were. After sinking $400 into it I had no choice but to try the Rupes Pads in order to see if it would be less grabby and more to my liking. I ordered 6 of the Rupes Mille Ultra Fine White Foam Pad - 5.5" and 6 Rupes Mille Fine Yellow Foam Pad - 5.5" Today I had an opportunity to corrected a badly sun damaged and swirled out BMW M5 that had 15 years of Sunshine life in Florida and decided to incorporate both the Flex 3401 with LC Purple and Blue wool pads and the Rupes Mille with white polishing pads.

What I found is the Rupes did indeed RUN SMOOTHER and not at all grabby with their polishing pads. Contrast this to running it last week with the LC Hybrid Force Pads where it wasn't much different than my Flex 3401. It works just fine with them mind you, but it was not as smooth nor easy at I had hoped.

So now in the end, hindsight 20/20, as a Flex User, I should have just stayed with that system and not had to re-invest in the Rupes Pad System. However, thinking it through I'm glad I stayed with the Flex for a couple reasons.


  • Trying something new never hurts.
  • I have my Mille set up to run 5.5" pads where on the Flex I run 6" Pads
  • The Mille has a smaller orbit and while it's only 3mm smaller it's VERY Noticable and allows me to get just about right up against any trim or moldings whereas the Flex with Hybrid Force Pads is no where near as easy to finesse into these areas
  • The Mille runs in the opposite direct which I found helped give my arms a rest. Compounding in one direction and controlling the force one way, then switching to the opposite hand grip and rotation kept me feeling fresh through the polishing phase.


Other points worth noting about the Mille are that it is quieter than the Flex. I've not measured decibels between the two but it is less harsh sounding at least. My point about it being "taller" still stands as does my opinion on the other ergonomics of the unit pointed out in the previous thread. All in all it's not a perfect unit and again, I still give a big edge to the Flex 3401 overall, I still find the Mille Enjoyable now and a tool that I will keep in my cabinet.