Rupes Pad - prime or not

[Todd@RUPES]

Todd . What is the rupes recommended method of cleaning spent product and residue from pads in between panels ?

One of the benefits of the RUPES' system is that compounds will not (or should not) absorb more than a few mm into the pads.

If you run a BigFoot in free air without a pad it will vibrate like crazy. However, attach one of our pads and run it and the vibration is significantly (near zero) reduced. Once we had the pad formula's designed, we knew that we had to prevent the compound from penetrating into the open-celled structure. A pad is a sponge. If it becomes saturated it will become heavier and the balance of the system would be lost.

Because the compounds are designed to ride the surface of the color-matched pads, they are pretty easy to clean on the fly. I prefer using compressed air and blowing the pads out. You can effectively remove most of the spent compound and paint residue in just a few seconds without aggressively scrubbing the foam structure.

If you don't have access compressed air I would use a soft-bristle nylon brush to remove residue although this can accelerate wear on the pad; particularly on the blue coarse foam.

[postaltwo]

One of the benefits of the RUPES' system is that compounds will not (or should not) absorb more than a few mm into the pads.

If you run a BigFoot in free air without a pad it will vibrate like crazy. However, attach one of our pads and run it and the vibration is significantly (near zero) reduced. Once we had the pad formula's designed, we knew that we had to prevent the compound from penetrating into the open-celled structure. A pad is a sponge. If it becomes saturated it will become heavier and the balance of the system would be lost.

Because the compounds are designed to ride the surface of the color-matched pads, they are pretty easy to clean on the fly. I prefer using compressed air and blowing the pads out. You can effectively remove most of the spent compound and paint residue in just a few seconds without aggressively scrubbing the foam structure.

If you don't have access compressed air I would use a soft-bristle nylon brush to remove residue although this can accelerate wear on the pad; particularly on the blue coarse foam.

Much appreciated Todd thanks

[Tony C]

To answer the original question: If you are using our compounds with our pads, then yes we recommend the following priming procedure (it is most important with the blue foam and UHS foam to prevent sling and increase the polishing comfort).

1) On a 7-inch/180mm foam apply 5 or 6 pea-sized drops around the outer 1/3 circumference of the pad. Use 4 to 5 pea-sized drops for 6-inch/150mm foam pads and 4 drops for the 4-inch/100mm pads. For the Nano-sized pads, use a drop. For microfiber, lightly coat the surface of the fiber with the product.

2) Using firm (not hard or excessive pressure), polish a small section for approximately 30 seconds on speed three. This will spread the polish over the face of the foam and allow for reaction between the compound and the unique resin in our pads' formulas. The result should be that the first few mm of foam will soften to prevent sling and scratching.

3) After 30 seconds (or so - on cold panels I may bump the speed to 4 and continue for another 10 seconds) wipe the area clean.

4) Reload pads using 2 to 3 drops for larger pads and 1 to 2 drops for smaller pads. Polish on speed 3 to 4 (Mark II) or 4-6 (ES tool).

Thank you Todd. I've been working with my 15ES and I still don't feel confident when I need to switch to a new pad. For a light/med swirl condition, how large an area can be worked before having to switch to a new pad? Or what is the condition of the pad before it's time to switch? I have 6-8 pads of green and yellow (each) in order to have enough, but I'd appreciate feedback specific to the Rupes pads. Everything Rupes seems to follow slightly different rules. Inexperience on my part, for sure. Thanks very much.

[wing commander]

So no answer yet? I also just purchased the Rupes MKII system and all of the 5 polishes, 5 pad colors, and Mikes Rupes book. I have been changing the pads when they look as if they are getting to deep with polish since I prefer to change sooner than later.

[dlc95]

So no answer yet? I also just purchased the Rupes MKII system and all of the 5 polishes, 5 pad colors, and Mikes Rupes book. I have been changing the pads when they look as if they are getting to deep with polish since I prefer to change sooner than later.

Page 2, post #14.

[Dylan@RUPES]

So no answer yet? I also just purchased the Rupes MKII system and all of the 5 polishes, 5 pad colors, and Mikes Rupes book. I have been changing the pads when they look as if they are getting to deep with polish since I prefer to change sooner than later.

answered earlier in the thread:

To answer the original question: If you are using our compounds with our pads, then yes we recommend the following priming procedure (it is most important with the blue foam and UHS foam to prevent sling and increase the polishing comfort).

1) On a 7-inch/180mm foam apply 5 or 6 pea-sized drops around the outer 1/3 circumference of the pad. Use 4 to 5 pea-sized drops for 6-inch/150mm foam pads and 4 drops for the 4-inch/100mm pads. For the Nano-sized pads, use a drop. For microfiber, lightly coat the surface of the fiber with the product.

2) Using firm (not hard or excessive pressure), polish a small section for approximately 30 seconds on speed three. This will spread the polish over the face of the foam and allow for reaction between the compound and the unique resin in our pads' formulas. The result should be that the first few mm of foam will soften to prevent sling and scratching.

3) After 30 seconds (or so - on cold panels I may bump the speed to 4 and continue for another 10 seconds) wipe the area clean.

4) Reload pads using 2 to 3 drops for larger pads and 1 to 2 drops for smaller pads. Polish on speed 3 to 4 (Mark II) or 4-6 (ES tool).

[Rod73]

Rupes says to avoid solvent based polishes with their pads, FYI

Do you have some examples of solvent based polishes and water based polishes?