Rupes Pad - prime or not

[mc2hill]

If I remember the conversation with Todd or Dylan correctly the answer is "yes". The reason - they build their pads from one piece of foam, and the priming allows the 'face' (lower few mm's of the pad) to soften up, and leave the 'top' of the pad stiff (to properly transfer the movement to the pad). Other companies build their long-throw pads from 2 different materials to accomplish the same effect.

[postaltwo]

I wouldn't be suprised if they are not compatible with each other . I think rupes gets irratated with ppl modifing their tools . I think in their "perfect world " senerio everyone would just use the system as intended . With backing plate pad and Polish all oem rupes

[Todd@RUPES]

I wouldn't be suprised if they are not compatible with each other . I think rupes gets irratated with ppl modifing their tools . I think in their "perfect world " senerio everyone would just use the system as intended . With backing plate pad and Polish all oem rupes

RUPES' corporate philosophy has been, since the 1940s, to deliver engineered systems to the customer. With the BigFoot Project, this philosophy was necessary because during the development process RUPES found out why no other tool manufacturer had attempted to build a very large throw orbital polisher.

Random Orbital Polishers have, pre-BigFoot, suffered from two primary problems:
1) Lack of polishing speed - it took a long time to accomplish what a rotary could do quickly.
2) High levels of vibration.

By increasing the stroke length (which affects the distance traveled by RPM), it was possible to increase the speed at which to tools removed material. However, with this increased power, the vibration that was annoying in a short-stroke tool became stressful to every other component: the tool, the pads, the velcro, etc...

In order to solve the vibration, RUPES developed a very unique counter balance weight. This counterweight is so effective that pretty much every Chinese-built copy cat ripped it off. The original Chinese built tools used the wrong material because they frankly didn't understand what they were doing. The better Chinese built tools use a counterweight that is such a copy that you could literally unbolt ours and swap in theirs.

As a tool manufacturer (instead of a reseller of a private label) we have to be very precise in our recommendations. Since we now had a counterweight that could balance the extreme throw of the tool, we had to marry it to a pad weight that would complete the vibration canceling. This was the beginning of the foam pad project which was quite an undertaking for a tool manufacturer.

Once the pads weights and design were finalized, RUPES had to find foam formulas that were both stiff enough to transfer the energy of a large-orbit tool to the paint without overheating and excessive wear. Once this was accomplished we had to develop compounds that would soften the first few mm of the foam to prevent scouring while still transferring the energy. They also couldn't absorb into the foam otherwise the weight balance would be thrown off.

When BigFoot tools were first introduced into the US market, there was a lot of problems with other manufacturers' pads delaminating or falling apart. The aftermarket hadn't developed the technology for the tools and it would be a few years until we saw viable alternatives.

Do we get annoyed when people don't use our system? Of course not! We are thrilled that somebody loves the tools enough to experiment and adapt to it. However, as the manufacturer, innovator, and developer of such technologies we do understand some of the shortcomings that other products may create. Large-throw random orbital polishers are precision tools.

Case in point: Many people swap to a smaller backing plate on the 21mm throw tools, which we know will accelerate tool wear and increase vibration on any large-throw orbital tool. Despite the fact that many people have done this, you don't see posts over social media about RUPES tools snapping the spindle or bearing failures. Despite our tools' proven track record, we still feel it our responsibility to caution against this.

The aftermarket has gotten up to speed, at least pad wise, to the BigFoot technology. A lot of the newer pads copy our profile and some are even copying our foam formulas directly. There have been and will continue to be a lot of great and sophisticated compound manufacturers. However, BigFoot was always developed as a system - not just a series of tools - so it is only natural that if you talk to us (RUPES) about it we will recommend that pads, compounds, and backing plates we developed through the engineering process.

And just like the Mark II version of the 15 and 21, our development never stops.

[Todd@RUPES]

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).

[postaltwo]

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

[idriveblackcars]

As crazy as it sounds I have an easier time cleaning Rupes micro fiber pads to 100% clean vs foam which always seem to have a slight residue issue even after the cleaning and drying process

[GSKR]

Always prime anything you use.

[7.3powerstroke]

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).

This should be a sticky somewhere for all to conveniently see.

[swanicyouth]

Todd is my favorite detailer.

Well said & explained.

[SonOfOC]

Rupes actually designs and builds their tools. They are a tool manufacture which is more than I can say about any other brands of big throw polishers. In Rupes and Todd I trust.