LHR 15E Rupes vs. 7424XP

[Blown F-150]

Today I was finally able to try out my Rupes Polisher. First impressions are that it's pretty darn good and I'm very happy with the purchase.

Today's goal was to try and do as direct comparison as possible against my current tried and true PC. I went for the Rupes to reduce time spent correcting paint and the reviews on it's quieter/smoother operation were also a selling point.

I will be posting up the video I made (hopefully tomorrow), doing a side by side comparison with Clay and 5000 grit sandpaper. The purpose is to really get after all those posts on the other site from a certain individual. It's not his posts that really bother me, it's the fact that some out there might actually buy into his crap.

As a result I had some of my tailgate wet-sanded after the video was made. I figured what the heck, this is the perfect opportunity to wet-sand the whole tail gate and then do a comparative polish with my two DA's.

In an attempt to keep as many variables the same as possible, I used the same pads and products with both DA's. I used 5 1/4" Optimum Micro Cut, "Leveling" pads with M105. They were both brand new pads to keep things as pure as possible. I tried to determine two things, one was quality of end result and the other was time to achieve the end result.

The DA's


5" Backing Plates


Here is what I was starting out with, before the wet-sanding


After wet-sanding




Products used for the comparison


50/50 Rupes results after one hit (approx. 3 passes on speed 4)


One more hit at speed 5 and very little pressure


50/50 Rupes on the left and PC on the right (more time spent with the PC)


33/33/33 Rupes/Sanded/PC


First thing I noticed is that the Rupes is way easier to hold. Even though it's longer, it's the same weight, has a better handle and a better hand hold at the business end. It's also considerably smoother and quieter than the PC, which I am sure would make a fatigue difference and the end of a full detail. I was very impressed with the smoother operation.

The combo of MF Pad and M105 is a pretty aggressive combo, but finished down incredibly well, I would call it LSP ready for the average Joe. The Rupes did actually finished down slightly better than the PC and in less time/passes. I was really impressed how well it finished down, really. In the small comparison, I wold say there was an easy 30-40% less time spent with the Rupes to achieve a slightly better result in this case. One other thing of note is that there was a noticeable difference in the pad heat after a pass. the pad on the Rupes was considerable cooler. I let both machines cool right down and then timed each at 45 seconds. I wish I had my temp gun to provide actual temps.

The trigger delay took a bit to get used to, not my favorite feature. I did run the Rupes with the KB "washer mod", I may try it without but didn't have any issues with stalling the pad today. I could force the pad to stall, but I had to really dig an edge in. I can't see why anyone would do this under normal circumstances.

Once the comparison was complete, I hit up the rest of the tailgate with the Rupes and same pad/product combo. I was really surprised that there was no dusting, maybe due to the low pad temps. 

I then swapped to the 6" backing plate and a green 6" superbuff pad. Using this with M205, I hit the whole tailgate. There was no noticeable difference in smoothness or noise running the 6" backing plate and pad. It did finish down even better, a little more "Depth" in the paint.

6" backing plate and 6" pad


End result


When it was all done, I did a IPA wipe down and hit the tailgate with OC 2.0.

I am really happy with this Rupes, I can't wait to get it back out tomorrow. I hope to get some more done on the Edge or maybe even finish it.

 

[Too Stroked]

Wow, what a great write up! That's exactly the kind of thing we like to see here! And it looks like the Rupes machine is a pretty clear winner too. (Of course - since I just bought a 7424 XP.) I guess the only question I might still have is how the Rupes stacks up against a Flex - which I also have.

Oh wait, I do have another question. Did you consider using the side handle on either machine? I have one on my old 7424, on my new 7424 XP and on my DeWalt rotary really like them. My Flex didn't come with one, but I don't seem to miss it for some reason.

[sscully]

Great write up on the unit.

I will have to go research the washer modification.
- Kind of disconcerting that a new unit ( costing that much ) out of the box needs a modification to it already 

I would not expect the PC to hold it own against a Rupes
- they are rattle boxes, at least my antique was, but that one has may miles scribing cabinets before it got liberated to the garage, and then back ( still scribes cabinets now ).

[Too Stroked]

Great write up on the unit.

I will have to go research the washer modification.
- Kind of disconcerting that a new unit ( costing that much ) out of the box needs a modification to it already 

I would not expect the PC to hold it own against a Rupes
- they are rattle boxes, at least my antique was, but that one has may miles scribing cabinets before it got liberated to the garage, and then back ( still scribes cabinets now ).

So can we expect a full post on how to scribe cabinets with a 7424? 

[Blown F-150]

Wow, what a great write up! That's exactly the kind of thing we like to see here! And it looks like the Rupes machine is a pretty clear winner too. (Of course - since I just bought a 7424 XP.) I guess the only question I might still have is how the Rupes stacks up against a Flex - which I also have.

Oh wait, I do have another question. Did you consider using the side handle on either machine? I have one on my old 7424, on my new 7424 XP and on my DeWalt rotary really like them. My Flex didn't come with one, but I don't seem to miss it for some reason.

I would be really curios to put the flex and Rupes side by side. The forced rotation of the flex has to has it's advantages on certain panel types, but the extra throw of the Rupes may have advantages in other cases. Anyone want to ship me their Flex to test...

The handle that came with the PC lasted about two minutes before I took it off.  I didn't find any additional benefit personally and it just bumped into things like mirrors, etc. With the very nice grip of the Rupes, I don't see any benefit. There is no side handle for the Rupes that I am aware of.

[Blown F-150]

Great write up on the unit.

I will have to go research the washer modification.
- Kind of disconcerting that a new unit ( costing that much ) out of the box needs a modification to it already 

I would not expect the PC to hold it own against a Rupes
- they are rattle boxes, at least my antique was, but that one has may miles scribing cabinets before it got liberated to the garage, and then back ( still scribes cabinets now ).

I agree that it is odd for the need to modify a new machine, but as with everything else I find that the manufacturer may have a different take on things than the end user. Rupes also only want you to use their pads and products, which is ridiculous. The washer mod simply acts as a spacer and prevent the backside of the pad from bumping up against the "anti over spin" mechanism. This just frees up the backing plate a bit to allow for more rotation of the pad.

I have also read somewhere that people lube something on the flex to make it better, but don't know the details  I'll see if I can dig something up on it.

Although the XP is considerably noisey when compared to the Rupes, the power of the perspective motors isn't all that far apart. Really when it comes down to it, other than physical size, the PC and Rupes have more in common than the Flex and Rupes.   

[Obsessive Detail]

Nice writeup! 

[sscully]

So can we expect a full post on how to scribe cabinets with a 7424? 

Actually I am doing my sister's kitchen sometime this month, so I will try to get pictures and do a write up.

It is the end of the cabinets on one side she is changing from a standard slide in stove to a cook top and a double oven in a cabinet.  The frig is going to the other side.

See what I have for uppers ( don't recall the final layout ) and I am not sure where the full height stove cabinet will be when it touches the ceiling or the other side.