Steve_S

Love that smell 

Just finished using the leather conditioner and it smells great. Hard to tell from the pic, but the info display was on the Adam's site

Bigger is better, except when it isn’t. When it comes to horsepower, bench press numbers, and the size of the fish you just landed a bigger number is better. However, when it comes to cholesterol numbers or the amount of fuel your car burns to get down the road, many of us would agree that less is more.    The detailing world has been fighting the misconception "that bigger is better" for quite some time. Too thick a coat or too many coats of wax makes it hard to wipe off. Its a mistake that many a rookie has made at one point or another. Too much soap and you'll have a hard time rinsing a vehicle clean. But what about the tools we use? Little thought is given to what is "too much". We regularly vocalize our desire for more power, grunting like Tim Allen describing tools, but is it possible that too much power is a bad thing?    UNDERSTANDING WHAT THE WATTS MEAN It is important for consumers to be educated on what watts really mean to them. I'm not for a second suggesting we all become experts in electrical engineering, but a general level of understanding helps us all be better 'shoppers'. Not everyone is capable of building a car from scratch, but I think we can all agree that having an understanding of what MPG, horsepower, and torque numbers mean in terms of performance make you better equipped to buy the right car. 
  Power tools take energy from the grid (input) and tun it into torque (output). Yet, in the US tools are rated by the power they have the potential to consume (watts) and not by the work they actually do. Savvy marketers from around the industry have recognized the bigger is better mentality and combined with a lack of consumer education leverage it to present products as better purely based on statistics of power consumption. So it is key to understand that watts is not a measurement of work done by the tool (output). Watts is a measurement of consumption (input), like how a human body consumes calories or a car consumes fuel. Judging a tool's potential on higher watts alone is no different than deeming a car superior for using more fuel or saying a meal is better because it has more fat.   Simply put - increased watts does not directly translate to increased performance and certainly not in a linear way. While increased output can (and typically does) result from increased input, there are other factors to consider such as the byproducts of the increased consumption and what happens to the excess power that isn't being delivered to the surface.     
 
 
  EFFICIENCY MATTERS Staying with our analogy of a car with worse MPG, let's also consider that your large increase in fuel consumption only netted a small amount of additional horsepower; the idea seems even crazier now right? Stuffing more fuel into the input side for a small net gain on the output side is a demonstration of how inefficient that particular car is. 
  But what happens to all that additional 'input'? Energy will manifest itself in a few ways, it cannot magically disappear or be purely absorbed, so we have to define (for polishing tools) where the excess energy goes:  Mechanical Movement - this is the desired result of the input conversion. Orbits, rotations, etc... ultimately we want to take as much of the input and create mechanical movement. Any other input that isn't converted to this output would be considered waste. The challenge is that in an orbital tool you are working with an unbalanced (eccentric) movement that wants to waste some of that energy by design. To create an efficient random orbital polisher that minimizes wasted energy takes some very precise and clever engineering.  Heat - the most common way for excess input to manifest itself. Heating of the housing, heating of the internals, heating of the plate, potentially heating of the pad and ultimately the working surface. Heat is considered an undesirable byproduct and experienced detailers, especially those that work in less controlled or mobile environments know all too well how unpredictably compounds can perform when undesired heat is introduced.  Vibration - by virtue of its design an orbital tool is not balanced, even more so when discussing large orbit tools. Fortunately, no one runs a polisher for its intended purpose without a pad, but when a pad doesn't offset enough of the excess energy or the energy is more than the counterbalance can effectively offset the result is increased/excess vibration. No one likes the feeling of having their joints rattled loose by a tool vibrating in their hands, and this undesired byproduct has implications in the health of the operator as well as (to a degree) the quality of the finished product.  Noise - an often unconsidered factor in this arena, the audible noise the tool produces as it operates is itself a form of energy consumption. Gears lashing together, motor rotation being generated then translated through the gearbox, the translation of that movement to an eccentric movement, it all creates sound, and the the creation of sound is a form of energy consumption. A quiet tool is often times the sign of an efficient tool. While we should all probably be working with hearing protection when polishing the reduction of noise at its source is ideal.  
  THE EVOLUTION OF THE LARGE ORBIT MARKET, FROM THE COMPANY THAT CREATED IT Thus far the materials published about the upcoming Mark II Bigfoot polishers have included a specific reference: "30% more power". How each person chooses to translate that greatly changes what the message is. As we've been discussing - if it were 30% more input power what we would really be concerned with would be the net result to output, if any?
  Ultimately, what we are concerned with is output to the working surface. We as objective detailers shouldn’t let the red herring of “input” enter into our minds unless we are calculating how much our energy bill is going to increase. If two tools produce similar results, then the tool that is using less energy is more efficient. A properly balanced, highly tuned polisher will deliver better results without all the undesired byproducts of a tool that requires too much energy in an effort to mask an inefficient design.     
 
  With nearly two years of careful development to improve an already revolutionary design, RUPES has managed a extraordinary feat. The BigFoot Mark II polisher will deliver at least 30% more power to the surface without increasing consumption. This means better performance at the working surface with the same 500 watt input rating. It also means there is no increase in heat, no increase in vibration, and not even an increase in your energy bill - if that is an area of concern for you.
 
  BUT HOW? WITCHCRAFT? VOODOO? ALIEN TECHNOLOGY? The Mark II accomplishes this increased output without increased consumption through a redesigned, custom in-house-built motor, improved electronic controls, and careful internal redesigns. It took nearly as long to improve BigFoot as it did to create the original design. The benefit of being an engineering firm and tool manufacturer opens the door to amazing possibilities. Add a little fabled Italian passione and you get Mark II. 
  Revisiting our car analogy one last time:    "The latest model generates 30% more horsepower than the previous model did, and does so without any increased fuel consumption!"   That sounds like a winning proposition and the car I'd want to buy.
 
    *this article is a collaborative effort of Dylan von Kleist, Todd Helme, and Jason Rose of RUPES.

I'm getting ready to do the interior and pretty much everything is leather wrapped. It's going to be interesting for sure. I'm planning on using the leather conditioner and total interior. Hope it turns out well.

I recently used the leather and interior care kit on my Challenger with leather seats and I was blown away by how well it worked.  The seats are perfect and that smell is worth a million bucks!  I also feel that I am able to slide in and out of the seats better.  That's important because over time it will help the leather from cracking or wearing.  You won't be disappointed!  Welcome to the family!

Finally got some time to polish up the bike with Adams products, won't use anything else here are the pics. 
Love these products so far everything that Adams says their product wild it does.

Thanks for the replies everyone!  I really do appreciate your time.  I think I am going to go with the new Rupes unit, especially if it is just as safe as the PC.  Can't wait!

I researched the snot out of polishers, and the new Rupes 15 Mark II is it. Save your pennies if need be.

I'm not just saying this because I work for Adam's (I've been a customer since 2005 long, long before I started working here last year), but I will say that our Leather Conditioner is the best conditioner I've ever used on leather interior. It is not lanolin-based like other conditioners, so it will not leave a slippery feeling for days. If you hop into the seats immediately after conditioning them, they are going to feel a little bit slippery, but not exactly greasy. The slipperiness will dissipate quickly as well. I detail a lot of cars on the side for friends and family, and I have never had one person complain about their seats when they pick up the vehicle - most usually comment how awesome the seats feel and how great the interior smells
 
The Leather & Interior Cleaner will pull out a ton of dirt from your leather and adds no shine or protection. It is a strong cleaner, so read the directions and use it on a test-spot first to make sure it does not pull any color out of the leather. The Leather Conditioner will add a bit of a satin finish, and if you put it on very thick it is going to shine, but it will level off to a more satin finish. If you want a completely matte finish, that is difficult to achieve with a thick creme-based conditioner, but as Chris stated, you can take a premium microfiber towel and knock-down or buff off the shine as it dries.
 
Our Leather Conditioner is also SPF 65 for excellent UV protection, and it does have an incredible like-new scent that smells just like leather!
 
For a completely matte, no-shine finish on interior panels and leather, use our Total Interior Detailer spray instead. It dries to a completely matte factory finish.

I would save up and pick up a Rupes 15 MArk II.  I received mine a few weeks ago and it's a great machine.  No vibration unlike the PC.   
 
The PC vibrations would cause my hands to be fatigued and also to have them feel a tingling sensation after using it for hours during a paint correction. 
 
The Rupes and Flex are two different machines.  The Rupes is a dual action polisher where as the Flex is forced rotation.  That's a real basic answer.  The Rupes is user friendly. 

Cool video... and if you haven't sat in one of these cars yet its amazing the level of quality and finish... Tesla has certainly come a long ways IMO. 
 

The AP warehouse and detailing areas have recently undergone a big overhaul for the season, freeing up more space and creating a section for us to really get into detailing for those who want us to do the work for them. One of the first to roll into our place since the overhaul was an amazing Tesla P85D... but one problem - the owner had to drive it on over a mile of dirty/muddy roads near his home shortly after he got it. The pictures below tell the story:


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
to be continued...

They would be helpful for sure. Actually James__ just sent me some organizational sheets he uses and there is a ton of info in them that I'm going to study. Very nice of him to do that for a stranger. This is a great site.

They would be helpful for sure. Actually James__ just sent me some organizational sheets he uses and there is a ton of info in them that I'm going to study. Very nice of him to do that for a stranger. This is a great site.

Well momma done had the baby on 1/28 a 9 pound 14 oz baby boy by the name of Owen Daniel Lawson. Momma and baby are doing great. Might be hard to get to Grabiak but I will try.

My 9 year old daughter and I went to her school's father-daughter dance tonight! We had a blast!
 

They would be helpful for sure. Actually James__ just sent me some organizational sheets he uses and there is a ton of info in them that I'm going to study. Very nice of him to do that for a stranger. This is a great site.

Seconded! I bought a large BGE last May and I'll never go back. Actually been thinking of adding a second one. Everything comes off it so amazing. I've been using it for everything from long slow cooks like ribs or even beef stew in a dutch oven to quick cooks like a chicken breast, burgers, or a steak. It also makes awesome pizza with the pizza stone.
 
Also, if you haven't done it yet, make baked potatoes on it. It makes the best I've had. They're amazing. All I do is take a large russet (about 1 pounders) coat with olive olive and kosher salt. Then cook bare on the grate to an internal temp of about 205-210 with the Egg at about 400 degrees. Takes a little over an hour usually. Goes great with what ever else I make on it. These are really the reason why I'm thinking of a 2nd BGE. Want to be able to have a hot one while doing a low and slow cook.
 
BTW, if you don't have one yet get a Looftlighter. They're great at getting the Egg lit and running quickly.

I"m a BGE fanatic as well! Was a DIE HARD Weber Kettle man for years....charcoal all the way! When Weber came out with a gas grill I started rethinking things and eventually got one because it was "easier." Been through two of them and determined they could NEVER maintain a constant temperature. A year ago I got a BGE and will NEVER go back! And it doesn't take an hour to get one ready to cook if you start it properly and use the right thing (lump charcoal and not briquettes). 30 minutes tops!

I'am with Gary. IMHO, the BGE is the way to go. Love that thing.
 
Big Green Egg - The Ultimate Cooking Experience

I've always been opposed to shiney tires. I really enjoy that "natural" black rubber look of tires. Of all the videos and photos I've seen of tires with Tire Shine I always felt like there was too shine (GASP!) for my taste on the tire.
 
Well, a few mystery boxes ago, I got a bottle of tire shine and have tried like hades to trade it out for something. VRT has been my tire dressing of choice. 
 
Well last night I decided that my wife's Highlander would be a perfect candidate to try it out on. She won't notice and she likes shiny things. So I finally cracked the seal on the bottle and that smell.... oh that glorious sweet banana pudding flavored smell literally made my mouth water. I dropped its sprayer in the bottle got it tightened down and primed it into a fresh foam block applicator. 
 
I opted to use the stream setting on the sprayer after the first tire because well... I made a mess of the wheel. I wish I had taken the time to cut out a wheel cover per TheWolf. Once I got that part figured out, the rest was much cleaner application. I applied several sprays moving the stream in crescent shapes to make sure it was evenly spread around the tire. I then took a foam block applicator and made one trip around the tire to knock it down and spread it before it started drying. I immediately went back and was more methodical in my spreading of the product, making sure it got into all of the grooves on the tire.
 
TIP: I take the corner of the foam block applicator and wedged it behind the Chrometec wheel cover to make sure that every crevice of the tire is getting some product.
 
Here's the photos, you be the judge but I was pleasantly surprised at the finish this morning when I backed it out into the driveway / sunlight. Not too shiny, just.... right.I attribute the more natural/matte finish to the amount of passes the foam block made over the tire. Maybe its just in my head?
 
You do what you want, but VRT will no longer be my first choice for tires. Adding a gallon of Tire Shine to my next order.
 


 
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
Wheels were sprayed using the stream setting with 1:1 Deep Wheel Cleaner and agitated with the Adam's Wheel Brush. Tire's coated with straight All Purpose Cleaner and scrubbed well with the Adam's Tire Brush.
After all was done, I took a wheel towel, with a spritz of detail spray and wiped down the chromatech wheels for a little extra pop.

I like the Tire Shine. It doesn't sling off like other products.  Looks great!

Thanks Steve! I really need to get these updated Detailing Flow Charts and Handbook out ASAP because I think they will be a great visual aid for people new to detailing, and the experienced detailers might find them beneficial too

I saved both of these posts to my notes, as I was overwhelmed looking at all of the Adam's products I have and trying to decide the order to use them! Great posts for a newb like me. Thanks!