CarPro's Denim orange peel removal pad TESTED....WOW!!!!

S

speedfreak81

New member
I've been wanting to try these pads out for quite a while, but was waiting for the right opportunity. Well the time has finally come, as a previous client of mine just purchased a new to him '06 CLK55 AMB Benzo. He brought the car by last week, and upon looking it over could immediately tell that the whole driver's side had been repainted. It was absolutely FULL of orange peel. :jaw: Rather than spending the time sanding, I decided to give the denim orange peel pads a try!This review is part of full correction for this vehicle, and the rest of the car will follow once the work is complete. I'll start a new thread dedicated to the correction as a whole at that time.



From Car Pro's website: 5 1/4" Denim Orange Peel Removal Pad (V2)



With our CarPro USA Velvet and Denim Orange Peel Removal pads you can now remove or substantially reduce orange peel in the top layer without sanding. While removing orange peel and deep defects you are also polishing the paint rather than leaving sanding marks which reduces the steps needed afterwards.







denim_pad_135mm__09983.1355284074.780.780 by SpeedFreak81, on Flickr



New to Version 2:

  • Multiple Diameter pads available
  • Foam Interlayer changed from 3/8" to 3/16"
  • Redesigned foam interlayer for more effective orange peel removal
  • Redesigned without holes for longer durability



  • Reduce Orange Peel and deep defects while simultaneously polishing paint
  • Equivalent to 2000 grit sandpaper with out the dulling of paint and sanding haze
  • Reduce Orange Peel without sanding
  • Orange peel removal without the haze generated by sanding
  • Polish the paint while removing the ridges of orange peel
  • Less dust and clean up prior to finishing polish





  • Attach to hook & loop backing plate with rotary polisher for best results.
  • Apply a few drops to paint or pad according to your skills and preference
  • Work a 2' x 2' section or larger to keep heat down as needed but remember the larger the area the more time it will take to level orange peel and defects.
  • Begin working polish on low speed for a pass.
  • Step up speed to approximately 1100 rpm (adjust as needed)
  • With proper lighting observe the level of orange peel removal while you work noting precise surface contact without pressure to level ridges.
  • After completing each section wipe off paint with soft microfiber towel
  • Brush pad in direction of fibers to remove residue
  • Apply a couple more drops of polish for next section
  • Switch out pads as needed when cut has been compromised and set aside to clean by hand.







Well, I'll let the results speak for themselves, but I was STUNNED at what I was able to achieve with these pads!!:jaw: I used my Rupes Bigfoot 21 on speed 6 with Meguiar's M105 Ultra Cut Compound. Not only did the combo literally destroy the orange peel, it left a nearly flawless finish behind. NOTE: No finishing polish was used for these shots, they were after compound/orange peel pad ONLY. In an industry where time is literally money, this product has impressed me. Compared to sanding by hand or machine, then compounding, finishing; the time savings is huge.



The only con with these pads is they seem to cake up pretty quickly. I was roughing them up with my nylon pad cleaner brush after each pass, but was only able to do about a 4'x4' section before I had to switch to a fresh pad. I would suspect the level of build up would correlate to the amount of orange peel/clear being removed. Either way, a small price to pay IMO.



Without further delay, here are the pics!!





Couple "befores"







photo1 by SpeedFreak81, on Flickr











DSC_0064 by SpeedFreak81, on Flickr











DSC_0067 by SpeedFreak81, on Flickr











DSC_0071 by SpeedFreak81, on Flickr







Afters







DSC_0072 by SpeedFreak81, on Flickr











DSC_0068 by SpeedFreak81, on Flickr











DSC_0066 by SpeedFreak81, on Flickr











DSC_0065 by SpeedFreak81, on Flickr







Notice the difference in the distinction of image between the untouched area on the left/door vs the right side which was complete







DSC_0070 by SpeedFreak81, on Flickr







Thanks for looking. I'm not the world's greatest photographer, but I think the point is conveyed!





-Brian
 
Humm, going to have to look into these bad boys. Thank bud. Great review. I have a project coming up soon and the owner has advised me that he can see orange peel in some areas of his car as well.
 
Great job, glad you like these pads. I have them in my bin with my other pads, but haven't tried them yet.



yes you can use them with the flex.
 
Thomas Dekany said:
PS - how did you use the 5" pads on the Rupes?
Click to expand...



The same way I've seen you use those little baby 4" pads on your FLEX.:heh: Yeah I remember those pics.



BTW, so I sprang for a Rupes bc of all the fuss............not overly impressed. The motor is ANEMIC compared to the Flex, and bogs down extremely easily. :(



Brian
 
Very impressive. I have also been wanting to try these. Curious to know if you took any measurements of the paint before and after to know how much was removed.
 
I tried mine for the first time yesterday and barely used it, it couldn't do the job. Not sure what to do. I agree, not much juice.



speedfreak81 said:
The same way I've seen you use those little baby 4" pads on your FLEX.:heh: Yeah I remember those pics.



BTW, so I sprang for a Rupes bc of all the fuss............not overly impressed. The motor is ANEMIC compared to the Flex, and bogs down extremely easily. :(



Brian
Click to expand...
 
It makes me wonder about all the praise its getting. I have to suspect that these people are probably coming from a porter cable and possibly have never used a Flex before?
 
speedfreak81 said:
It makes me wonder about all the praise its getting. I have to suspect that these people are probably coming from a porter cable and possibly have never used a Flex before?
Click to expand...



Not so much; I for one owned/still own a Flex DA... and I much prefer the Rupes. The key to getting the most out of a Rupes is to embrace the fact that it requires a different technique than a PC or a Flex. Forget about the KBM, high machine speed and tons of pressure. Low and slow is the way to get the most out of the Rupes. Low machine speed, low pressure, and slow arm speed as you make your passes.
 
Thomas Dekany said:
I tried mine for the first time yesterday and barely used it, it couldn't do the job. Not sure what to do. I agree, not much juice.
Click to expand...



Do the washer mod. It will be a different machine. I thought mine was just an overpriced PC until I did the washer mod.
 
Thomas Dekany said:
I tried mine for the first time yesterday and barely used it, it couldn't do the job. Not sure what to do. I agree, not much juice.
Click to expand...



Give it some time, I think you'll find it works much better than you think it will. It cuts nearly as fast as my Dewalt rotary and the finish is way better and takes less steps to finish out. The power is very deceptive due to the smoothness. Similar to when I replaced my all aluminum road bike with a more modern geometry aluminum/carbon blend bike. Thought the new bike was slower until I looked down at my bike computer. The much smoother ride betrayed how fast it was.



As far as the denim pads go, definitely need to get my hands on some. That's really impressive!
 
Still no answer on a few questions I'm dying to hear about



How many pads for the whole car?

Did you measure with a paint thickness gauge? If not, what method did you use to minimize risk of burning the clear?

How dangerous are these pads without a thickness gauge?



Thanks :)
 
Humm, going to have to look into these bad boys.
14.gif
 
CarPro Orange Peel Removal Pads - you can now remove or substantially reduce orange peel in the top layer without sanding. While removing orange peel and deep defects you are also polishing the paint rather than leaving sanding marks, which reduces the steps needed afterwards.



These pads have a very aggressive abrasive and are deceptive; they have twice the rate of cut of typical wool pads. They don't dull the paint like sanding so it may appear you aren't removing paint but you most certainly are.



They are intended for use by professionals who are very familiar with paint film thickness, using and interpreting the results of a paint thickness gauge (PTG) compounding, polishing, and the dos and don’ts of paint correction. Theses pads are designed for use with a rotary polisher (1000 RPM <) average removal is approximately 5µ (0 .2Mil) - 7.5µ (0. 3 Mil)



These pads are available in two configurations: Denim (2000 Grit) is the more aggressive and designed for the removal of severe texture from refinished paints and Velvet (3000 Grit) is used for removing light orange peel from thin, factory-applied paint; both pads utilizing CarPro Fixer as a lubrication / compound.



Use very little pressure and check the paint surface temperature often. Similar to ‘block sanding’ the pad / backing plate are rigid enough that when used correctly it abrades the paint ridges (high spots) faster than the valleys. Either pad will polish the paint as it removes orange peel requiring only one or two additional polishing steps to create level paint that reflects accurately. These pads should only be used with proper knowledge of clear coat thickness in conjunction with a paint thickness gauge. As with any aggressive abrasion method be very cautious with factory OEM paint.



There are two considerations; (a) how much clear coat (b) how much ultra violet protection can be removed, they are not interchangeable. The following are the maximum allowable clear coat reductions the major USA car manufacturers will allow before the paint warranty becomes void; Chrysler- 0.5 Mil (12µ) Ford – 0.3 Mil (7.5 µ) and GM – 0.5 Mil (12µ) (Source - Automotive International)
 
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