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New bars and whats best to bring up old alum. cases to shine again.

  • Thread starter Thread starter doggies
  • Start date Start date
D

doggies

Guest
1981 GS-550T where is the best- cheapest place to get stock size bars,used would be great to. Is there a product to put on the cases to bring up a shine. How about tank badges,side covers,and badges. I know ebay is hit or miss.
 
I use sandpaper. Those cases have a clear coat that has to come off first. I start with 200 grit and end up with 4000 grit.
A buffer and buffer compound will also work.
 
4000 grit???? What the heck is that?

I recently did some covers and used: Paint stripper - 220 - 400 - 600 - Mothers polish. Damn I hate all that sanding work.:(
I was hating life and sick of sanding so before starting on the last cover I went down to Harbor Freight and bought a couple of sticks of "Gray Cutting Compound" and a stiched buffing wheel - chucked it up in my auto polisher. It took a lot of pressure on the wheel but the last cover came out nicely in only a fraction of the time it took to hand sand the other covers. I'm sold.:)
 
I agree with Chef and Nessism on this one. There isn't any product that will shine your covers. It comes down to hand sanding and/or buffing to get the desired result you want.
 
get some aircraft stripper and strip the old clear off. i sanded from 400 to 1000 and then hit it with some mothers. you can see the results...
 
catbed said:
get some aircraft stripper and strip the old clear off. i sanded from 400 to 1000 and then hit it with some mothers. you can see the results...
Click to expand...

Works AWESOME!!!
Unless you have several deeper scratches...AC stripper and med/fine grit on the buffer and finish off with glazing compound and treat it to a hand-rubbed coat of Mothers metal polish / sealer and your set! :clap:
 
If you want to protect the finish a clear coat is recommended. Unfortunately, most over the counter clear paints are margional in terms of durability. If you want to do the job right, find a powder coater in your area. Because of the difficulty is finding a suitable paint most people just leave their cases raw.:) Use some wax and keep the bike clean and it seems like a reasonable way to go.
 
Dave8338 said:
Works AWESOME!!!
Unless you have several deeper scratches...AC stripper and med/fine grit on the buffer and finish off with glazing compound and treat it to a hand-rubbed coat of Mothers metal polish / sealer and your set! :clap:
Click to expand...

Where do you get aircraft stripper? what kind of sealer?
 
Aircraft stripper is not needed although it does work well. The water based strippers are pretty poor but the good stuff that washes off with mineral spirits will cut though Suzuki's case paint easily.
 
jwhelan65 said:
Where do you get aircraft stripper? what kind of sealer?
Click to expand...

Walmart has it, as well as some auto parts stores like Kragen.

There are many ways to get them to shine. But you must strip the clear first. I did like others and wet sanded progressively up to 2000 grit. Then I used a buffer (bought at Harbor Freight) in my drill and used Mother's aluminum polish to finish. I chose not to clearcoat anything, but I live far away from salt water and the humidity is very low here. The Mother's adds a bit of protection. I have only had to polish my stuff once. I just occasionally go over the parts by hand and that has kept up on the shine.

100_9255.jpg



100_9262.jpg
 
If the covers are on the bike "WATCH THOSE GASKETS" the rubber around the oil eye will melt if your not careful, start a small spot in the center and work your way around to be safe!!!
 
jwhelan65 said:
Where do you get aircraft stripper?
Click to expand...

I like to use gasket remover in a spray can. You can get double duty out of it. Spray on covers, let sit a minute, wipe off with paper towel. Works great on gaskets, too;).

From here sand, grind, polish to hearts content. I have been using a high temp clear coat. Looks okay, slight haziness in finish, not sure how long it will last. Do know that without sealer, had to buff almost weekly due to humidity in my area. They don't call it the rust belt for nothing:eek:.
 
Dremel

Dremel

renobruce said:
Walmart has it, as well as some auto parts stores like Kragen.

There are many ways to get them to shine. But you must strip the clear first. I did like others and wet sanded progressively up to 2000 grit. Then I used a buffer (bought at Harbor Freight) in my drill and used Mother's aluminum polish to finish. I chose not to clearcoat anything, but I live far away from salt water and the humidity is very low here. The Mother's adds a bit of protection. I have only had to polish my stuff once. I just occasionally go over the parts by hand and that has kept up on the shine.

100_9255.jpg



100_9262.jpg
Click to expand...

Would a Dremel tool with the proper pad work? or would that be to much power?
 
jwhelan65 said:
Would a Dremel tool with the proper pad work? or would that be to much power?
Click to expand...

A dremel works well for the little nicks and crannies. But obviously only does a very small area at a time. I used a dremel on a few items like the cam chain tensioner, oil cooler adapter, etc.
 
I used alot of stuff, the best I found so far is for alum. make by Busch. I got it from Year One. Its not cheap but it is worth it.The alum will shine like your rear view mirrors.(after you remove the clear-coat)
 
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