Author Topic: Engine polishing? (Read 9288 times)

550Z · « **on:** January 03, 2013, 11:34:09 PM »

i wanted to know i the clutch cover, stator cover and the cover next to the shift lever were polishable ? it would look great on my bike if they were

fire113 · « **Reply #1 on:** January 04, 2013, 12:02:16 AM »

...what bike do You have ?

I polished all the engine parts on my cb750.

550Z · « **Reply #2 on:** January 04, 2013, 12:59:01 AM »

75 cb550

550Z · « **Reply #3 on:** January 04, 2013, 12:59:38 AM »

and that is cool !!!!!!

Lars · « **Reply #4 on:** January 04, 2013, 01:48:28 AM »

Yes you can, you will be pleased with the result. I have used to do it myself, but come to the conlusion that I am better off sending them to a professional. Better result and not that expensive. Have a lot of parts sent for polising now. like the parts you mentioned. I also carbs parts and valve covers, front forks. Many also polishes up the wheel hubs and rear brake panel.

550Z · « **Reply #5 on:** January 04, 2013, 02:50:39 AM »

ohh cool know of any places near san bernadino, CA that can polish them up ? And also the PO painted the engine block silver and its starting to peel off. is the block polishable?

Stev-o · « **Reply #6 on:** January 04, 2013, 04:57:09 AM »

I have not seen a polished block but it's aluminum so it may be possible.
Polished covers will make your motor look great.

Johnie · « **Reply #7 on:** January 04, 2013, 05:10:27 AM »

Here is what you can do to the side engine covers with a buffing wheel, rouge and some elbow grease.

RSchaefer · « **Reply #8 on:** January 04, 2013, 07:21:23 AM »

I PC'ed mine w/clearcoat after polishing

Really? · « **Reply #9 on:** January 04, 2013, 07:24:05 AM »

Heh, you might hate yourself later if you polished the block even if you could get into the fins and gullies and corners...

Once you polish the aluminum, you will have to go polish the parts back out a couple times a year. Nowhere near as much work as the first time though.

There are plenty of other aluminum parts on the bike that you can polish.

Before you ask, clear coating after you polish will more than likely not work. Not saying it cannot be done though (see above). Surface is too smooth for it to grab very well. I have read that the coating can turn yellow over time as well.

nccb · « **Reply #10 on:** January 04, 2013, 07:40:13 AM »

RSchaefer - how has that held up? Did you PC yourself or send it off?

Johnie · « **Reply #11 on:** January 04, 2013, 08:31:00 AM »

Never had to repolish mine with the wheel. Just use Semi-Chrome on it at the beginning of the season. I did not clearcoat mine do to the yellowing issue. Plus, if I want to give it another hit with the rouge I do not have to mess with the clear.

RSchaefer · « **Reply #12 on:** January 04, 2013, 08:33:45 AM »

Did the PC myself but have not got her running yet. Others have expressed concern, mostly about the heat. The clearcoat bakes at 350 degrees and many others have said it should be fine and others have done the same (PC'ed in clear). The pro PC guys say there is no problem with the PC sticking. Guess I will find out!!

KC_Northstar · « **Reply #13 on:** January 04, 2013, 08:40:28 AM »

Quote from: Lars on January 04, 2013, 01:48:28 AM

Yes you can, you will be pleased with the result. I have used to do it myself, but come to the conlusion that I am better off sending them to a professional. Better result and not that expensive. Have a lot of parts sent for polising now. like the parts you mentioned. I also carbs parts and valve covers, front forks. Many also polishes up the wheel hubs and rear brake panel.

Where do you send your parts for polishing? I checked with a few places I found online and they were real expensive

RSchaefer · « **Reply #14 on:** January 04, 2013, 08:57:13 AM »

Do it yourself! Pretty easy!! Makes you feel great after seeing what you have done!!!

Johnie · « **Reply #15 on:** January 04, 2013, 11:35:19 AM »

Having someone do it for you is expensive around here. It is all labor intensive so that is where most the $$$ goes. You can get the buffing wheel and rouge for a heck of a lot cheaper than paying someone to do all your covers. Now if you only are doing it once then maybe you do not want to invest in the buffer?

Really? · « **Reply #16 on:** January 04, 2013, 11:45:43 AM »

HF buffer with a 20% off coupon is cheap. I used one of those and it came out great. Not the perfect buffer but works quite well.

PAVALKER · « **Reply #17 on:** January 04, 2013, 01:16:59 PM »

What type of buffer did you use? A bench grinder with a buffing wheel or a hand held buffer? Did you get the rouge at HF as well?

Really? · « **Reply #18 on:** January 04, 2013, 01:42:55 PM »

If your asking me, it is really a bench grinder with a couple buffing wheels. I used their rouge and what ever they had a at Lowe's or Home Depot. Can't remember which one. That is what I used on the the parts I took off.

The engine covers I did by hand - Sandpaper and Mothers with old tooth brushes.

Buffing Wheel

Sandpaper, Mothers and old toothbrushes

ncstatecamp · « **Reply #19 on:** January 04, 2013, 02:00:06 PM »

Can anybody show me a before pic of the covers they were working with? Looking at my points and kickstart cover I'd swear they were chromed.

MCRider · « **Reply #20 on:** January 04, 2013, 02:02:45 PM »

I've had many done by Brown's (expensive) and a forum member here (reasonable). Check the classifieds for Services rendered for polishing.

The points and KS cover are chrome.

Johnie · « **Reply #21 on:** January 04, 2013, 02:34:03 PM »

NC...sure, here is a before and after pic of the tranny cover. My first tip would be to forget the drill and get a good buffing wheel. I have a 6 inch Craftsman bench buffer I use. You need to get the alumimun hot to let it flow a little when you are buffing and a drill will just not generate that much heat. That being said, if you want to use a drill you may get some nice results but not as good as a bench buffer. The first thing you should do is use a chemical stripper to remove the clear. The red rouge will take it off, but it does take a while. It is much easier if you let the stripper get it off for you. But go ahead and experiment with it. The red rouge is a rougher system which will cut faster and deeper. The green rouge will take out the marks from the red. The white will take out the finer marks from the green and give you a nice look. When done some guys clear it again, but I never clear as I want to be able to touch it up whenever I feel like it. However, I have never had to touch it up with the wheel. I just use Semichrome or MAAS polish to make it look great again. A caution for you, use safety glasses and a dust mask as it is dirty work. Take your time and let the rouge do the work. And use one color rouge per wheel. Do not use the red wheel with green rouge. You do not want to cross contaminate the buffing wheels. Good luck if you decide to give it a try.

Really? · « **Reply #22 on:** January 04, 2013, 02:43:36 PM »

What it all used to look like. Well, there was black paint on the upper triple when I started. The finished product is a few posts up in this thread.

Johnie · « **Reply #23 on:** January 04, 2013, 03:07:09 PM »

Before and after of the lower fork leg. The right one was after one pass with the red rouge so keep in mind the green and white will take out the rest of the oxidation. It used to look like the one on the left.

RSchaefer · « **Reply #24 on:** January 04, 2013, 04:52:07 PM »

Here is the HF Buffer I purchased, currently at $40, w/20% discount $32

http://www.harborfreight.com/6-inch-buffer-94393.html

Here is the stand I purchased ($28). I bolted the stand to the cement slab in front of my garage so I could remove it.

http://www.harborfreight.com/bench-grinder-stand-42986.html

And here is an example of the polishing compound (Green, $5)

http://www.harborfreight.com/1-4-quarter-lb-green-polish-compound-96778.html

I think in the case of the polishing compound I purchased a set of three polishes, which I don't see on their web site.

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Author Topic: Engine polishing? (Read 9288 times)