3 Hours of Work, Polish Compound and a ton of elbow grease =

[loudandproud]

Before the Polish:

After the polish:

Close up:

I was sick of how my clutch cover was all worn so i went at it.

I polished the Kick starter, brake, and clutch cover. It looks great, very mirror like. I might try to get it alittle better monday in school buy using the polisher in metal shop. ;)

So what do you all think, i think it make the motor look much newer. :nod:

 

[HajiWasAPunk]

I think you should ride more and clean less!

Looks good though. :cool:

 

[loudandproud]

I think you should ride more and clean less!

Looks good though. :cool:

haha, same here. I wish i could more in, i ride maybe 2 times a week if im lucky. Usually only once a week though.

 

[Moose]

Looks good. I'd hate to ride that thing, after it was that nice looking. Your bike is spoiled, my bike just gets some water thrown at it a bit, if I'm feeling generous I might put it on high pressure and spray it underneath. The only time i really cleaned my bike this year was at the end of the season.

Once again though, looks awesome. :cool:

 

[Moparman1539]

what did you use? i have to say Mothers is the best (you'll get the most shine) then you need a aluminum polishing wax.. and you need to put some of that on so all you need to so is wipe it on and bam.. back to what it looked like before you rode and dirtied it..

i have a lot of experience.. i've been polishing semi trucks since i was little (6 - 24.5" rims, and 2 - 5' / 1.5' tanks a truck..) takes me two days to do.. about 12hours of work.. very tiring.. but i get payed $60.00 a truck =D.. $5.00 a wheel.. $15.00 a tanks and i think its worth it..

BUT! good job.. and ANYTHING that is aluminum is able to be polished.. (i guess you already knew that but isn't the rear swingarm aluminum? don't yell at me please.. i didn't know)

 

[sparkysakitas]

I think you should ride more and clean less!

Looks good though. :cool:

he is going to anger the dirt gods
looks good now go get it dirty again

 

[SPAWN]

My old school gsxr1100 are also polished and it is a lot of work. I think a dirt bike is much worse to keep clean. Good job though.

best of luck keeping it that way
now go and get it dirty!

 

[Chili]

Holy moly, you cleaned that thing so well your camera was actually able to focus in the second picture :laugh:

 

[ellandoh]

if youre going to keep polishing aluminum, i suggest you look up aluminum exposure on WEBMD youll be surprised at what you find, i know a guy who found out the hard way

 

[Treejumper]

Polished kick starter = slippery when boot is muddy or wet = whacked leg = ouch

 

[loudandproud]

Polished kick starter = slippery when boot is muddy or wet = whacked leg = ouch

i though of that and didnt polish the inner side or the part where your foot rests.

 

[loudandproud]

if youre going to keep polishing aluminum, i suggest you look up aluminum exposure on WEBMD youll be surprised at what you find, i know a guy who found out the hard way

couldnt find anything... maybe you would like to explain?

 

[Zenith]

I'd guess he's referring to something like this -

Aluminum: A naturally occurring element that makes up about 8% of the surface of the earth and is always found combined with other elements such as oxygen, silicon, and fluorine. Aluminum is is the most common metallic element in the earth's crust but has no clear biologic role. Everyone is exposed to low levels of aluminum from food, air, and water. Exposure to high levels of aluminum may result in respiratory problems (aluminosis). Inhalation of bauxite (aluminum ore) fumes may cause pulmonary fibrosis. Aluminum in the bloodstream may lead to neurological symptoms and may be fatal.

Aluminum toxicity occurs in people with renal insufficiency who are treated by dialysis with aluminum-contaminated solutions or oral agents that contain aluminum. The clinical manifestations of aluminum toxicity include anemia, bone disease, and progressive dementia with increased concentrations of aluminum in the brain. Prolonged intravenous feeding of preterm infants with solutions containing aluminum is associated with impaired neurologic development.

Aluminum metal is silver-white and flexible. It is often used in cooking utensils, containers, appliances, and building materials. It is also used in paints and fireworks; to produce glass, rubber, and ceramics; and in consumer products such as antacids, astringents, buffered aspirin, food additives, and antiperspirants.

 

[ellandoh]

yup^^^

bottom line, if youre going to do alot of aluminum polishing with a wheel do not breathe the particles in the air.

 

[loudandproud]

ill try not to lick it anymore either.

 

[CHR!S]

look great, definitely going to try that!

 

[tony91]

Good info on aluminum "dust".

http://www.osha.gov/SLTC/healthguidelines/aluminum/recognition.html

 

[knowiam]

Aluminum-Webmd

if youre going to keep polishing aluminum, i suggest you look up aluminum exposure on WEBMD youll be surprised at what you find, i know a guy who found out the hard way

Is that in regards to Altzeimers (sp)?

Just curious as I was polishing aluminum this weekend too. :yikes:

Ken

Edit: Whoops...did'nt realize that'd been answered on the page #2. AS usual, I'm sharp as a marble this morning!

 

[rohleder149]

the polished pieces look good.....you'd be suprised as to how much better it would look with a little frame paint though.....definitely detracts from how good those pieces look. get some aluminum frame guards, then you can polish the heck out of them too

 

[loudandproud]

the polished pieces look good.....you'd be suprised as to how much better it would look with a little frame paint though.....definitely detracts from how good those pieces look. get some aluminum frame guards, then you can polish the heck out of them too

i will have to do that and get some aframe paint

 

[trial_07]

A part of my frame, the kick starter, the swingarm, and the silencer have been polished. It looks great! Nice job Loudandproud :cool:

 

[loudandproud]

I just touched up the frame up a bit. The paint isnt a 100% but i just wanted to see how it looked. I think ill do a real paint job later this winter rather that just this touchup.

But i think this stuff should beef up the resale a little bit if the people looking at it like it. Plus it didnt cost me anything but alittle bit of my time.

 

[trial_07]

So what are you planning to get?

 

[loudandproud]

2005-07 CR450F or a YZ450F

i cant say that i really "need" it. But hell, at our level, who ever needs something that badass.

 

[Solid State]

Be very careful with imparting a lot of heat or grinding/polishing on that magnesium clutch cover. The autoignition temperature of Magnesium is 883 degrees F and once ignited burns at approx. 4000 degrees F. Normal methods will not extinguish the material (as I found out in chemistry class long ago - don't ask). A Wikipedia search also gave the next two tidbits:

-The extremely high temperature at which magnesium burns makes it a handy tool for starting emergency fires during outdoor recreation.

-Other uses include flashlight photography, flares, pyrotechnics, sparklers, and incendiary bombs.

Good luck.