The Journey Yet Travelled....

[Adrian]

I thought it might be time to share the resto work so far. I'm thoroughly enjoying myself once again and the results of all the work seem okay so far. The photos show the respray work, mostly. From rusty bits to shiny black via rust treatment, 2 coats of primer and then three coats of paint. I think it should last a while     Pik 3 shows all the new swingarm bits from Motorworks - a great place for those of us lucky enough to be able to use them. The bevel housing part way thru a careful acid clean comes up really well and I'm going to try a little polishing to see what happens.
The next part of this first stage is to now clean up all the plastics at the back. Mudguard, tool tray, seay tool box etc. before moving on to the front end and stage two. Does anyone know of a way to clean up the plastics so that it goes "back to black" for a long time. Products like Armoural are really good but fade very quickly. Any suggestions would be really appreciated.
Thanks guys ......

[Barry]

Does anyone know of a way to clean up the plastics so that it goes "back to black" for a long time. Products like Armoural are really good but fade very quickly. Any suggestions would be really appreciated.
Thanks guys ......  

Wish I did know the answer. A product that really worked long term would make someones fortune.

Nice paint work.

[montmil]

Mothers sells a product called Back-to-Black.

http://www.mothers.com/02_products/06108.html

I've used it on the black plastic end caps of the Cabriolet's aluminum bumpers. Seems to work OK. I think it's some sort of polymer surface coating. Brush on or wipe.

Here's their advert caveat, "Apply Back-to-Black® to sun-burnt plastic, rubber and vinyl to revive the factory-new sheen, then re-treat that exterior hardware regularly."

I have not re-treated the plastic bits in 2+ years. Don't intend to, either.

Monte

[tvrla]

It's possible to use shoe dye to replace the color. But I don't recall which was specifically recommended.

I've had good luck with the Mother's product or a few others. I've heard Armorall is actually harmful and dries out the plastic, so don't use it. The original formula was great, but was since changed.

And just keep it out of the sun - or put a cover over the bike when it's outside.

[Bob_Roller]

Nothing you put on the plastic or rubber is going to last for more than 6 months .

I've used two products over the years, the first was Turtle Wax Black Chrome haven't been able to find it for a while now .

The current product I use, is Mothers Back-To-Black .

I've heard the same thing about Armor All products, from people that restore '60-'70's 'muscle cars' , it tends to make the plastic and vinyl materials brittle .

Some products they do reccomend, not sure if they are available in your part of the world or not .

Meguiar's Professional Heavy Duty Vinyl Cleaner #39, Meguiar's Professional Vinyl & Rubber, Cleaner/Conditioner #40 .

Only place I can find them locally, is at an auto paint supply store .

[Lucky_Lou]

Looks like its going to be a great bike when its done, as for the plastics i dont know if you can get your hands on any Autoglym products but i use this to great effect....
http://www.autoglym.com/engb/product-proddetail.asp?Range=99&v06VQ=EM
Lou

[clonmore1]

Nice job on those parts Adrian!

The swing arm looks fantastic, like the finish on the hub, you said you were using an acid finish, what type etc?

Chris

[Dave 2]

Nice job [smiley=bmw_smiley.gif] I have used Armor All Products, but after reading the comments about it I will look into other members' suggestions. I was also interested to hear more about your experience with an acid wash. Keep on Trucking, D2

[Adrian]

[size=16]Hi guys[/size] - I took Montmil's advice and bought some of the Mother's Back To Black (called Naturally Black here in Oz). I read a couple of personal stories about its use and it seems from these that if I only have to use it twice a year then it's worth using. I just feel disappointed if the bike looks bright and shiny and new but the plastics are always grey/black and look doudy. I have a couple of original Krauser panniers as well so its important for me to have such a large area of plastic looking good.
[size=16]The acid[/size] cleaner is called Mother's All Wheel Cleaner and contains Oxalic Acid. (See picture) I broke the unit down in my head into 4 areas of cleaning. The top into upper and lower halfs and then the top sides and lower sides. First I brushed on the acid with a soft paint brush. Leave it for two minutes. Then agitate it with the brush for about 30 seconds or until the foaming action goes grey and "mushy". Carefully wash of and repeat twice more. Do that on each quarter. You've seen the results above.
[size=16]I used[/size] to use a pink acid gel that I could water down but I can't find it any more. This stuff works well so any acid based wheel cleaner should be fine.
[size=16]Cleaning[/size] the bevel drive took about 1 hour of slow careful work so as to not damage the surface and to not get water or acid on the inside area. You can probably guess how long it will take to do the wheels so my local light aircraft maintenance workshop might be willing to put them in their blasting chamber again for me. $50 aussie but worth it for the finish. I use a couple of brass cups (Welsh Plugs) and a very long bolt plus a sealing compound to keep the blasting material out of the bearings (just in case you're wondering).   8-)

[clonmore1]

Thanks for the info on the acid Adrian.

I am having my hub stripped back completely, over the weekend, I removed the rear brake shoes, there was no split pin holding them in place! everywhere I look, things are missing, so I can't trust that previous owners did the job properly, hence the total strip down into every component
Anyway, it gives me the chance to get the look I want.
The tip for the plastics is excellent from everybody, so I will get to that when the rebuild starts.

Keep going, can't wait to see what yours looks like when finished!

[Adrian]

Thanks AC and good luck with yours. Like everyone says on this forum it's just about slow hard graft and the end product will look and feel brilliant. I hope you're having as much fun - in between the frustrations - as I am.  

[tvrla]

It may seem like a royal pain now, but when everything is in good repair and spiffed up, it takes very little to keep it that way.

[Mike V]

Adrian,

Nice project.  For the black plastic parts on my restoration that seemed to be lost for luster I used good old Silicone Lube (paste).  I just rubbed it into the plastic well and buffed with a clean cloth, sometimes multiple applications depending on how dried out the piece looked.  It did a surprisingly decent job of restoring the look of the plastic.  It won't do much for UV protection but you may want to try it to see if it gets the look you're after. Cheap, and won't cause any damage.

[Landlubber]

Lanoline is also good for plastic, but brilliant with rubber. My 1960's dive gear (rubber) is still in good condition because of the use of lanoline.

[Adrian]

Thanks for all the advice guys it's much appreciated