Polishing the side covers opinions

[Evil Hobbit]

I know there has been a lot of talk here on polishing the side covers. But, how much effort is it and is it worth it. Being retired Navy I sure like the bright work to shine. I figure I can recoat it after the shining to hold the shine. Hmmmmm maybe chrome them........
Am I nuts?

[Jeff Tate]

I stripped off the clearcoat on my side covers after they started peeling and just used aluminum wheel polish to shine them up. A buffing wheel chucked into an electric drill motor worked pretty good. It will all depend on how shiny they are to start with and hopefully not pitted from oxidation.
My bike stays in the garage(except when we go out of course) and really isn't exposed to any harsh climates. Mine were in pretty good shape so it didn't take a whole lot of effort. Just be careful you don't nick anything with the nut on the side of the buffing wheel. I occasionally polish them by hand just to keep them looking good.

[KEITH KRAUSE]

Re: Polishing the side covers opinions

I know there has been a lot of talk here on polishing the side covers. But, how much effort is it and is it worth it. Being retired Navy I sure like the bright work to shine. I figure I can recoat it after the shining to hold the shine. Hmmmmm maybe chrome them........
Am I nuts?

As stated above, you can strip the clearcoat with a remover and polish up the cases, etc, with a drill motor. I generally re-polish every 6 months without removing any parts. I put a light coat of silicone on after polishing. I learned how to polish aluminum by visiting Eastwood polishings website. I have my cases, fork tubes and parts of my wheels polished and it is a bit of work but worth it. I don't recommend chroming because the motor will build up more heat and the chrome sometimes does'nt stick well.
If you wonder if it's worth it, check out my website and see for yourself. Just click the WWW symbol below.

[Evil Hobbit]

Re: Polishing the side covers opinions

Very nice Keith!

[Anonymous]

That just makes me sick. In the good kind of way
Very impressive, Keith. Great job!!!!! Wanna do mine??

[Planecrazy]

WOW Keith! That really looks sharp!! Wherever the line is, I'm next ... yeah, yeah, do my bike next!!

Steve 8)

[Evil Hobbit]

WOW Keith! That really looks sharp!! Wherever the line is, I'm next ... yeah, yeah, do my bike next!!

Steve 8)

Keith,
The cover that I got from chuchie cheese went through a rigorous polishing inspired by you. Too bad it would not fit on my 1100E. I did not figure this out till after I polished it. So now there is a real sweet, polished stator cover on ebay.

[KEITH KRAUSE]

Well, at least now you know you can do it.

[renobruce]

BEAUTIFUL bike, Keith. NICE detail job =P~

[Anonymous]

Chrome or Polish

I have the engine side covers on my 81 1100 chrome plated and the ones on my 83 are polished. The chrome has held up extremely well over many years with virtually no maintenance where as the polished ones require much more attention. I opted not to apply clearcoating over the polished covers because I did'nt care for the look so I have to buff them after every wash. Only takes a few minutes.
I definetly prefer the chrome!!

[Jay B]

Polish away oh Evil one. I think that the older bikes just look that much better when everything that can be polished is.