Black Wheels on an 82 1100E

[mmattockx]

This summer I have been spending a lot of time sorting the little niggling issues on my 1100E and making an attempt to get it looking as good as it runs. I bought the bike in fall 2004 and rode it mostly as-is through 2005 and some of 2006. It then mostly sat until last year when I started working on it with more intent. It always ran well but was seriously cosmetically challenged. I think it lived every one of its 22 summers before I bought it outdoors and it showed. The paint is awful, clearcoat peeling, faded and weathered. First thing on the list was refinishing the wheels in black. I sandblasted them and repainted with satin finish VHT caliper and wheel paint.

First, a before pic with the bike on stands and about to lose its shoes for a few days:


Another before pic, just the wheels this time:


Rear wheel before blasting:


And after:


Front wheel after:


Front wheel after paint:


Rear wheel after paint (just a bit of overspray on the floor!):


After paint the wheels needed to be baked at 200F for an hour to complete the cure. The rear wheel and sprocket carrier offered no problems, but the front wheel was too big to fit in the oven... So I did some measuring, drew it up in CAD and worked out a stand to hold the wheel at an angle to allow the oven door to close. After all, what was the point of all that math in engineering if I can't solve the important problems, right? Worked like a charm, with less than 1/2" all around the wheel when in place:






con't...

[mmattockx]

And now, the final results:










First off, ignore the front fender. I painted the side covers and fender white as part of a planned white w/red stripe colour scheme then realized it was going to look awful. It is now going to be British racing green sometime this summer, possibly with a white stripe depending on what I think of the green alone.

Second, the VHT paint was seriously underwhelming. It sprayed very nicely but is not at all tough. I used it on the recommendation of others I have seen on bike forums that said it was very tough after baking, but it isn't anything of the sort. Even after the proscribed cure at 200F it scratches easily and is no tougher than rattle can lacquer. Very disappointing considering the time spent on prep. If/when I do the wheels again they are getting powdercoat or a two part urethane. While I was at it, I installed new wheel bearings in the rear (fronts were changed earlier this season) and a new set of Shinko 230's went on to replace the old BT-45's.

Next up is green bodywork and new fork springs along with cartridge emulators.


Mark

[azr]

Nice work done, too bad about the paint. A buddy has his powder coated, the cats meow for sure. What are those rotors from?

[mmattockx]

Nice work done, too bad about the paint. A buddy has his powder coated, the cats meow for sure. What are those rotors from?

Thanks. Front rotors were new Chinese ones from fleabay for the CBR600F3. I did salty monk's brake upgrade but had the used set of F3 rotors I used first warp as the pads bedded in. Considering what people want for close to 20 year old used F3 rotors I figured new with a warranty was worth the extra cost. So far, so good.


Mark

[BurntKittyForge]

Coincedence, here's an ad I came across other day:
http://frederick.craigslist.org/mcy/5700366193.html The Ad states "Parts bike for additional $500" .
The one w/ "salvage title" has crash damage to forks , headlight /front ...

I have no affiliation with it, just noticed the ad.
Be funny what my woman would do if she found a MC wheel in the oven ...LOL, by the way!