Fender restoration

madass140 · Dec 22, 2011

I have some perfect condition original fenders I wish to use for restoration, now I always thought they were a poor quality stainless coz a magnet will stick to them, am I wrong in thinking this, I wish to either polish or chrome them.

L.A.B. · Dec 22, 2011

madass140 said:
I always thought they were a poor quality stainless coz a magnet will stick to them, am I wrong in thinking this

Yes, I think you would be wrong to think that.

madass140 · Dec 22, 2011

so you are saying they are a good quality stainless or are you saying they are made of steel which can be chromed?
they certainly dont appear to be chrome plated

L.A.B. · Dec 22, 2011

madass140 said:
so you are saying they are a good quality stainless

I'm saying that if they are magnetic then they would be the standard quality stainless that "stainless steel" mudguards appear to be made of.

madass140 said:
or are you saying they are made of steel which can be chromed?
they certainly dont appear to be chrome plated

No, they were not chrome plated originally (what would be the point?).

madass140 · Dec 22, 2011

thanks, I'll have them polished and see what happens

Manymotos · Dec 22, 2011

There are many stainless alloys, some magnetic some not. The fenders on your Norton will polish well and are thick enough that you can tap dents and dings out of them. After straightening use a smooth file to knock off the high spots, then sand the area working your way up from 180 grit to 600 or 800 then buff with a cotton buff and stainless polishing compound. If done correctly they will look like mirrors. Slow process but what a wonderful look. I just finished a set for my Mk3. Please use caution as machine buffing can be dangerous. For your safety and the protection of your parts,If you don't have experience buffing metals you might best pay to have it done.

Rohan · Dec 22, 2011

A lot of grades of stainless are magnetic.
Don't believe I've ever seen any Commando guards with any trace of rust on them.
Dings can be gently beaten out and polished too, so good quality.

You need to do something with that image URL of your Triton ?

madass140 · Dec 23, 2011

heres my last Triton build, parked in my driveway in Brisbane, I used to manufacture Slimline frames.
features my frame,front brake, seat , fork yoles, rearsets, just about everything,

DogT · Dec 23, 2011

Rohan said:
...Don't believe I've ever seen any Commando guards with any trace of rust on them.

Now you have.

Of course it is not stainless.

Dave
69S

ZFD · Dec 23, 2011

Early Commando guards were steel, chromium plated. The narrow ones we now remanufacture were chromed steel originally, but we decided to make them in polished stainless instead. The others we make are also stainless (as original on the "wide front mudguard" Commandos). I HAVE seen rusty Commando mudguards!

DogT · Dec 23, 2011

Joe, is that new narrow mudguard you made for the fastback the same as would be on the 69/70 S and Roadster? Does it come with the shorter bridge and are the chromed or stainless stays available for it?

Dave
69S

batrider · Dec 23, 2011

ZFD said:
Early Commando guards were steel, chromium plated. The narrow ones we now remanufacture were chromed steel originally, but we decided to make them in polished stainless instead. The others we make are also stainless (as original on the "wide front mudguard" Commandos). I HAVE seen rusty Commando mudguards!

When was the changeover to "wide front mudguard"? A friend's '71 and my '72 have chromed fenders and were that way originally. Our bikes came with 4.10x19 front and rear so would think it would have to have the wider fender than 69-70 like DogT has. I thought the stainless ones came out with the very late 750s and all 850s - with the square tail lamp.

Also, just because some types of stainless are magnetic does not mean poor quality. We buy it where I work because it doesn't rust but we can stick magnets to it on purpose to hold thin sheets of sample material in place.

Rohan · Dec 23, 2011

Rohan said:
A lot of grades of stainless are magnetic.
Don't believe I've ever seen any Commando guards with any trace of rust on them.

Perhaps I should have added that I've not seen any of the Commando STAINLESS guards that have rusted - in reference to the grade of stainless being used.

Fender restoration

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L.A.B.

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