Has anybody ever done this? I have a flat-spot where I think someone in the past sanded out a ding but in the process, they created an ugly flat-spot. I am hoping to get rid of the obvious flaw without removing the case from the bike. Wondering what type / grit of paper I should use to first remove some metal, then eliminate sanding scratches and make smooth again, eventually polishing to blend to a un-noticeable appearance. Thanks.
I want to sand the side-case while on bike
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rvich
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It would be easier to advise with a photo of the area. But I would probably do something like wrapping 400 grit around a length of foam pipe insulation that is a couple inches in diameter. You can bend the foam to the curve you are trying to match and carefully sand the high spots down. Then I would either move to finer paper or get out the buffing wheel and the brown tripoli and polish it up. If you have to take off lots of material, you may need to start with a more coarse paper and work you way down.
Remember the number one rule with abrasives. Make sure the grit stays on the outside of the motor!
Russ
Remember the number one rule with abrasives. Make sure the grit stays on the outside of the motor!
Russ
htown16
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You could even start with a fine file. The key is to keep stepping up to finer and finer grits. 220,400,800,1000,2000 is what I use. Use a backing plate to work a dent out. Sand in opposite directions with each step up and look at the surface carefully to see there are no scratches left and the surface is perfectly flattened before you move one to the next step. Use wet and dry paper with WD-40 for lube. Finish up with some Mothers metal polish , Autosol or Simichrome. It won't look quite as good a professional polish job using commercial wheels but it ain't bad and you can do it with the parts attached.
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Ahmen htwon to this serial tedium progression to perfection, though it may make the rest of the case look unfinished so the scope of filing and sanding and then buffing must expand on each new level of re-fining and any goof ups even more. I've been though on bike touch ups and now think its a waste of my time not removing case and doing it all over at once. The urge to resist is moving on to next grit before its really gotten out all the past grit scoring so back up a grit and start again, ugh.
DogT
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My primary cover was pretty rough. I used some fine files, then found some 320 that will fit on my orbital sander and went to work. Like others, I used 600, 1000, however fine you want to go, and finish with Mothers AL polish.
It just takes time.
Dave
69S
It just takes time.
Dave
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