Polishing Dull Parts of the Frame

[brickdogg]

I was looking at the pics of the "696" from Indy and I really liked how the glossy finish looked on the black parts of the frame. How would one go about doing that? Or do you just need to replace the parts all together?

Thanks

[Raux]

I was looking at the pics of the "696" from Indy and I really liked how the glossy finish looked on the black parts of the frame. How would one go about doing that? Or do you just need to replace the parts all together?

Thanks

take the bike apart, polish the parts, powdercoat them.

[brickdogg]

Right, but how do you polish them? Is this something I can do myself or do I need to do pay someone to do it?

[Raux]

Right, but how do you polish them? Is this something I can do myself or do I need to do pay someone to do it?

there are experts here that could probably tell you more, but i would check with your local powdercoating shop to see if they can polish it as part of the process.

the parts are cast aluminum, you probably could also just polish them with some kind of sanding device.

[He Man]

the glossy look is part of the finish of hte paint. you cant get a dull paint to look glossy, you CAN stri pthe paint and polish the aluminum underneath, or repaint it with a high gloss finish.

[brickdogg]

the glossy look is part of the finish of hte paint. you cant get a dull paint to look glossy, you CAN stri pthe paint and polish the aluminum underneath, or repaint it with a high gloss finish.

Would you be so kind as providing a how to on this? I really liked the way that looked but I have no clue where to start, aside from maybe taking the parts off of the bike lol. I don't know what to use to strip it or how to polish the aluminum. Thanks for your advice already. 

[Mash]

I did a little polishing on my right-side engine case.  It looks like bare aluminum, but it's actually coated with some kind of paint.  I very gingerly sanded off the paint on the ducati lettering, using several grits of paper.  Then I was able to use metal polish to bring up the luster of the lettering.  Mind you, this wasn't black, like yours, so you'll have to do something different.

Have you tried applying a good quality paste wax?  Try a wax that you apply, let dry to a haze, then buff.  It may take 3-4 applications to build up enough wax to sparkle.

[junior varsity]

on those bikes, the frame is powdercoated. you can get powdercoating done in any color you like, and in flat, semi-gloss and gloss.

the main way to do this would be to dissemble the bike, and send the bare frame to the powdercoater. seen somebody on here paint their frame by taping off everything behind it, but I think they were going for a blacked out look ,and used a rattle can.

maybe some paint experts can shed some light on alternative methods.

[junior varsity]

oooh, i think lots of wax might help out and get you to a level where you might happy enough not to do something drastic like tear the bike down.

(then again, that's what winters are for)

[brickdogg]

(then again, that's what winters are for)

haha, I live in AZ, we don't have a winter.

I am trying to do something inexpensive (hence why I am trying to do it myself) so powdercoating would not really be something I would be interested in.

As far as the waxing goes, that sounds intriguing, would the shine wear down or would it just get dirty and need to be cleaned?  Or even if it would wear down would it last for months, or more like weeks?

There are two different colors that I would want to see polished, the black right behind the trellis and the silver attached to the passenger pegs.  I like shiney, but I don't like chrome.

[He Man]

if you want it a highly lusterous black.... the black i used is called Super Durable Wet Gloss, i chose it because my swingarm was going to get a beating from oil and grime. so far its holding up very nicely.

http://ducatimonsterforum.org/index.php?topic=22204.0

i have my own powder coating oven, so if your low on funds shoot me a PM, i have about 1/2 pound of powder left and we can work something out.

However if you want to polish your own thing, well....youre on your own, you can start of with a machine to smooth the surface out, but when it comes to polshing, ive never had any luck with a machine, it always came out better by hand. but thats just me.

to strip the paint, i used some aircraft grade paint stripper, and a wire wheel on a angle grinder. you really do need to cover everything up, and wear rubber because the acid will eat through your skin. I had a piece fall on my skin and i really didnt notice it till i saw bubbly skin, the thing eats through your flesh and will leave holes in your flesh (ever see na piece of wood with termites, thats pretty much exactly how it looks like).

after you strip it, youll want to use a sander and sand down the big areas progressively. If the aluminum has a good finish on it already, id start with 200 and work up to a 1000, wet sand and hit it with a polshing wheel, the hand polish. if it doenst have a good finish, id start with 80-100 grit and smoothen the surface out.

It also depends on what piece you are working with to. a Cast piece will tend to have more bumps in it compared to a forged piece or milled. when you powder coat cast aluminum without smoothening the surface, you'll get some orange peel but it isnt that much of a big deal to me since im pcing more for ease of cleaning then blingy look.

hope this helps.

[Goat_Herder]

I think Brickdogg is looking for something a little less involved and much less expensive than Powder coating.  Powder coating it with wet gloss paint is definitely the way to go.  But couldn't he take off the frame and apply a clear coat over the existing paint?

[Raux]

the rear subframe and swingarm of the 696 are cast with a rough finish. the only way to match front part of the fram is a tear down, polishing and powdercoating or paint.

[Mash]

As far as the waxing goes, that sounds intriguing, would the shine wear down or would it just get dirty and need to be cleaned?  Or even if it would wear down would it last for months, or more like weeks?

Think of a waxed finish as having a thin layer of, um, wax that you buff to a shine. Short of a clearcoat, this is the probably the shiniest you'll get.  The thicker the coat of wax, the more resistant it is to being rubbed off easily.  I wax my tank and fairings a lot because it only takes minutes and I like to tinker.  The shine gets deeper every time I wax.  My tank is so slippery I had to put grip tape on the sides to hold on with my knees.

I use a liquid wax on my bike because the finish is already very glossy (and red).  For your purpose, you may want to use a paste wax to build up the finish faster. I buy wax at the auto parts store and I seem to gravitate to the Mothers brand.  I've got a can of Mothers California Gold that I've had for years and I think you can still get it for about 5 bucks. That's what I use on my car. The liquid I use is also Mothers and it smells like bananas and is bright yellow.

[Goat_Herder]

the rear subframe and swingarm of the 696 are cast with a rough finish. the only way to match front part of the fram is a tear down, polishing and powdercoating or paint.

Ahhhhh, wasn't aware that the subframe is a different finish than the main frame.  I thought it's the paint job.  I guess that DOES post a porblem for brickdogg.