[Arcrist]

I spent a solid 5 hours this evening taking off the paint on the back rim. Im glad the front one is thinner cuz it was painful. I used stripper and laquer thinner like the guide said, however I saw no need to polish up to 0000 because if you look closely the rim on the 06 is brushed, it cant get any shinier that it is.

Heres my bike:

www.geocities.com/andrew_fetzer/pics/3
www.geocities.com/andrew_fetzer/pics/4

 

[craig4722]

+1 Hey this looks really nice based off the pictures, nicely Done!

 

[Arcrist]

Yeah i see now that i missed a small spot on the left side.

 

[Acceler8RR]

Nice job. I plan to do the same over the winter.

 

[slab42]

looks good, now all you gotta do is fix that giant mud flap you got there!

 

[teleinfoncarr]

i did my back one as well i like it cant wait to do the front

 

[rocketscience]

however I saw no need to polish up to 0000 because if you look closely the rim on the 06 is brushed, it cant get any shinier that it is.

What?? Man... you can get them looking like mirrors. It's a lot of sanding but you'll be happy you did it.

Wet sand till you fingers are numb!

Grab a bucket of water with some dishsoap and start with 320 grit then move to 600, 800, 1000, 1500.
Follow up with mothers aluminum polish.

Looks great but you need to finish it.

 

[4x4600rr]

looks cool i hear steel wool works good to...BTW did you sand your chicken strips off to>>

 

[usmcr6]

polished rims are hard to maintain.

 

[KulSecHskY]

polished rims are hard to maintain.

+1 10 gkjgjkhlklkjhjk

 

[DirtyD916]

+1 10 gkjgjkhlklkjhjk

+10000000000

I have to reapply polish every week. Thank god for the powerball.

 

[Arcrist]

So to wetsand I need special sandpaper right?
And what about the mudflap? I should take it off?

 

[usmcr6]

looks clean to remove the mucda;lap but yes if you wetsand you can gwt wetsanding paper at like autozone or something made by 3m. if you dont have a power sander then hooray for blisters!

 

[Arcrist]

I have an orbital sander, could i use that with some sort of dry buffer or do they make wet sand pads for it? Even so, the orbital would have a hell of a time trying to conform to the rim. Maybe one of those soft fuzzy attachments would buff it to a shine.

I just heard from a guy at work that I will get surface rust now that I took the paint off. He said someting about clear coat sealer. ???

 

[rocketscience]

Nope. Just gonna have to go at it by hand. It's not hard at all, just tedious. Pick some sandpaper up at any autoparts dept.. Just make sure it's wetsand paper. Oh, and like I said above, put some dish soap in a bucket of water and get that sandpaper soaked and keep dipping the sandpaper after sanding a little. The key to getting super shiny is gradually working up in grit size. Dont skimp here or it wont look like a$$. Start at 320 and go all the way up to at least 1500. Then use your favorite polish (2 coats at least). You'll be amazed how good they look if you take your time.

 

[Arcrist]

Awesome I will do that first thing when i get home. Hopefully the wet sanding process will get any spots I missed during the stripping process.

Do I need to tape off the center strip of paint again? probably...

 

[rocketscience]

Yeah, just to make sanding faster so you wont have to wory about hitting paint.

 

[Arcrist]

The water wont tear my painters tape to shreds?

Hah i just learned something, I was told I can put the back end up on the stand in 1st gear and let the bike idle while you hold the sandpaper in place. Genius!

 

[xcessiv]

that is genius!!

but + a sideways 8 on the hard to maintain. i always gotta keep busting my polish out. annoying. i think i need to get that powerball. i always see it but question it. whats everyones opinion on that?

 

[scotia600rr]

If your going to put the bike in gear and stick your fingers in there - be sure your OK with losing a finger or two. The bike won't slow down if you get caught up in the chain.

Saw a picture of a guy missing his index finger recently while working near the rear wheel of his bike.

I think I would sooner work a little harder and keep all my fingers intact.