OK, so I tried the Rutland stove polish on my header pipes...

[Johnny5]

Ugghhh, I could not stand one more look at my rusty header pipes... bike looks really good except for those cruddy looking pipes:




So, I decided to try the Rutland stove polish trick that poster "Sledge", our brother from across the pond suggested.  It was easy, took me about 30 minutes... sanded the rust flakes off a bit, got a rag and applied the polish.   Let it dry for 20 minutes and ran the bike to "bake" it.  Came out pretty good I think... I'm pretty happy with it.  Man what a difference from all that cruddy looking rust... LOL

[RVertigo]

Still rough up close, but I bet it looks 10ox better from 5 ft away.   


OK...  I guess I gotta run to the hardware store.

[Johnny5]

Still rough up close, but I bet it looks 10ox better from 5 ft away.   


OK...  I guess I gotta run to the hardware store.

Yup, still rough, but I literally sanded them for maybe 5 minutes just to get the loose rust off.  I didn't want to get to crazy, and I didn't even have to remove the pipes.  Not perfect, Looks great from a couple of feet back... and DEFINITELY better than the rust LOL...  honestly those pipes were so rusty I was afraid to get carried away taking the rust off.  It's pretty weird, the bike was clearly pretty well cared for when I bought it... but it looks like the pipes are 35 years old.  Stupid V&H.. LOL

[RVertigo]

Mine aren't nearly as bad...  But, it would look at least 10x better without the rust pipes and the "bloody nose."

[heatherg11]

so, where can we get this polish???

[Johnny5]

so, where can we get this polish???

I actually got it from Ace Hardware, about $4 for a 12oz bottle, I used about maybe 1/4 of it... here's a link to the stuff I used:

http://www.rutland.com/maintenance_html/72.html

I took it for a spin to the store and back, smoked as it was baking on for about 5 minutes, but then it was fine.  We'll see how it holds up riding it around...

[heatherg11]

how much was that stuff.  i looked on ace.com and it's $53....but it says 12 pack. can you buy singles??

[Johnny5]

how much was that stuff.  i looked on ace.com and it's $53....but it says 12 pack. can you buy singles??

Yup, I went to the local Ace HW, they didn't have it in stock but ordered it for me.  I just got one 12oz bottle, it was like $4 bucks.

[heatherg11]

ok great

[WREX]

I'd read about our peeps across the pond doing it as well.  definitely an improvement and a good option if you want to keep the job simple    let us know how it holds up. 

[The Buddha]

How about you paint on top of it with high temp BBQ paint and call it a day.
Header paint is available in an ashy black and silvery color too actually.
Cool.
Srinath.

[sledge]

Hi Jonnny,
Shame about the pitted pipes, you can get a really good finish with a nice smooth surface but its a vast improvement all the same. Try a few coats of the polish and build up a coating.

[Johnny5]

Hi Jonnny,
Shame about the pitted pipes, you can get a really good finish with a nice smooth surface but its a vast improvement all the same. Try a few coats of the polish and build up a coating.

Hey Sledge, no sweat.  My camera and closeup high light pictures make them look much worse than they are, LOL.  I can't believe how rusty these pipes were...

They are not perfect now, but they actually look really good... it is a world of difference from what they were, like night and day.  I'm VERY pleased with it, I'll have to take a longer shot so you can get the better effect.  I can't BELIEVE the way the PO let those pipes rust!  He clearly took pretty good care of the rest of the bike...

I have a bud who's a metal worker, and he steered me away from sandblasting them because of their condition, and I was afraid to go to crazy sanding them with paper, I have a feeling they are just about rusted through.  So I figured I'd give this a try before trying to buy a new(or used) exhaust.  Especially because I  like the way the V&H sounds. 

Thanks for the tip on the Stove polish!

[Johnny5]

Alright, so here is a pic that is not so closeup, with 80 billion megapixels picking up every flaw, LOL... this is the effect I was going for.  When you looked at the bike before the rusty header pipes really stuck out... not any more.

[Jay_wolf]

Where Did U Get That Steering Damper?

I Think Im Gonna Need One For The Kat Front End

Thanks,. Oh Yea, Bike Looks Good

[Johnny5]

Where Did U Get That Steering Damper?

I Think Im Gonna Need One For The Kat Front End

Thanks,. Oh Yea, Bike Looks Good

It was actually on the bike before the prior owner even bought it... it's just for looks though, it's Blown... LOL.  Worked when I bought it, but started leaking it's oil on about my 4th ride with it... definitely made the bike a bit more stable,  but Honestly the stock GS doesn't need it really, you may want it on the Kat front end though.

[Jay_wolf]

they look really good thats all , and for the Kat front end , i think it will help a lil

[heatherg11]

I used some of this today and man, it really makes it look good. i only put one coat on, but when that bakes on really well, I will probably put another coat on. It really makes it look 100x better. got an extra bottle if anyone can't find any. it's $4.50 + ship. That's exactly what I bought it for. I got 2 thinking I may need it, but there's no way I would use it. let me know if anyone wants it.

[heatherg11]

Here are some pics of my bike with the pipe done with rutland polish.

http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/shortybd11/album?.dir=/9580re2

[Johnny5]

Here are some pics of my bike with the pipe done with rutland polish.

http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/shortybd11/album?.dir=/9580re2

Looks good Heather... I'm so glad that Sledge posted that tip.  I couldn't be more happy with the way it came out on my bike.  Yours looks pretty good too!

Say, How do you like those dominator lights at night, compared to the stock headlight?