My bike has officially turned 6 years old but all the oxidation buildup on the engine/metal parts and rust spots here and there actually make the bike look a lot older than it is. I want to do a thorough cleaning but I'm not sure of the materials I'd need for this. I heard WD-40 works good for getting all the grime and oil stains off but that's really only a part of the whole cleaning process. I also need to touch up the frame with some black paint because The fairings have rubbed against the frame leaving some yellow marks, done when I fell off a few times. This is probably going to be a mid-fall/winter project as there's only about a month left of good riding. Some of the bolts that have rusted a lot I'll probably replace or just get some black spray paint on them. Now that I write this I've realized that this is a lot of work :icon_eek:
What type of cleaning solutions should I use?
I don't know about where you stay but as long as there isn't any snow on the ground we can pretty much ride year round.
Once it hits around 14F here the bike is just too cold to start.
Depending how far you are going to take your bike apart. I use laundry detergent for the tons of BUILT UP GEAR LUBE, oil leaks around the lower motor, swing arm and wheels. it works wonders. If not that far down I use the same with an old tooth brush. :)
BE warned though.... Your hands get VERY slippery and it is EASY to cut yourself. :mad:
You might check out this thread I started a while back on cleaning a bike. It has good suggestions:
http://gstwins.com/gsboard/index.php?topic=53585.msg604578#msg604578
Sounds good. I'm going to try the things listed in that thread. Thanks!
My frame needs some touchup paint in places, but is the only way to paint match the frame is to paint the whole frame?
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