kz1000

Wow, mopguy!

I just went through polishing my forks. Yours results put mine to shame. I wet sanded mine using 320, 400, 600 and 1000 grit. Then used the bench buffer. I was very happy with the results until I saw yours. Good show!

Joe

P.S. Don't use a silicone based wax to protect it. It dulls aluminum. I have been looking for a beeswax based wax. I saw some main brands that have Carnauba/beeswax blend. Not sure if Carnauba wax is ok for aluminum. But I may buy some and try a small spot and see if it dulls the mirror shine any. Would like to save the work I put into polishing them and make it last for awhile.

You should consider getting the lowers clear anodized now that they're gutted and shined.

Joe when I wet sand I use mineral oil rather than water,and I dont stop at 1000 grit I keep going all the way to 2000 grit, after that I get aluminum polish and polish to a mirror like shine with an old bath towel I cut in two inch wide sstrips and I buff with it, all done by hand, I dont use power tools, or buffing wheels.

Took rest of bike apart today,after looking under frame and swingarm, I've decided that I am going to get them sandblasted and powdercoated instead of a paint touch up. Will post picures of final product next week. This is what she looks like now.

mopguy wrote:

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Took rest of bike apart today,after looking under frame and swingarm, I've decided that I am going to get them sandblasted and powdercoated instead of a paint touch up. Will post picures of final product next week. This is what she looks like now.

You might want to consider getting your frame braced if you'll be painting/powedercoating the whole thing.

Man, I'm doing an awful lot of "suggesting..." to you. Frankly, that'd annoy me :blush: No harm intended, just me running my mouth. haha

Love that polished fork man! really nice

Attended a Wood Show this weekend in Kitchener,Ontario,and found a vendor selling sandpaper,I thought fine sandpaper stopped at 2000 grit,is that is the finest I could find around here, well this vendor had 3000,4000,6000,8000,16,000 all the way to 60,000 grit. I stocked up on these and I am going to be using them to finish my engine covers. I will post a picture when finished.

nice job on the polishing.
wow, i thought 2000 was fine. but 60,000 thats crazy. what would they use that for ?

^ yes, I heard of 3K but nothing above it.... I also wonder what it's used for. When I hit 1000 I start to loose my marbles :lol: I have a hard time telling where I've wet sanded, the higher grits sure don't seem to last very long I find. I use warm water with a good shot of dish soap (Norton sandpaper). That fork leg looks really good mopguy.

mopguy wrote: Attended a Wood Show this weekend in Kitchener,Ontario,and found a vendor selling sandpaper,I thought fine sandpaper stopped at 2000 grit,is that is the finest I could find around here, well this vendor had 3000,4000,6000,8000,16,000 all the way to 60,000 grit. I stocked up on these and I am going to be using them to finish my engine covers. I will post a picture when finished.

I took your suggestions and went ahead and worked my forks further using the 1500 then the 2000. Finished by using Mother's Mag & Aluminum polish and finally got similar results like yours. Didn't even have to use the bench buffer. But a lot time and work doing so. I think I'd go nuts if had to go any further than 2000 grit.

If aluminum is in really bad shape you start with #1 grit and work you way up to #2000 grit. For those who have never seen #1 grit, here's a picture: