TOPIC:

I know... I ask for a lot.

I am looking for specific plating and specific finishes for parts all over the bike. I am not sure where to start asking because I am not doing anything in a logical order. It's the only way to keep things interesting. I put the bike into boxes that were generically marked "GPZ750" and I just was gonna go pull a box out and restore my first set of pieces. not sure what will be in the box. That's the fun of it. I'd like to do as much paperwork and research before I play with the actual bike. So, if anyone got any really good pictures of a really sharp, prefferrably 100% original, or 100% correct 1982 GPz750, then I'd love ot see em.

Shalom,

John,

There are a number of us that own 1982 GPz750's on this forum. Most bikes are in various states of disrepair or disassembly (mine included). I suspect that Walt (U2U him) has done a restoration on his 750 so he might have some real quality pictures. On the other hand, I have been buying dealer literature as a comparative means for when my scooter is reassembled. If I ever can scan it in, I'll post what I have. You will run into a big roadblock when you try to duplicate the finish on the pipes, grab-bar, etc. They were termed 'black-chrome' and I have gotten a sngle reasonable explanation from only one forum member on what that finish might be. No one does it now but you, by virtue of your training, may be able to figure it out.

Black chrome could mean 1 of 2 different things.

either smoked chrome (which basically looks like chrome that has a tinted black/smokey look to it)







or Black Oxide which some people call parkerizing, or gunblueing. mainly because the barrels of most firearms are plated in this manner. Black Oxide produces a black reflective finish almost like a transparent black paint, but with metals reflectivity. This sounds like a more reasonable explaination for what the grab-bar was plated with, since my bike more exhibits this form of plating, rather than an actual black chrome finish. black chrome is a hard plating process, and is actually a triple plating techniqe, where the piece (if made of steel) is first to apply a flash coat of nickel over the item, because copper cannot be plated directly onto steel, then the copper is sanded and buffed out to a mirror reflection, then the piece is plated with nickel, and finally chrome. lots of work and expensive, and the finish is not like anything I have seen on my GPz. I would guess that black oxide is the finish. Who told you it was black chrome? black chrome is a rare expensive finish, and for a japanese bike, out of the question. I would say that they meant black oxide finish, and used the word chrome, because black oxide is a plating process, and so is chrome, so, toidentify black oxide as a plating process, they called it black chrome. Here's a picture of black oxide plating...





I have found that finish on several parts on my GPz, so Ia m gonna assume that's what we are talking about when we say black chrome. As far as old literature goes, I just wish there was something tangible, not just a piece of literature, but an actual bike. Old literature photography tended to dramatize the lighting, and really, it's hard to see things, except to identify everything as being "black" When in reality, the whole bike was not just painted black.

I know... I am preaching to the chior on this issue, but I am sure you share my frustrations and maybe you have found other issues that I have yet to discover.

Godspeed,

Post edited by: john68, at: 2005/10/25 19:36

heres a nice one...... wish mine looked this good

This help?

Or B&W?

wow! where'd you guys find those pics? I occasionally google the bike, but I don't get anything good. If only those pictures were about 2MB in size, so I could really see some detail. One thing I am already noticing is that the faded out paint on my handlebars was black at one time!

John:

The only reason I repeatedly have used the term 'black chrome' is that this was the term bantered about at the kawasaki shops when these bikes first came out. If it is another process, great...and you actually understand how to replicate it, even better!!!! I am unaware of anyone doing this for restoration purposes despite there being a group of bikes (1981-1985) from all major manufacturers that used this finish. Glad you were able to recognize this particular finish!

Hahaha!

yeah, "black chrome" sounds like a salesman's pitch. Did you ever hear a used car salesman say, "That's not an oil leak! That's sweat from all that horsepower!"

Anyhow, black oxide is extremely easy to replicate, and cheap, which is why they used it so much. Mustangs have a lot of black oxide plated parts on them. Of course, when you see a restored Mustang, chances are the owner/restorer just got out the black duplicolor and went to town.

You shouldn't have a problem doing the black oxide in your own basement, or dining room (my last girlfriend just loved it when I refinished parts on the kitchen table. Needless to say she left me )
You don't need a lot of stuff to do that process. caswell has a kit for it. It's about $40 for a 5 quart kit, $70 for a 2.5 gallon kit. there's no heating, no electric, and nothing that can duplicate the look of a finish like this. I've tried several different paints to replicate the look, but to no avail.
Of course, I should have told you, "Oh, it's complicated, send me your parts and paypal me some cash." That would be cruel!

good luck,

John, a quick word of advice, if you haven't purchased a new battery for that scooter, do so soon. They come with a sensor but may not be available much longer. They are shipped dry so should store for quite a while. I'm tempted to buy another battery and just archive it for later. The batteries w/sensors are no longer available for the 1100 B1/2 models, so I figure the R1 is next.

I don't think "black chrome" and "black oxide" is the same thing. If you're talking black oxide, like blackened bolts, brackets, ect used on cars and bikes this is not the same. The finish on black oxide is just semi-gloss. Black chrome was just that, it was shiney as chrome, but black. Kawasaki themselves called it black chrome, not just the dealers. I liked it.

Uh... I agree?

I know black chrome is not the same as black oxide, but I also know that there is no black chrome on my GPz. Something like that would really stand out in my eyes. I used to judge concours cars at shows, so I know the difference between someone painting a piece "cast iron" and seeing an actual bare cast iron piece. Unless you can find me a picture of this black chrome that kawasaki spoke of, I am convinced that it was black oxide. Also, the finish(gloss, semi-gloss, flat) of the plated object depends soley on the finish of the unplated item. if you plate a cast steel cylinder head with a triple chrome plating, it will look like someone hit it with a rattle can of fake "bumper chrome." it won't be reflective, and it will deffinitely look hideous. chrome and other platings are so sensitive that even a piece sanded down to 3500 grit without being buffed further, will look dull after being plated.

Anyhow, if you have any pictures at all of kawasaki's black chrome, I would like to see them. Having never seen this before, I am very very skeptical.

EDIT: I just found out a local bike salvage yard has a NEW TAKE-OFF 1982 GPz750 exhaust system (I used all caps because I just about crapped my pants when I read the email) I am deffinitely going to go buy that exhaust system tomorrow, so I will have new take off exhaust to analyze for finish. I will have to arrange for an armored car now, so none of the other 82 GPz owners try to hi-jack me on the way home.

Post edited by: john68, at: 2005/10/26 19:02