[asparagus]

I had some free time yesterday so I decided to give the bike a good clean. I haven't cleaned it in a while, and since I've been riding daily through the winter I was getting worried about salt building up and corroding metal parts. After the clean I still had some time so I thought I'll try to do something about the discolouration of my downpipes and exhaust. The bike is 18 months old now and I never treated these parts apart from cleaning. As a result they were looking like this yesterday morning:

So I took out a tube of Autosol and gave the pipes a good go-over. This is the exact method I was using (it's an excellent Youtube channel, worth checking out!):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ajqNR6hTSwE

This is how it looked like after doing one pipe:

And finally, the finished article:

and:

I have to say I was pretty pleased with the results!

Hope this is useful for anyone wanting to bring back that polished, stainless look to their pipes!

 

[McQueen]

Wow, was just gonna research how to bring the original color back to the downpipes on my F. Thanks asparagus!

 

[EagleMoto]

Wow, nice work, wish the down pipes were as easy to get to on my bike!

 

[Jealy]

Wow, nice work, wish the down pipes were as easy to get to on my bike!

Ditto, horrible fairing to take off.

Good job asp.

 

[Grumpy Goat]

You mean my bike has downpipes?

All kidding aside, the very same PITA-to-remove fairing is the same that hides the downpipes nicely. That said I love how they came out with a bit of elbow grease. Good job and nice looking bike.

 

[Paul Norton]

Autosol is a great product and has be used by motorcyclists for decades. I used it to take the blue off the exhaust pipes of my British bikes in the '60s.

A couple of things they did not mention in the video.

Autosol is a very aggressive chemical compound. That should not be a surprize considering how it smells and what it does. It also turns everything black, especially your hands. So I would recommend wearing an old pair of gloves. When I am done a years riding, my summer riding gloves (inexpensive deerskin work gloves from Home Depot or Marks Work Warehouse) are usually pretty grubby and somewhat weather beaten. They get used for gardening and jobs like this.

Autosol used to come with paper instructions in the box. In the instructions it mentioned spreading the polish and letting it sit a minute or so. Not too long or it will start to dry. I use a dampened sponge to spread it. Then do your buffing with parts of old T-shirts as shown in the video.

There is no need to use this product on silverware or other eating utensils. Most toothpastes will do the same thing, but are not toxic (duh!) and wash off easily. After all they are used to polish the plaque off your teeth. I learned to use toothpaste as a metal polish at a Goldwing rally in the '80s. A surprize show and shine contest was held on Sunday, and of course no one had brought chrome polish with them. But when one enterprising "leadwinger" hauled out his toothpaste, it wasn't long before we all did the same. Yah we had yellow teeth, but sparkling bike chrome.

 

[mike stockwell]

I had some free time yesterday so I decided to give the bike a good clean. I haven't cleaned it in a while, and since I've been riding daily through the winter I was getting worried about salt building up and corroding metal parts. After the clean I still had some time so I thought I'll try to do something about the discolouration of my downpipes and exhaust. The bike is 18 months old now and I never treated these parts apart from cleaning. As a result they were looking like this yesterday morning:

So I took out a tube of Autosol and gave the pipes a good go-over. This is the exact method I was using (it's an excellent Youtube channel, worth checking out!):

This is how it looked like after doing one pipe:

And finally, the finished article:

and:

I have to say I was pretty pleased with the results!

Hope this is useful for anyone wanting to bring back that polished, stainless look to their pipes!

Love the Leo Vince muffler. Does it weigh less & sound louder than the stock pipe? What is the exhaust model & where did u buy it from? Cheers, Mike

 

[Thrasherg]

I assume the exhaust quickly turns back to the dirty color after a few hear cycles? Or does that Autosol shine last a while?

 

[ADIOS600]

My pipes are still like new after 4 years, quick autosol every 250 miles.