| Author | Message | ||
     Indy_bueller |
I dont know if I'm beating a dead horse here, or if this has been discussed before. I've seen alot of the XBs here with polished frames, swingarms, etc. The dealer tells me not to do this, as it will weaken the frame and if you lay it over, tank pops open, sparks, BOOM. Anyone care to make any observations? Has anyone ever asked Erik about this by chance? Court, have you heard anything? | ||
| Jasonxb12s |
I would have to think that the engineers are relying on the frame structure and actual metal to do the intended job it was designed for, and not the chosen finish. Regardless, the only reason I haven't done this is the time factor involved in completing the job. | ||
| Odinbueller |
I'm not certain about the swing arm, but the frame is definitely out of the question. The problem is striping the color coating off. The process will undoubtedly take a small amount of metal off in the process (either physically or chemically), and then the polishing will distort the tolerances set by the manufacturer of the frame itself. The rigidity of the frame changes in certain areas, and stripping & polishing changes that to the point where you could do hidden damage to the structural integrity of the component. It's the trade off of getting one component to do more than one task. I've heard rumor that there is a video of a strength test filmed in Italy, where the test rider gets the bike to top speed, intentionally lays the bike down, and the XB skids for a long, long time. Frame came away uglier, but it held up and did not leak. | ||
| Njbuell |
Also, the composition of the metal changes throughout the frame....may cause an uneven finish but i'm not sure...havent polished a frame since my old ZX-9....thought that went out with neon lighting.  | ||
| Xb12s_streetdemon |
whats wrong with neon lighting? i think mine looks HOT!!!!! | ||
| Ghost_buell |
XB12s where did you get the neons? | ||
| Buellman39 |
I have been polishing aluminum race car parts for years and have never had a failure. Trust me when I say we put them to the test.  | ||
| Gearhead998 |
I think the dealer may have assumed that you would be smoothing out the welds in the frame. That would definatly weaken it. | ||
| Sokota |
FWIW, warning sticker on frame says do not polish among other do nots.  | ||
| Drift |
If you are concerned have it chromed. I personally don't like all that bling but the chrome holds up alot better and is easier to keep up. | ||
| Yeags30 |
don't polish it, don't chrome it....paint it black  | ||
| Cmm213 |
I'm with drift if you want bling have it dipped, it will take some effort but chrome is so much easier to take care of than bare metal. Me personaly I will never have a polished frame again to much work. Have some friends help you strip it down to the frame and ship it out. Will probably cost about 900 for the main and 250 for the arm. When I get my xb, my frame will be sprayed with a grafite gunmetal color kinda along the same lines as the 12 frame. If you do decide to polish it take your time, if you do a fast job it will show- good luck | ||
| Norrisperformance |
When you get something chromed, you still have to polish it first, Anything that's not polished to a mirror finish will show up after it's chromed. Trying to polish the welds and make them look nice, without hurting the welds will be tough. | ||
| Lonexb |
i'm with Yeags30 on this one. the new anti-bling..... black!  | ||
| Team |
I have a diamond plate covering on my XB12S Frame. | ||
| Koz5150 |
You call that neon lighting? I got 70+ LED's on my bike and still adding, gotta finish the front of the bike... (just gving you a hard time...)  I say go for the bling bling look. Owning a dirty bike stock bike doesn't make you any cooler. Riding good and looking is the best of both worlds! | ||
| Diablobrian |
Everyone has their own thing, but since opinions were asked for.....Leave the polished frames in the 90's. They are a pain to maintain. Not to mention a lot of work (if you do it yourself). Use that time that you would have to spend polishing (both initially and in weekly maintenance) to actually RIDE your bike.  | ||
| Koz5150 |
As I am all about riding, I did all of my polishing with 1 foot of snow on my front yard. Maybe that is a good reason to live in WI. You can spend a large amount of time working on bike projects and never miss any riding time... | ||
| Diablobrian |
Yeah, I'm going to have to re-adjust to the fact I moved back to Missouri from where I lived in San Diego for 15 years. That was 365 a year riding. Here not so much, unless you think the cold and snow add character to a ride.  |
