Meguiar's Metal Polish + Mothers PowerCone

[CoolATIGuy]

QUESTION before my review - anybody polished their headers before and have an estimate on how long it takes from decently golden back to shiny? Especially interested if anyone has used the PowerCone/PowerBall drill attachment. And, how frequently and for how long does it need touching up?

I was picking up some DuPont Chain Degreaser and the DuPont Grunge brush from Wal-Mart today from the small Motorcycle Section (check with your WM first - only some have this), and saw some Meguiar's Metal Polish (~$7) for a small jar. Picked some up, and started going at my exhaust headers. It had a very pleasant scent, not chemically by any means.

Ended up going to PepBoys and picking up a Mothers PowerCone drill-mounted polisher (~$25) - they also make a ball shape, and a mini-ball as well. Basically just a foam cone/ball mounted to a bit that fits into a standard drill. Still expect to get some cramps from being up under the bike, but really eased the work - I don't envy anyone polishing headers by hand (except maybe potential bicep size!)

Only got to 2 of the 4 pipes so far, and even those aren't done, but it's a start.

Before and after you can def tell a difference - however, be prepared that's it's not going to just all come off like dirt or grime and wash away instantly - it's so slow it's hard to tell it's doing anything. It prob took me well over an hour, maybe two just to get as far as I did. Patience is def key here, I found.

The Powercone was def a useful tool, and I'm sure my technique can improve since I haven't done much polishing, but at ~$25 for a handful of foam on a drill bit? Sheesh! Would have been happier with something more like $10...but it's washable so hopefully it'll last for a little while.

There may be better polishes, but I got what was handy. Just my 2c!

 

[Drinky]

Oh wow that looks amazing, what a difference, they look brand new!

 

[DHG4139]

They look great! I was looking at mine yesterday and thinking the same thing.
Luckily it passed I kinda like the bronzy color.

 

[Erci]

Replied to your PM and as I mentioned there.. I think it took you so long because you went straight for the polish. I started by wet-sanding mine with very fine grit sandpaper. Took me about an hour to do the entire header (if I remember correctly). :thumbup:

 

[CoolATIGuy]

No, I skipped the sanding...scared me thinking I'd scratch it up. So it's totally fine? How much time/effort did you put into it? I'm afraid of going to far.

Obviously can't recommend it before I try it, but I can image if you did all your headers in about an hour it's definitely a technique to implement.

And the electronics cleaner you used - can you just use plain-jane isopropyl alcohol to remove the residue?


Thanks!!

 

[MHS]

I wet sanded my headers when I polished them as well, I did it in a three step process... 1500 grit, then 1800 grit, then 2000.

Afterwards I polished the crap out of them with Mother's polish. I spent a little over an hour on the whole process.

Of course, I'm a terrible community contributor - so I don't have before or after pictures, but it made a world of difference.

 

[CoolATIGuy]

So, wet sanding seems to be the way to go - can I just use fine grit sandpaper and wet the pipes with some water? Or is wetsanding something different?

 

[MHS]

All I did was make sure I kept the fine grit sandpaper wet (by frequently dipping it in a bucket of water). If there's supposed to be more to it than that I missed the memo.

 

[Erci]

No, I skipped the sanding...scared me thinking I'd scratch it up. So it's totally fine? How much time/effort did you put into it? I'm afraid of going to far.

Obviously can't recommend it before I try it, but I can image if you did all your headers in about an hour it's definitely a technique to implement.

And the electronics cleaner you used - can you just use plain-jane isopropyl alcohol to remove the residue?


Thanks!!

Don't worry about scratching the pipes. Just get very fine sandpaper.. 800-1000 is a good starting point to get the really hard stuff off, if your pipes are in bad shape. If they're clean, but just yellow, you can go straight to super-fine.. 1500 or higher. As mentioned, wet sanding = keeping the paper wet by frequently dipping it in water.. don't let it get dry.
I'd say I spent equal amount of time sanding and polishing, so 30 minuntes + 30 minutes.

 

[Wolfman]

Don't worry about scratching the pipes. Just get very fine sandpaper.. 800-1000 is a good starting point to get the really hard stuff off, if your pipes are in bad shape. If they're clean, but just yellow, you can go straight to super-fine.. 1500 or higher. As mentioned, wet sanding = keeping the paper wet by frequently dipping it in water.. don't let it get dry.
I'd say I spent equal amount of time sanding and polishing, so 30 minuntes + 30 minutes.

Yes, wet rub is the key!

:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:

 

[Sawblade]

0000 steel wool and Noxon 7 polish for me.

 

[Blake]

http://solutions.3m.com/wps/portal/...T.mc_id=Electronics_Redirect&WT.tsrc=Redirect

- for wet sanding this stuff is awesome, when I use to do refinishing work we would use this for all the wet sanding work we did on everything, including metal.

 

[CoolATIGuy]

0000 steel wool and Noxon 7 polish for me.

Is it fairly straightforward just some bolts to just take the headers off the bike and polish separate? Would you put some tape over the intake ports to cover while off? Any catches or something to watch out for? I KILLED my back and sweated a pool in the middle of the driveway working underneath the bike yesterday.

What would you rate steel wool at vis a vis fine-grit sandpaper? Like a 1500 maybe?

 

[Kazza]

Looks fantastic. I'm a big fan (ok, my FZ6 Maintenance man Prebstar is a big fan) of Meguires products.

Well done :thumbup:

 

[Erci]

What would you rate steel wool at vis a vis fine-grit sandpaper? Like a 1500 maybe?

I'm not sure where to rate steel wool compared to sandpaper in terms of grit, but in general steel wool is usually used as final sanding step. It conforms to surfaces better than sandpaper, so it may produce better result in the end.

 

[MHS]

I didn't use steel wool because I read somewhere (I thought on this forum) that it could cause some issues. I could be recalling that incorrectly, or it could be false information regardless.

But, I didn't use it and my headers look awesome so I don't feel like I missed out on anything.

 

[Erci]

I didn't use steel wool because I read somewhere (I thought on this forum) that it could cause some issues. I could be recalling that incorrectly, or it could be false information regardless.

But, I didn't use it and my headers look awesome so I don't feel like I missed out on anything.

It's definitely not a necessary step. Steel wool issues are usually related to using it in between paint coats. It can leave some fine dust which can negate adhesion. Should not be an issue when it comes to polishing though.

 

[FinalImpact]

This wasn't mentioned: Wet sanding requires wet/dry paper with a different backing material so it doesn't fall apart in water. Standard iron/oxide dry paper won't work in the water. Wet/Dry is usually a black cutting material.

Adding dish soap to the water helps carry away debris to reduce scratching. Dip often to carry away the debris as trapped debris can scratch the project.

For headers in good shape (just colored), use less aggressive paper like maybe start at 1500 to 1800 grit. You'll spend less time polishing out those fine scratches.

Can anyone confirm if the headers are nickel plated? If so, be wise about doing this too often or spending too much time in one place as plating is very thin.

 

[FinalImpact]

I didn't use steel wool because I read somewhere (I thought on this forum) that it could cause some issues. I could be recalling that incorrectly, or it could be false information regardless.

But, I didn't use it and my headers look awesome so I don't feel like I missed out on anything.

It's definitely not a necessary step. Steel wool issues are usually related to using it in between paint coats. It can leave some fine dust which can negate adhesion. Should not be an issue when it comes to polishing though.

True!
In the finish world the steel dust and/or steel particles not removed during wipe down of a paint project can create rust spots/finish defects as the particles oxidize. It really doesn't matter if its on the surface or under the surface of the paint being laid down. Steel wool isn't a good choice in the finish world.
For headers, NP unless it gets caught in the buffing wheel and scratches things up. . .

 

[McLovin]

you just convinced me to do this, my headers look just like yours used to and ive pretty much given up hope to bring them back but apparently it not too late..thanks