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rust & crud removal?

26667

the Wizard of Oz
So the exhaust system, where it's exposed outside the RT fairing, all the way from the headers to about 1/3 of the way back on the muffler is coated in something that looks like rust and mud and grease and baked-on baby vomit ...and did I mention rust? I think maybe the PO had a penchant for riding in the Chicago winter and following the salt trucks or something. It's covered in crud. I tried naval jelly to some good effect, hosed most of it off, then steel wool. Then more naval jelly and a few squirts of carb cleaner and more steel wool and it's graaaaaaadually coming off and the shine is reappearing. ...BUT it looks like several more hours of intense effort, and all those seams on the collector box are gonna be a PITA.

Isn't there some better way??? I'm not getting any younger here!

(Imagine amusing smilies distributed througout my post)
 
It probably willn't make it any faster but, might help prevent scratching. Get a spray bottle and fill it with WD40. Use it along with your steel wool. You can get WD40 by the gallon at Home Depot. Use a VERY FINE grade of steel wool.
 
Ever try Nevr-Dull? It's a polish, and if you've got some time and a mechanic's creeper, I think you'd have some luck with it. Just use small pieces, polish in small circular motions, and wipe off the excess after it dries a bit. Most hardware stores will carry the stuff. There's another brand, Eagle One Nevr-Dull, but IMHO it's not nearly as good as what's in the link below. If it's rust you have, It won't do much there, but it will remove all the other crud fairly well. If you have anything melted on the pipes, I've heard that Easy Off oven cleaner works for that but I've never tried it.

http://www.nevrdull.com/
 
Thanx, guys. i've actually been using coarse steel wool, so maybe I'll switch to a finer grade and see what happens. Maybe oven cleaner on the bottom first in case it looks bad after.
But thanx!
ride safe!,
g
 
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I don't bother as a general rule since with only one paved road in town resistance is futile...but over the years I've learned that nobody knows how to remove crud like a HD dealer! When I have something particularly obnoxious burned onto my GSA exhaust I visit the helpful folks at Green Mountain Harley-Davidson; they take crud seriously!

Pete
 
Pictures! This thread is useless without pictures! :)

I once had a plastic grocery bag decide to make friends with an exhaust header. After swearing a blue streak, I took a razor blade to try to peel off what remained on the bag which was black and charred onto the header. It took awhile but it worked. I then used a combination of Blue Away and Solvol Autosol on a few clean rags and ended up with what looked like a new header.

Good luck with your cleanup!
 
CLR is a citric acid based descaler and you'd be surprised at how effective it is (and gentle) for rust and scale. Use the CLR "bathroom cleaner" with 000 steel wool or a fine scuff pad. Works pisser.
 
Thanx, guys. i've actually been using coarse steel wool, so maybe I'll switch to a finer grade and see what happens. Maybe oven cleaner on the bottom first in case it looks bad after.
But thanx!
ride safe!,
g

Steel wool will get worked into the pores in the metal and will rust causing unsightly stains - not a good choice.

Oilhead pipes are chrome over stainless steel alloy.
A fine stainless steel bush and scotchbrite pads will bring the pipes back up.
Use comet as an inexpensive abrasive medium.

Here is an exhaust header I did a month ago from an 1150GS
 

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