xs1100 - polishing alternator cover
The original original owner of my bike drove the bike around for a number of years before putting it down while moving pretty quickly. The bike was drivable but certainly suffered from the fall. The driver stopped driving motorcycles alltogether. 15 years later his brother-in-law bought the bike from him and got it back up and running.
I in turn bought the bike from this man. Since then I replaced the brake reservoir that was badly worn down from the fall. One part I had never replaced was the alternator cover. The damage was purely cosmetic which is why I let it go for so long. Finally when Nikki and I decided to use the 1100 in our wedding I started looking around for a replacement.
I immediately found one on ebay, it was meant to be. It was correded and pitted but was totaly salavagable. I set into it with 280, 400, and 600 grit sandpaper. I then used buffing compound, first tripoli, then that white stuff, and finally jewlers rouge. Once it was all polished up I coated it with protective clearcoat to prevent oxidation.
All in all it took about 8 hours of work but I am very happy with the results. Its not perfect, but a 30 year old bike should not have perfect parts.
