zeus2534
Guest
what do you use to keep the exhaust downpipes in pristine as new condition - gs adv 2004 model
Dutchman
Registered user
Pipe Cleaner.....
Hi Tom
I use AutoGlym metal polish......if done regularly it will even remove the straw coloured bloom from the pipes.......but it needs lots of elbow grease and the time that only a retired person can afford..............
Cheers
Dutch
Hi Tom
I use AutoGlym metal polish......if done regularly it will even remove the straw coloured bloom from the pipes.......but it needs lots of elbow grease and the time that only a retired person can afford..............
Cheers
Dutch
The Mechanic
Guest
Try this....
Suggested by a BMW service manager:
Brown parcel paper and Solvol Autosol....smear some paste onto the paper (in strips) and carefully buff the pipes.
Warning...whatever cleaner you use it will be abrasive and eventually will wear away the chrome finish.
Once your pipes are nice and shiney they will soon discolour after about the first 10 miles of use, every time!
The pipes aren't double skinned like the Jap stuff so expect to see blueing. In reality this is 1950's engineering on the exhaust pipes.
Hint... I never bothered to clean my front pipes other than wash them regularly, they were well blued when I sold the bike but it didn't worry the new owner. He'd had three GS's before so knew what to expect.
Suggested by a BMW service manager:
Brown parcel paper and Solvol Autosol....smear some paste onto the paper (in strips) and carefully buff the pipes.
Warning...whatever cleaner you use it will be abrasive and eventually will wear away the chrome finish.
Once your pipes are nice and shiney they will soon discolour after about the first 10 miles of use, every time!
The pipes aren't double skinned like the Jap stuff so expect to see blueing. In reality this is 1950's engineering on the exhaust pipes.
Hint... I never bothered to clean my front pipes other than wash them regularly, they were well blued when I sold the bike but it didn't worry the new owner. He'd had three GS's before so knew what to expect.
I think the pipes are polished Stainless so you won't go through the chrome........there isn't any. Autosolve is more abrasive than Autoglym. So if you wanted a real good (temporary finish) autosolve first then autoglym.
BiG DoM
Registered user
Mzokk said:I think the pipes are polished Stainless so you won't go through the chrome........there isn't any. Autosolve is more abrasive than Autoglym. So if you wanted a real good (temporary finish) autosolve first then autoglym.
I believe they are chromed stainless (not an easy task I understand to do this but BMW seem to have know how).
Anyway Autoslove make a Marine polish (has blue on the tube) which is great on stainless and chrome and less abrasive than the standard Autosolve.
Further zuess - I think you should get used to the blueing of the headers - it is part of the aesthetic look of the boxers and many hard core BMW roders believe it is a sign the bike is ridden hard and fast.
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Best thing to do is leave them alone and ride...
makes you wonder why they would bother - they discolour anyway within a few miles not matter what you do!
i want mine matt black - either painted or coated (ceramic?). anyone done this?
pr0ne
Spanish Bob
Guest
pr0ne said:
search - dont remember any black but aurelius started some threads of with his silver ones.
The Mechanic
Guest
Oh no they ain't....
They definately are not polished stainless or polished anything else...they are plain old mild steel chrome plated single tube exhaust pipes.
If they were stainless they would not discolour quite so effectively, they would tend to mellow rather than go deep blue almost straight away!
If they were stainless then why the hell would a BMW service manager warn against over use of metal polish in case you go through the chrome plating...christ I wish some bike owners actually lived in the real world and not just fanciful conjecturing.
As for the suggestion that these front pipes are polished stainless, does he (big dom) actaully own a BMW?
They definately are not polished stainless or polished anything else...they are plain old mild steel chrome plated single tube exhaust pipes.
If they were stainless they would not discolour quite so effectively, they would tend to mellow rather than go deep blue almost straight away!
If they were stainless then why the hell would a BMW service manager warn against over use of metal polish in case you go through the chrome plating...christ I wish some bike owners actually lived in the real world and not just fanciful conjecturing.
As for the suggestion that these front pipes are polished stainless, does he (big dom) actaully own a BMW?
Re: Oh no they ain't....
I'm not convinced, I thought they were polished stainless steel as well. They don't seem like chrome once they dull and the finish definitely matches the finish of a laser inox system. Also, the BM literature list the exhaust as stainless steel so where did you get chrome from?
When I get the opportunity I'm going to polish my headers with a stainless steel polishing kit so if they're chrome I'll let you know when I bugger 'em up... unlikely as a few S owners have had their headers mirror finished, or is it just the GS that's chrome?
Adam
The Mechanic said:They definately are not polished stainless or polished anything else...they are plain old mild steel chrome plated single tube exhaust pipes.
If they were stainless they would not discolour quite so effectively, they would tend to mellow rather than go deep blue almost straight away!
If they were stainless then why the hell would a BMW service manager warn against over use of metal polish in case you go through the chrome plating...christ I wish some bike owners actually lived in the real world and not just fanciful conjecturing.
As for the suggestion that these front pipes are polished stainless, does he (big dom) actaully own a BMW?
I'm not convinced, I thought they were polished stainless steel as well. They don't seem like chrome once they dull and the finish definitely matches the finish of a laser inox system. Also, the BM literature list the exhaust as stainless steel so where did you get chrome from?
When I get the opportunity I'm going to polish my headers with a stainless steel polishing kit so if they're chrome I'll let you know when I bugger 'em up... unlikely as a few S owners have had their headers mirror finished, or is it just the GS that's chrome?
Adam
cheers para - i might check that out after the winters done its worst.
my nuts are ok ;-) had them off a few months back...
pr0ne
BiG DoM
Registered user
Re: Oh no they ain't....
I live in the "Real" Third World and before you start slagging me off check that you are not mis-quoting me! I said I thought they were "chromed stainless".
As far as your own hypocritical "conjecturing" goes as to whether "I actaully own a BMW"
OFF!
The Mechanic said:
...christ I wish some bike owners actually lived in the real world and not just fanciful conjecturing.
As for the suggestion that these front pipes are polished stainless, does he (big dom) actaully own a BMW?
I live in the "Real" Third World and before you start slagging me off check that you are not mis-quoting me! I said I thought they were "chromed stainless".
As far as your own hypocritical "conjecturing" goes as to whether "I actaully own a BMW"
OFF!ArgyBargy
Guest
why on earth do you want to polish your exhaust pipe????? It's a horrid smelly motorbike, not a silver teapot. You can't even see them when you are sat on it.
zeus2534
Guest
thanks guys - that certainly caused a stir - tell u wot dutchman - i will build up some flexitime and dedicate my well earned day off polishing my downpipes with autoglym - you dont happen to have a spare tube of the stuff lying around ??
sjwb
Registered user
Mmmmmm consider before repyling. The headers are of a non ferrous material and thus are definately NOT mid steel. Now I fancy stainless - as is the rest of the system. Oh, if you doubt my word, try a magnet!
DOWNPIPES
Dudes.
s/s is not generally magnetic, so put a magnet on ther pipes. But, I am not sure if chrome is magnetic[ ref. chrome on s/s], but try this anyway. If they are chrome plated m/s then the magnet will have a stron pull, if they are s/s they will be either non magnetic or only slightly magnetic, depending on the grade of s/s.
Dudes.
s/s is not generally magnetic, so put a magnet on ther pipes. But, I am not sure if chrome is magnetic[ ref. chrome on s/s], but try this anyway. If they are chrome plated m/s then the magnet will have a stron pull, if they are s/s they will be either non magnetic or only slightly magnetic, depending on the grade of s/s.
BiG DoM
Registered user
sjwb said:
HMMmmmmmmmmm... The Mechanic has gone all quite on us?
I suggest he takes that stroll to his scoot (presuming he "actually owns a BMW"?
) with said magnet and does the 'stainless test'... (hey remember to keep the magnet away from the pacemaker)... and then get back to us with some revised "conjecture"
Dom
For what its worth, Tony (aka The Mechanic) is one of the most knowledgable AND helpful guys on this board. If you don't believe me, then do a search under his username for some history.
If you are not willing to accept his input, then thats your problem.
Apologies for being so curt but it really galls me when people who actually contribute and go out of their way to help others on here get abuse from someone ungrateful and ignorant.
There, rant over.
Ferg
For what its worth, Tony (aka The Mechanic) is one of the most knowledgable AND helpful guys on this board. If you don't believe me, then do a search under his username for some history.
If you are not willing to accept his input, then thats your problem.
Apologies for being so curt but it really galls me when people who actually contribute and go out of their way to help others on here get abuse from someone ungrateful and ignorant.
There, rant over.
Ferg
BiG DoM
Registered user
ferguscawley said:Dom
For what its worth, Tony (aka The Mechanic) is one of the most knowledgable AND helpful guys on this board. If you don't believe me, then do a search under his username for some history.
If you are not willing to accept his input, then thats your problem.
Apologies for being so curt but it really galls me when people who actually contribute and go out of their way to help others on here get abuse from someone ungrateful and ignorant.
There, rant over.
Ferg
Dearest Fergie-
My deepest apologies for having this effect on your gall bladder -
I really did not mean to be abusive, and am certainly not ungrateful for "knowledgable" input.
If you took the trouble to read the thread you would soon realise that Tony, AKA Mechanic, was the one who was initially offside by mis-qouting me, was insulting referring o my post as "fanciful conjecture", whether I "lived in the real world", and "actaully own a BMW"!! My reply was a direct response to this unhelpful and blatently rude input.
Re my being "ignorant" - the jury is still out on the matter as to what material the headers actually are made of... so I rest my case on that score for the time being, and console myself that I must be one of the few "ignorant" university professors around.
Best Regards
Ride Safe
PS A search of my posts will reveal that they too are certainly helpful AND somewhat knowlegable.
toucan
Registered user
the facts!
after running around my bike with a magnet, this is what i found.
header pipes = slighlty magnetic
crash bars = slightly magnetic
bolts = very magnetic
discs = very magnetic
telelever = very magnetic
fork slider = very magnetic
screen = not magnetic
seat = not magnetic
from this i deduce that the exhaust is a different material to the discs, fork sliders etc.
i don't know what that material is. i do know there are different types of steel. stainless is just one flavour, the amount of chrome and carbon they add gives it different properties.
but then there is always a difference between the truth and the facts.
its friday, its 12h00, i am going for "lunch"
after running around my bike with a magnet, this is what i found.
header pipes = slighlty magnetic
crash bars = slightly magnetic
bolts = very magnetic
discs = very magnetic
telelever = very magnetic
fork slider = very magnetic
screen = not magnetic
seat = not magnetic
from this i deduce that the exhaust is a different material to the discs, fork sliders etc.
i don't know what that material is. i do know there are different types of steel. stainless is just one flavour, the amount of chrome and carbon they add gives it different properties.
but then there is always a difference between the truth and the facts.
its friday, its 12h00, i am going for "lunch"
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