I just bought a 1969 CT90 that's been neglected for a few years, It's not too far from running but I want to do more with it than just that. I want restore it. Here's the problem though, I know virtually nothing about painting or metal finishing. It's rusted in a few spots and the chrome bits are a little rusted. I can clean the rust up but I'm not sure how to prepare a surface for painting or how to paint for that matter. The chrome really has me worried though, chroming kits online are really expensive and have some really nasty chemicals, so I've written off doing that myself, but I was wondering if there was something I could do to give the metal a nice chrome appearance. I could send the parts to an actual place that specializes in chroming parts but that doesn't seem very "do it yourself"
>>1011109
Well you either want to do it yourself or you don't. There's no quick fix for bad chrome. Nothing that looks good anyway.
You might want to do a bit more reading online about metal treatment and prep because, no offence, you sound clueless and I'm pretty certain you'll bodge it.
>>1011109
Looks "to clean" for a 69 unless it has been stored very well indeed.
>>1011292
It will be worth more as an original if OP doesn't fuck with the cosmetics.
It's old enough to interest Honda collectors. OP should visit Honda forums.
>>1011109
You want to do it yourself, but you don't want to? Sounds like you need help convincing yourself to do it. You appear to have enough money to just fucking try it, so why do you spare one week of lawn maintenance by el jefe and buy the chroming shit? If it looks terrible, have a pro do it. You learn by doing, you spoiled faggot.
>>1011314
I'm more worried about chemical disposal and the cost of doing it myself vs paying a professional.
>>1011292
>>1011300
that's not my bike, just an example of one that has been restored, Mine's in much worse shape
I was wondering if there was a way I could polish the steel parts and coat them with something to to keep them from rusting.
>>1011109
I restored that bike too! It was a yellow one though.
I used steel wool to rid the oxidised rust from the chrome.
And dude, just send it to the shop. A Honda bike place can have that baby running like new for 75 bucks.
I have some tips on paint.
You need to grind off all the old paint with a wire wheel or other midly abrassive (non material removing) attachment.
This is hoping you have a die grinder, air or electric works too.
After the metal has been cleaned up you need to use a high quality spray on primer, followed by high quality spray paint.
>>1011109
Hi OP.
There is a little trick with rusted chrome that not many people seem to know of.
This involves no chemicals, and not much talent at all.
Get a sheet of aluminium foil, and roll it up into a fist sized ball.
Wet the steel with water, or oil, then rub the scrunched up aluminium foil ball over the chrome aggressively.
The aluminium is softer than the chrome, so wont damage it, but will cut the rust off the surface - making it look close to brand new with minor imperfections (no rust).
To ensure this appearance is kept, you can then seal the surface from the air by clear coating the surface.
Good luck!
>>1012314
edit:
Wet the CHROME - not steel.
Also - this WILL NOT WORK ON PAINT
>>1012743
It won't.
FFS go to MOTORCYCLE forums and get advice from experienced MOTORCYCLE restorers. They've done it all and know specifics of what paints and coatings suit your purpose.
http://vjmog.com/forum-25.html
Many an old bike that didn't have to be fucked up has been fucked up due to lack of (free) knowledge.
It's a good machine to learn on. I suggest getting it running yoursel if you are careful and patient, but you can't get the details on THIS FUCKING FORUM BECAUSE IT'S NOT A DEDICATED MOTORCYCLE FORUM AND CANNOT GO INTO THE DEPTH YOU NEED.
You can clean the carb, perform a compression test with an inexpensive tester, inspect the spark plug etc easily.
Now GO TO A FUCKING MOTORCYCLE FORUM. If you Google "Honda CT 90 forum" you have plenty to choose from.
I'm not being a dick. I've been wrenching multiple brands for many years and want to save noobs grief and make their learning experience enjoyable.
All the parts you might need are readily available.
Have some factory service manual:
http://ct90-ct110.com/PDFs/CT90_Pre-1977_Bundled_Shop_Manual_PDF.pdf
>>1013174
Will do, just don't have an aneurysm on me.
>>1011109
Honestly you could just buy new chrome parts (I'm assuming handlebars?) for a fraction of the price of getting any piece chromed. May not go along with the diy spirit but you have to choose your battles when on a budget
Have you looked into home powdercoating kits. Friend did a bunch of stuff at home when restoring a car and the stuff looked great. There's tons of colors and some that looks like polished aluminium. Not factory looking but definitely an improvement.
You'll want to sandblast before powdercoating or paint for best results. You can pick up small home blasters cheap or build your own as they aren't very complicated.
>>1011109
Is that you Nate
