BMW R1200R R1150R/T F800 K1200R R1100R/T R1250R RnineT Message Board

Ok, so I did the mistake that I guess many new R1200R or other Boxer owners make on occasion, I put my tarp onto the bike while the pipes were hot (boy those get seriously hot btw!).. I immediately saw the smoke and pulled off the top, but it was too late and there was this black poly type material melted right onto the pipe... Dang if it wasn't on there as hard as power coat! So I first tried to get the pipes cold and use this Blue Job stuff, and boy was that ever snake oil... it cost $15 for a tiny little tin and it's no different than using my $2.00 barkeepers friend... which is to say, it did nothing. Then I tried to warm the pipes and use some mineral spirits, and that got a lot of it off but still there was a baked on layer... So I got desperate and used the 000 steel wool... well, after some elbow grease that got it off, but now I'm stuck with tiny scratches in my "Chrome" pipe... Now, I understand (and correct me if I'm wrong) that these are polished SS pipes, and not "Chromed" over steel... so is it safe to assume I can get a good metal polish and re-polish these back to their "chrome" shine? Shall I just pay someone with a buffer to do it? It's not too bad looking actually, but it just looks different than the other side which is more "mirror" in texture.

Yes, "polished SS pipes, and not "Chromed" over steel", but I don't know how thick the chrome is and how much polishing you can do until you get through the chrome.

Just ride the bike until the pipes gets golden brown like everyone else Shouldn't take long and then you don't have to worry about polishing them ever again, unless you want to do nothing but polish

Try running the bike until it gets hot and then take a towel and try to wipe it off. If it is hot it might come off better. Or it could make a bigger mess.

Just me 2 cents

Roger L

For future reference: A piece of white cedar shingle makes an effective scraper and won't scratch the metal surface. Heat up the pipe and scrape away.

Bruce

thanks guys, got all the gunk of, now just trying to match the shine finnish of the other side to the 000 scratch marks of this one.

I agree, I'll let the color patina and that should cure any imbalance, but I wasn't sure if the shine will be different on both patina's since one has these fine scratches now? Anyway, I think a bit of metal polish compound and an orbital buffer might do the job.

If it were me I would use this and an excuse to rationalize installing headers and new exhaust.

I did exactly the same thing when I first started to cover my bike with a tarp. When I first did it I spent hours trying to clean it off, only to learn this was a futile exercise. The intense heat from the headers eventually incinerated all the burnt on plastic and the pipes returned to their natural state. Now this was not an isolated incident, I have burnt the tarp on many times with the same effect, generally because I was in a hurry to apply the cover at work. A good 4 minute cool down is a good idea before applying the tarp.

Watch out for those plastic shopping bags that sometimes float at street level, they melt too the headers in an instant, makes for a mess too.