Anyone ever strip the finish off of their Fork lowers? Mine look like crap after 20 years. I'd like to strip and polish them, if that fails I guess it will be off to powder coat. I've had chrome in the past ( not on this bike) and the rocks and road debris just destroyed them

Thinking about using a brush on chemical stripper. Anyone with experience or suggestions?

 

Yes I did mine. Use Scotcbrite and Mothers or something to lubricate the sliders. I put the Scotchbrite in a 4" vibrating sander. Came out good but you need to start rough than change to less abrasive pads as you go. I had a friend do his sliders with the green Scotchbrite from the grocery store. worked good but took longer to strip.

 

Did it years ago. The clear coat wears off the leading side of the fork sliders and the alloy seems to corrode easily. I just sanded the remaining clear coat off. I started with 400 grit, then 600 and 1000. I could have continued on with 2000 grit and metal polish, but I like the stock brushed look, so I stopped there. The sandpaper also removed the corrosion.

After you finish sanding and polishing, stop by the Harley dealer and pick up some Harley Preserves. It's a polymer protectant for aluminum and comes in a moist towelette. You wipe it on the forks and it will keep the corrosion from coming back.

I treated my forks five five years ago with it, and they still look like new.

 

Did you wet sand?

 

Hell, just go straight to powder coat. I did mine 17 years ago and no noticeable damage.

 

Yes, helps keep the sandpaper from clogging so it lasts longer.

 

You can do that, but I must point out that my method does have a few advantages. They include:


It's cheaper, just your own labor and some sandpaper and sealant. Yes, I'm a cheap bastard.


Preserves the stock appearance. Some of us actually like that. If not, you can polish them to a mirror shine, your choice.


No disassembly of the forks and no downtime waiting for the sliders to come back from the powder coater. I didn't even remove my wheel or fender (I'm careful, and used to working in tight places). I did the whole thing on a rainy day in the garage.

 

By contrast I'm an idle whotnot and took mine to a local indy to polish them. Didn't cost much.

 

Seeing as I'm retiring in six weeks, I'll probably have even more time to tinker with the bike. We'll see how the increased time balances out against my innate laziness.

 

I'm a few years ahead of you. To date I'm pleased to report that laziness continues to win through - allowing me more time for more interesting stuff!