Shiny wheels

[BackInTheSaddle]

Has anyone seen aftermarket wheels, or reworked stock wheels, in a chrome or polished finish?  I know some folks prefer the silver/grey look or the new black, but I like shiny wheels all polished up.  Any advice is welcome, criticism can be kept to yourself  .

[stevewfl]

polishing a motorcycle wheel

[VirginiaJim]

That's the first time I've heard that one.  There aren't any wheels of that nature available unless you take the originals and have them either super polished or chromed.  Got time on your hands for all that cleaning?

This is going to be an interesting thread, indeed.   

[Conrad]

 

[maxtog]

Has anyone seen aftermarket wheels, or reworked stock wheels, in a chrome or polished finish?  I know some folks prefer the silver/grey look or the new black, but I like shiny wheels all polished up.  Any advice is welcome, criticism can be kept to yourself  .

I would have to see the finished product, but I think shiny wheels might look good.

[gPink]

Has anyone seen aftermarket wheels, or reworked stock wheels, in a chrome or polished finish?  I know some folks prefer the silver/grey look or the new black, but I like shiny wheels all polished up.  Any advice is welcome, criticism can be kept to yourself .

[/u]
 

[Mister Tee]

This isn't a criticism against shiny wheels, but I think if the look is to be good (matching at least), other hard parts would have to be chromed too.  I'm not sure how to approach that on a Concours.  I've seen chromed out sportbikes, and while it isn't my thing, the look isn't bad as chromed frame members and suspension parts are visible.

By the same token, I've seen some really nice red, yellow and blue powder coated wheels that look badass on sportbikes with complimentary fairing paint jobs, that probably wouldn't look so good on a Concours.

But good luck with that, post pics if you do it.

[So Cal Joe]

I always polished the wheels on my Gold Wings, When I got my Kawasaki I thought about having them chromed but as yet haven't done it.  I used Mothers mag wheel polish on my gold wing and the almost looked like chrome. \

[jonathan]

You may be able to find polished or chromed front wheels for a ZX-14, but the rear wheel is unique, so you would be on your own there.

[DonB]

A while back I used the method of paint stripper and wet/dry sand paper on my wheels. they turned out great (I think) I did the outside edges and left the center black
it did take some time and lots of elbow grease

[BackInTheSaddle]

DonB, that's just what I am thinkng of.  Polished rim with the matte grey center of the stock wheel (which the rotors pretty well hide anyway).  I assume that you had to take the wheels off of the bike and about how much time went into the project?  What kind of stripper?  Great looking Ninja by the way.
Thnx
DonH

[DonB]

I did not take the wheels off. easier to work on them while on the bike
I did both wheels one day but it took almost all day
I used a high grade aircraft paint stripper
be sure and use good tape to tape off the area you do not want the stripper. that way you get a nice line
use good gloves cause the stripper will burn your hands
I put the stripper on very heavy let it set till bubbles
then I used steel wool and stripper to get the hard area
then used wet dry sand paper.
when you get done they almost look like chrome.
it was a lot of work but sure did look nice when it was finsihed

[TimmyG]

Did you use normal blue tape?

[ZG]

Polished wheels are a major pain to keep looking nice, constant repolishing if you want them looking like mirrors, learned this the hard way back in the 80's...
 
 
 

[just gone]

Polished wheels are a major pain to keep looking nice, constant repolishing if you want them looking like mirrors, learned this the hard way back in the 80's...

Yeah, I learned that back in the early 70s on my first GTR the Bridgestone 350 which had polished aluminum side covers
over the carburetors. Using a buffing wheel and different polishing rouges I would make them look like chrome. Lasted almost
a week. Less if I rode it. Still with today's tough clear coats maybe it would be worth a try.
I guess there is even clear powder coating available now.
Good luck, post pics please.

[TimmyG]

There is a sealer that last 2 years made for polished rims

[TimmyG]

Think its callwd zoop

[Rhino]

I had a friend polish the wheels on his VTX1800. They were so shinny they matched all the chrome on his bike. Apparently it made quite a mess in the shop.

[OregonLAN]

I hand polished the wheels on my old cruiser to a near mirror finish. They were a lot of work to polish and keep clean, but they looked awesome. I used 2 coats of Aircraft Stripper to remove the paint. The paint came off without scraping, so I started off with 600 grit wet/dry sandpaper. from there, I cross sanded and worked my way up the grit scale. Once I reached 1200, I applied a little soap into the water mixture and hand polished them with a little Mothers polish. It took the better part of an afternoon to complete.

[Reddogger]

Here's how they look blue.  I'm still planning some black and blue highlighting paint work, probably a winter project.