top tip for down pipes! keep em clean...

[chuxsta]

this might be common knowledge already to some but i only stumbled on it by pure accident.
while changing a gasket in my headers i thought sod it im gonna give the pipes a polish with some good old fashoined elbow grease.
and as informed by my dad they go a funny colour when they are back on the bike in use...
and as fathers are always right i was stuck with a strange copper looking set of pipes linked to nice shiny metal link pipes...

heres the good part.... while using some cheap ass tesco ally wheel cleaner to clean the engine sump and front cylnder area some of the fluid dropped all over the pipes... and it stripped the coppery colour off. and it never returned ....

it appears hydrachloric acid ( think that was the base chemical, will have to check) based cleans prevent the crappy discolouring after cleaning your pipes.

im sure there is a scientifc reason behind this and maybe even some reasons not to do it but i have not had any issues and the down pipes are still relatively nice looking..

[LutonStorm]

Thats exactly what I need. So it's Tesco allloy wheel cleaner then?

Fantastic!

Simon

[chuxsta]

Thats exactly what I need. So it's Tesco allloy wheel cleaner then?

Fantastic!

Simon

just dug box out, its wonder wheels.
dont get it on any thing you dont want the paint off,,
but its great on the sump and paintless metals...
the exhausts i cleaned up with a MEGA abbrassive brush on a drill first and used some sandpaper in the hard to reach places
then did a few miles on them so they started going that copper colour then used wonder wheels on them

4months later the main parts of the exhausts are still silver covered
the parts directly connected to the cylinders are coppery coloured again..