Rust and Corrosion

[GoldOxide_imp]

The CB developes rust and corrision as any other motorbike will do, depending on the conditions it is ridden and parked in. My CB had some salt rides in winter and is always parked outside sheltered by an breathable outdoor cover.

Here are some parts, on which I could and can find rust. Painted parts first: the triple clamp, ABS rings, the front upperside of the tank, the main stand and the frame.
I assume that the lacque and primer aren't the best on all these parts and do some repainting every now and then or oil these parts with Ballistol.

Some chrome parts like schock absorbers, mirror arms, upper sides of fenders and the ring around the front headlight also rust a bit. I use Autosol to make them shine again and sometimes oil for rust prevention. I had to change the clamp, that fixes the rear exhaust to the catalysator, it was destroyed by corrision.

All in all not very amusing but I can live with these alterations of the CB through all the years. It's not worther or better than other motorbikes I own or knew, seems to be normal and it's just the way it is. It looks like more or less each of them was cooked in the same water with the same ingredients concerning the finish.

Agreed. I am sure if a manufacturer wanted to market a "corrosion resistant" bike, they would have. However, the owner would pay for that feature. Certainly, the manufacturer would have to consider in their plans selling less bikes in the future if they models lasted "forever".

However, let's re-consider the concept of "Garage Queen".

Do you want to be thinking in your death bed, " ... I feel so lucky my bikes didn't rust and stayed safe, beautiful, and warm in the garage." - only to have your successors sell your machines at a low-ball prices after you are gone?

Or this? " ... man, I feel so lucky to enjoy all those rides over my life in almost any weather. I can still feel those engines resonating in my bones and that air in my face. That feels good. I feel good. Life was good. The bikes were sooo good."

Dead on!

I like a clean(ish) motorcycle but I can't get excited about cleaning any motorcycle. My Triumph Tiger has completely painted surfaces or plastic, I rarely clean it and hardly ever treat it. It has about 28,000Km & is 3 years old, lots of that was in the wet (I do live in Ireland). It does not have a rust mark on it anywhere, there is virtually nothing to rust, even the spokes are painted. But when I pull up in the parking lot it doesn't get a second glance. But after only a few short weeks of owning the CB and with restricted riding I have never had so many people start a conversation with me about the bike, and not just by old farts like me! I'll take that reward for a little bit of hidden rust.

The CB1100 is indeed a parking lot universal conservation piece. Very common throughout the Forum folks like ourselves have had the exact same experience. Cheers!

[Gone in 60]

It's all about how the bike is stored and ridden, and under what conditions. My bikes have no sign of corrosion, but they live in a garage and are only ridden when the roads aren't wet (which is just about daily here in CA). I'm sure it would be much different if my storage and riding conditions weren't as ideal. I've owned many bikes built in many countries, and I doubt that the country of origin has much to do with it.

My Bonneville, built in Thailand, Malasia, or wherever it was built, is just as clean.

[the Ferret]

The CB developes rust and corrision as any other motorbike will do, depending on the conditions it is ridden and parked in. My CB had some salt rides in winter and is always parked outside sheltered by an breathable outdoor cover.

Here are some parts, on which I could and can find rust. Painted parts first: the triple clamp, ABS rings, the front upperside of the tank, the main stand and the frame.
I assume that the lacque and primer aren't the best on all these parts and do some repainting every now and then or oil these parts with Ballistol.

Some chrome parts like schock absorbers, mirror arms, upper sides of fenders and the ring around the front headlight also rust a bit. I use Autosol to make them shine again and sometimes oil for rust prevention. I had to change the clamp, that fixes the rear exhaust to the catalysator, it was destroyed by corrision.

All in all not very amusing but I can live with these alterations of the CB through all the years. It's not worther or better than other motorbikes I own or knew, seems to be normal and it's just the way it is. It looks like more or less each of them was cooked in the same water with the same ingredients concerning the finish.

Agreed. I am sure if a manufacturer wanted to market a "corrosion resistant" bike, they would have. However, the owner would pay for that feature. Certainly, the manufacturer would have to consider in their plans selling less bikes in the future if they models lasted "forever".

However, let's re-consider the concept of "Garage Queen".

Do you want to be thinking in your death bed, " ... I feel so lucky my bikes didn't rust and stayed safe, beautiful, and warm in the garage." - only to have your successors sell your machines at a low-ball prices after you are gone?

Or this? " ... man, I feel so lucky to enjoy all those rides over my life in almost any weather. I can still feel those engines resonating in my bones and that air in my face. That feels good. I feel good. Life was good. The bikes were sooo good."

Love it .... and live by it

I definitely get my moneys worth out of my bikes lol

[Gone in 60]

While the idea of riding in the rain may be romantic and adventuous at its base level, there is nothing romantic or adventuous about riding L.A. and O.C. freeways in the rain. I think, on my deathbed, I would be thinking of how dirty and wet I was when I got to work.

[GoldOxide_imp]

While the idea of riding in the rain may be romantic and adventuous at its base level, there is nothing romantic or adventuous about riding L.A. and O.C. freeways in the rain. I think, on my deathbed, I would be thinking of how dirty and wet I was when I got to work.

10-4, 60.

Riding in very late fall or early spring in southern Ontario can trap you to annoying freeway salt spray. Forget the issue of corrosion. The real issue is visor clarity. The moment you rub a clean spot, it will be salted again. If there is winter road grit (as usually there is), say goodbye to your once scratch free helmet visor where your wiped a spot to see. When you arrive home, or worse as Gin60 grumbled about: Work, ... at some point you'll have to rinse the salt and crud of the gear. Have fun doing that at 0C (32F) or worse. Even if you can "man-up", it will become tiring and eventually beat you down crying for that Starbucks fix and that retro FM station tuned in your cage dashboard, heated seats on, seat belt fully fastened.

[the Ferret]

after riding on the So Cal Freeways ONCE, I can't imagine having to ride there all the time even in perfect weather. Told my wife if I lived there and had to ride the freeways to work, I probably would not be a motorcyclist. Like being a mouse running flat out in a room full of mouse traps

[dave]

Thanks for all the replies. It looks like I am one of the very few who has experienced rust "issues" on my CB1100. I live about five miles from the coast (San Diego), but my bikes are all garage stored, and rarely do any of them get rained on. Of all the motorcycles I have owned (about 30), my 2014 CB1100 has been the most rust-prone. My bikes are not garage queens. Two of the seven bikes I presently own have well over 100,000 miles on them, all ridden by me, alone. Most of the chromed bits on this bike have experienced rust at a level I have never experienced before. The most disturbing to me was the rust on the rear shock springs and shock rods, and the fork tubes. Fortunately I catch the rust quickly, and it is easily removed. But the rust I discovered hidden on the handlebars was a complete surprise to me, and I'm glad nobody else has experienced this issue.

[Gone in 60]

That is strange. My bikes spend about 50% of their time at my office, which is about five miles from the coast. Weird that your bike has experienced that much corrosion. I had a Nighthawk 750 that had been owned in Laguna Beach, a few blocks from the ocean. I replaced a bunch of corroded fasteners that bothered me. I can see CLOSE to the ocean, but five miles in should not be an issue. Maybe in it's previous life it spent more time in the elements, and the protective coatings on the fasteners and the chrome on the handlebars were compromised?

And Ferret, it's all relative. If you grew up on California freeways, you don't think twice about them. Now, the first time I drove a rig through Atlanta, I was ready to tear up my CDL.

[GoldOxide_imp]

Hey Dave: The '14 CB1100 rusts and it doesn't need to be in San Diego. You are not alone. Mine never saw a garage (let alone a heated garage), but possibly that is maybe one reason the rust was very manageable and easily dealt with (literally in minutes). Temperature matching and air-flow are important to regulating an idle CB1100. Put a warm CB1100 into the winter air, of course it will condensate immediately. However, my CB1100 saw a lot of road salt (dust) and wet brine (like our fine membership folks in the U.K.), so it was going to rust low down anyway. Nevertheless, a squirt of oil in strategic corners of the machine seemed to keep it beautiful. On key area for folks who enjoy their machine in the salty, winter seasons is the side and center stand nether regions, as well as the drive chain. Initially I didn't and mother nature took hold of those iron bits.

[peterbaron]

I would never like to have a heated garage while using salty roads....it speeds up corrosion due to higher temps = catalyst