White House K10 - a story of regeneration

[GoldOxide_imp]

Bazbro, Cormanus: I agree with your concerns and comments. I did not expect the Honda CB1100 to be vulnerable to "prolonged" exposure to moisture. Usually in mid-spring in southern Ontario there is excessive moisture in the air and I also noticed iron oxide pitting on handlebar chrome, the top part of the fenders, etc. This was easily removed with some metal polish/cleaner. Still, why didn't they consider one or two more chrome plating treatments.

Yes, I do not recall legacy Hondas (circa 1980's) having this issue.

 

[Bazbro_imp]

So while the Honda Engineers are "doing the business", the beancounters have got in amongst the Support Workers, making them save pennies, eh?
This lack of quality (genuine, not just perceived) will come back and bite Honda in the future, I'm sure. Gold Oxide has noted that UK owners of Africa Twins are already commenting on this. Now we're doing the same with CB1100s. How many other model's Owner Groups are doing the same? It might be a trickle of comments now - Honda has to be aware that it doesn't become a torrent. Remember Harley and the chrome falling off their wheels?

 

[Houtman_imp]

I read on the internet that Honda deliberate made the finish less durable to go with the aged skin of the older owners , it could be a HOAX but who knows ?

 

[Bazbro_imp]

That's wicked, John!!

 

[Ninemeister_imp]

I bought my 2018 EX in February, 2019. It had been slightly damaged in an accident within a week or so of purchase. As I was repairing it, I was extremely concerned at the amount of rust I was finding, in places where quite frankly, there should NEVER be any rust and certainly not on a Honda.

See my thread on the handlebar replacement (rust in the wingmirror mount)... http://cb1100forum.com/forum/showthread.php?tid=14415

Or the rust on the grabrail and in the rear mudguard... http://cb1100forum.com/forum/showthread....254&page=6

Remember, this is on a 'bike that was barely six months and 160 miles old!!

An added problem for riders in the UK is the rotten weather at all times of the year and the large quantities of salt strewn on the road when ice threatens. Even so, this partucular 'bike had not been subject to this.
So beware of rust...

Bazbro: I have read much of the same from your Honda Africa Twin UK brethren. They simply can't believe an ADV bike rust rotting so quickly. They appear torn blaming the UK climate and Honda cheapening on materials. On the flip-side, south western state 'mericans as questioning, "Rust? What's that?" (maybe Cormanus too). One would think that Honda United Kingdom would get Hondas specially conditioned to resist the rather damp environment.

Bazbro: I have read much of the same from your Honda Africa Twin UK brethren. They simply can't believe an ADV bike rust rotting so quickly. They appear torn blaming the UK climate and Honda cheapening on materials. On the flip-side, south western state 'mericans as questioning, "Rust? What's that?" (maybe Cormanus too). One would think that Honda United Kingdom would get Hondas specially conditioned to resist the rather damp environment.
That's very interesting, GO. Maybe BMW's fare better in this respect, because of much less chrome and more anodised alloy/protected parts? Then the comparisons between BMW GSs and Africa Twins might become quite stark. Imagine an owner abusing his GS for a year or two, with minimal apparent corrosion, then doing the same with a much worse-protected Africa Twin...
It is the market that Honda is serving which is the decider, I think... the USA market, with its' better weather, is vastly larger than the UK, even European, market and as thickly applied chrome isn't necessary in Arizona, that's what the market decides.

But it was the rapidity of the rust formation on mine that startled me, it was far beyond what I considered 'reasonable'. I am now on the lookout for rust in little nooks and crannies where I wouldn't be looking normally. I urge others to guard against corrosion, because modern Hondas are clearly not as good in this respect as they once were.

The bike I sold to fund this project was a Honda VTX1300S. It was a great bike for what I bought it for - a 3,000 mile road trip with my bike mates - just after I passed my bike test. When I bought it at 4 years old I was shocked at the state of the chrome on the front and rear wheels, so much so that to fix it I bought a low mileage rear wheel and brand new honda front rim, swapped the rear and had the front wheel rebuilt with stainless spokes.

The 3,000 mile trip was in Spain. After that I barely used the bike (which was always garaged) so decided to sell this year (and used the funds to build the K10...). I would say that the rear wheel was again in the same state as I bought it and the new front rim was already showing signs of heavy pitting in the chrome.

I now regret not saving money by buying new stainless steel rims, rather than original Honda replacements and would certainly never buy new Honda chrome parts again, I would either have the original re-chromed properly or buy stainless steel.
However - can I ask that this thread does not become a rant about Honda Chrome? If you have got a beef about your shiny bits, please start a new thread as I would desperately like to keep this one (roughly) on track!

Thanks.

 

[Houtman_imp]

Today I used two cans of Waxoil to spray under neat my 5-8 trailer frame , first time I used this product but very impressed with the product and the spray cans . Is it used on bike parts in the UK ?

 

[Gone in 60]

Wow, that's a sweet looking VTX. I had the same color VTX 1300R, which is the same bike with solid aluminum wheels rather than spoke wheels. I always wondered what it would look like with those teardrop shaped side cases.

 

[GoldOxide_imp]

9's K10 will have the rust repellency of a submarine.

Hopefully I didn't set the bar too high.

Keep it simple: Not a Russian sub.

 

[peterbaron]

^^This^^ gray paint looks to me like epoxy based, isn't it??, very good for rust and through penetration!

 

[Ninemeister_imp]

^^This^^ gray paint looks to me like epoxy based, isn't it??, very good for rust and through penetration!

It's nothing fancy PB, just rattle can etch primer which will be covered with wheel silver spray, both acrylic from what I can tell. In a nutshell I had no plan to paint the mudguards so simply used what I had around the garage. Come the day they need doing again I'll probably replace with stainless steel.

 

[GoldOxide_imp]

^^This^^ gray paint looks to me like epoxy based, isn't it??, very good for rust and through penetration!

lol - PB ... you might be addicted to epoxy finishes.

I am unsure if an epoxy finish would hold up well in a fender anyway with all the debris that scrambles through there. Rust might form under the epoxy if a spot is "shattered".

Maybe a soft version, like a rocker panel coating might be more practical, but I have not heard that used in practice on motorcycles.

 

[Houtman_imp]

I think that Peter likes the fumes of the epoxy paints....
To be honest I like the smell of oils and other "garage" odors .

 

[GoldOxide_imp]

I think that Peter likes the fumes of the epoxy paints....
To be honest I like the smell of oils and other "garage" odors .

I hear ya.

I don't want to get going on that thought.

Must, ..., stay, ... on, ... K10, ... tuh, ... pick. (br-ane, ..., iz, ... her, ... tin.)

 

[Ninemeister_imp]

I think that Peter likes the fumes of the epoxy paints....
To be honest I like the smell of oils and other "garage" odors .

I hear ya.

I don't want to get going on that thought.

Must, ..., stay, ... on, ... K10, ... tuh, ... pick. (br-ane, ..., iz, ... her, ... tin.)

I hear ya.

I don't want to get going on that thought.

Must, ..., stay, ... on, ... K10, ... tuh, ... pick. (br-ane, ..., iz, ... her, ... tin.)
I hear ya.

Here you go, a little sketch I did for Baz's K17 project:

 

[Ninemeister_imp]

Front wheel:
If you recall there were two aluminium spacers either side, between the dinner plates (disc bells) and the hub?
Since I'm waiting on the new 43mm shaft seal I took the spacers into work to clean up in the vapour blaster. For those who have never heard of one, this is a glass bead blast cabinet that uses water and compressed air as a transport medium for the bead, thus making the job clean and dust free. We call it our new for old machine.

The hubs cleaned up lovely - but in doing so I did notice that they were a little "heavy"...
:rofl:

By my calculations drilling 12x 12mm holes through will save around 86g, a 30% weight saving with no loss of strength.

 

[peterbaron]

Ninemeister, I like what and how you doing.
This is going to be a perfect WH-K10, I've ever heard about.
...don't worry about these two epoxy inhalers, I know them well ...I am fine.
Keep up a good job...and paint decision seems to be coming soon

 

[Bazbro_imp]

Ah the paint job.... soon... soooon...

 

[Ninemeister_imp]

Ninemeister, I like what and how you doing.
This is going to be a perfect WH-K10, I've ever heard about.
...don't worry about these two epoxy inhalers, I know them well ...I am fine.
Keep up a good job...and paint decision seems to be coming soon

Thanks PB. I guess that's the philosophy in a nutshell, to make the very best from what I have got.

I'm not going to hide the mileage or the honesty of the resulting patina, the bike will wear that with pride as each blemish is another paragraph to its story.

 

[Houtman_imp]

I am getting high just reading about Nine's bike !

 

[Ninemeister_imp]

Ah the paint job.... soon... soooon...

Not long now.

Had word from Mike today that the last coat of lacquer has just been shot at the parts. He had sprayed them last week but was not 100% happy with the finish as we could see a slight "tightness" across the gloss that he knew would not polish out. Only remedy was to flat off the clear and flow another gloss coat across the surface.

Even I'm getting excited now...