2000 Yamaha V-Star 650 - Quick and Dirty

[Thewaxmania]

This is my first time cataloging a detailing project so I'm just going to give a brief discussion of what I've done and what methodologies I've used. The bike is a 2000 Yamaha V-Star 650 Custom in standard black with no metal flake or pearl. The paint is base/clear and all panels were ABS plastic except for the tank. The bike has just over 12,000 miles, however, it isn't terribly well maintained and is suffering from weather damage and general poor upkeep. The paint on the engine is pealing, the bare aluminum surfaces are highly oxidized, the wheels are pitted and damaged, and the clear coat on the fork tubes is beginning to fail. These bikes don't survive well in the weather and they don't wear as well as other bikes. I used to own a "classic" version of the same bike and it was garaged and detailed frequently and still suffered the same problems. Its more to do with build quality than anything else.

Here are the products and tools I used. The bike was pretty grime-tastic so I went with brute strength on most of the products I chose.

Wash
Tough-Stuff All Purpose Cleaner
Ultra-Solv Heavy Duty Solvent Degreaser (for engine and underside of bike)
Various Brushes to Agitate Dirt, Grease, Oil and Road Film (I use some automotive/motorcycle specific brushes and a lot of dish-cleaning brushes of various shapes, especially bottle brushes!)
Meguiar's Deep Crystal Car Wash
S100 Wheel Cleaner Gel
Small Microfiber Chenille Mitt
Small Microfiber Drying Cloth

Paint
All Paint Buffed with Makita 9227 Polisher
Transtar Tri-Cut Compound - 4" Buff & Shine Orange Cutting Pad
Transtar Tri-Cut Compound - 4" Buff & Shine Blue Polishing Pad
Transtar Final Finish Glaze - 4" Black Final Finish Pad
Meguiar's #7 Show Car Glaze - By Hand
Mothers California Gold Carnuba Paste Wax - By Hand
Dupont ****** Spray Wax Touch-Up - By Hand

Chrome Etc.
Checkered Flag Chrome Polish on all Chrome
Meguiar's Deep Crystal Polish on Stained/Hazed Chrome
Meguiar's Deep Crystal Polish on Black Plastics
Meguiar's PlastX on Windscreen then Polished with Honda-Polish to remove residue
Glass Mirrors Cleaned with SprayWay Glass Cleaner
Engine Dressed with S100 Engine Brightener
Chassis Dressed with S100 Corrosion Protectant

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Feel free to PM or respond to ask any specific questions. Thanks very much for your interest.

[Michael Stoops]

Re: 2000 Yamaha V-Star 650 - Quick and Dirty

First off, welcome to MOL!

This is my first time cataloging a detailing project

But obviously NOT your first time detailing! Great write up and you did an outstanding job on that bike. It really was in need of TLC, wasn't it??




By the way, we deleted your duplicate post on this detail.

[xantonin]

Re: 2000 Yamaha V-Star 650 - Quick and Dirty

Very nice ! I'm actually in the market for buying a bike and was curious on how to detail it.

[Bill Davidson]

Re: 2000 Yamaha V-Star 650 - Quick and Dirty



Can you explain the process/products used to get rid of this oxidation in more detail. I have similar oxidation on my 2000 Suzuki Bandit 1200.

[FRS]

Re: 2000 Yamaha V-Star 650 - Quick and Dirty

Nice result there, great save.

[aris]

Re: 2000 Yamaha V-Star 650 - Quick and Dirty

Very nice work

[Thewaxmania]

Re: 2000 Yamaha V-Star 650 - Quick and Dirty

First off, welcome to MOL!


But obviously NOT your first time detailing! Great write up and you did an outstanding job on that bike. It really was in need of TLC, wasn't it??




By the way, we deleted your duplicate post on this detail.

Thanks! I'm new at the whole posting thing. I've been detailing since I was about 12 years old so that's about...well...about 15 years. I took a break for a couple years and people have asked me so much lately to fit them in, I started back up again. The bike was pretty well-worn, it had deep scratches and oxidation everywhere. Its been ridden and not washed or cleaned in many years.

Thanks for the kind words.

[Thewaxmania]

Re: 2000 Yamaha V-Star 650 - Quick and Dirty

Can you explain the process/products used to get rid of this oxidation in more detail. I have similar oxidation on my 2000 Suzuki Bandit 1200.

Bill, I washed the bike with a general automotive wash and then used an all purpose cleaner (APC) in this case Tough Stuff, a locally-found APC. Its yellow and non-corrosive so you can load up the metal bits without worrying about destroying the finish. Then I agitate with various brushes, mostly soft wheel brushes, bottle brushes for dishes, dish scrubbing brushes, and wire wheel brushes. Then I typically wash it down again with car wash soap to remove any residue. Salt is a big concern here in New England and that's typically what causes the problems in the first place.

After that the engine looks a bit tired and so I'll let it dry and then I'll wipe it down with a microfiber and some cleaning fluid, sometimes some 303 Protectant if the engine coating is more plastics-based, then I use S100 engine restorer (although its a little sticky) on the entire surface. It puts a glossy black coating on the entire engine and case; black or silver, bare metal or painted/powdercoated. Then, I'll typically coat the entire engine with S100 Corrosion Protectant, which smells like sun-tan cream and tastes like death, but works wonders on protecting all the metal bits from corrosion. Its a bear to get off, but I've never wanted to get it off anyway. Both products wipe right off chrome and paint easily and I typically run the engine a while after application to make sure it dries.

The Engine Restorer works great, but its sticky. So you apply and then go riding and on a summer day your engine turns into a pollen magnet and you have to start all over again. There are a couple other products on the market and I know Harley just came out with a similar product, but I've never tried them. S100 is easy to get and I just go over it with the corrosion protectant so its not a huge issue.

Any other questions, send them along!

[J. A. Michaels]

Re: 2000 Yamaha V-Star 650 - Quick and Dirty

Great work on the bike. It needed some tlc. Way to go.

[Bill Davidson]

Re: 2000 Yamaha V-Star 650 - Quick and Dirty

(APC) Then I agitate with various brushes, mostly soft wheel brushes, bottle brushes for dishes, dish scrubbing brushes, and wire wheel brushes.

Thanks.

[dragan]

Re: 2000 Yamaha V-Star 650 - Quick and Dirty

my wos something like yours but its classic whit white walls ,it wos very hard too put yelow color from white wall nice job m8