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How detrimental is rust on a motorbike?

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guile
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Joined: 20 Mar 2012
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PostPosted: 02:06 - 23 Mar 2012    Post subject: How detrimental is rust on a motorbike? Reply with quote

I am looking at some used 125s and a lot of them have rust on the engine, pipes, exhaust etc.

How bad is rust and should you steer well clear of any rusty bikes?

Why don't these people use plastic rain covers when parking? Would that stop the rust?
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Teflon-Mike
tl;dr



Joined: 01 Jun 2010
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PostPosted: 05:53 - 23 Mar 2012    Post subject: Re: How detrimental is rust on a motorbike? Reply with quote

guile wrote:
I am looking at some used 125s and a lot of them have rust on the engine, pipes, exhaust etc.

How bad is rust and should you steer well clear of any rusty bikes?

Why don't these people use plastic rain covers when parking? Would that stop the rust?


Depends where it is; how bad it is.

I doubt you find 'rust' on many engine's though; most motorbike engines are aluminium.. it can go white & furry with oxidisation, but it's not 'rust' which is iron oxide you only get on iron or steel!

Exhaust's rust. Thats the nature of them. Rust through the outer chrome plating is quite normal, its crappy thin chrome. Ought to polish out. If blistered though, its come from the inside, which is where exausts rust from; petrol burns in air to form water and carbon di-oxide and some nasty nitreouse compounds which are often slightly acidic, all the ingredients for 'rust'.

Handlebars like exhausts, often rust on cheap chrome.

If you are looking at Kanton-Kentuck-Flied bikes (Cheap generic Chinese bikes!) then they are made from low grade steel and have very poor thin chrome and rust abismally. The Chinese built Japanese brand 125's; aren't a HUGE amount better; and the YBR is still rather prone; but then too is the Suzuki EN125 made in Spain I think, and the Honda CBF made in India.

What you have to be mindful of is whats cosmetic, and whats struictural.

Rust can look 'bad' but if its exhaust pipe chrome & handle-bars; then no great worry.

Frame brackets, swing arms, that kind of thing you need to give it a good scratch and see how deep it is.

Chains? Sign of neglect.

If you click my profile & have a look at the blogs of my Honda CB125 Super-Dream renovation; THAT bike was RUSTY, but twenty five year old Jap of 'quality' nothing structural, and properly treated, and protected, back on the road looking like new again. Likewise my DT125, and most surprisingly, REALY bad exhaust pipe, thirty years old, looked fit for teh scrap heap, but thick enough steel it actually cleaned up.

As for rain covers? Your showing your ignorance. Rain covers keep the saddle dry so you dont get a wet bum when you ride off. NOT a lot more!

As for protecting rust; they act like a closh; condensation under the cover will do as much harm as leaving the bike exposed, and letting it breath.

RAIN doesn't rust bikes; its fresh water. Its water plus salt, ie road crap that makes metal rust, and THAT is already on the bike, and water already in the air. Actually NOT covering the bike, letting the condensation dry out from wind and sun, can actually do more to save rust than sticking a pack-a-mak over it!
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blurredman
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Joined: 18 Sep 2010
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PostPosted: 23:10 - 24 Mar 2012    Post subject: Reply with quote

Sometimes covers develop condensation?

Mostly over grass?
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Past: 1991 Honda CG125BR-J, 1992 (1980) Honda XL125S, 1996 Kawasaki GPZ500S.
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Kal
World Chat Champion



Joined: 02 Jan 2007
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PostPosted: 00:02 - 28 Mar 2012    Post subject: Reply with quote

It's rust. My superdream is covered in the stuff.

In short it depends on the bike. For "big four" bikes the rust has to be a really, really bad case for it to cause an issue beyond cosmetics.
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1984 GB250 Clubman,1983 CB250N Superdream, 1999 GPZ500S
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