Help! Bag melted onto headers, how do I get it off??

[Phurrball]

Hi all,

I am having one of those weeks where every possible little annoying thing seems to be going wrong...

One such thing being the plastic bag that decided to melt itself onto my previously attractive stainless headers. A disadvantage of riding a nekkid bike I guess...:angry:

Anyway, it stinks, looks bad, and just isn't good in general.

Does anyone out there in KB land have any cunning suggestions for getting a baked-on plastic bag off to return my headers to their previous attractive state??

My thoughts so far are:

Some sort of vicious solvent...no idea what...(Yes, when the headers are cold...not ready for my darwin award just yet!)

ONe of those fibrous discs for drill/angle grinder that is designed for stripping paint from metal surfaces without damaging the metal (3M product I think?)

Thoughts? Suggestions?

HELP!

Phurrball/Ross

EDIT: Will try some suggestions and mebbe post some before and after piccs. Not a pleasant thing. :no:

[skidMark]

try some thinners that should take it off.....

[Paul in NZ]

Try WD40 and one of those plastic scourer thingies

[skidMark]

you want to try prevent using anything abrasive...i still reckon thinners

[SimJen]

Lick them when hot :)
Industrial thinners should help.....or worst case sand it off and rebuff the pipes.

[Devil]

You can definately get if off with a rag and a particular solvent thingy. I just wish I could remember what it was. You dont need anything abrasive.

Frosty! what was the shit you used to get all the tar type marks off my exhaust when I was at the yard ages ago???

[emaN]

when we had the Electra Glide, the mrs "did" this with the heel of her boots...

it actually melted/evaporated itself away over a period of a couple of weeks...
(then again,we were touring & doing alot of miles at the time - so could take you longer?)

[imdying]

I'm voting plastic scourer pad and thinners too :) Alhtough, I'd try just hot soapy water with the pad first :)

[bert_is_evil]

Acetone (nail polish remover) melts plastic so should get rid of it without melting your skin.
I use Jif to get melted bread bags off my stainless steel toaster. Cleans and shines without harsh scratching....

[Paul in NZ]

WD40 is pretty good but there is also that stuff for disolving chewing gum. Might NOT use a plastic scouring pad with that sort of thing though! A scrap of old rag?

Petrol melts some plastic!

Polish with Solvolsol after

[Phurrball]

Cheers all!

I've noted the approaches, and just observed that the plastic seems to come off pretty easily while the headers are hot with a key. I'm thinking a combo of careful scraping when hot, and solvent (Mrs P has nail polish remover :shifty: )

I'll let you know how I go...

PB

[sefer]

Yeah I'd suggest the carefully scrape with something metal (thou I'd do it cold) approach myself. That's how I got the bike cover off my muffler ;)

[sAsLEX]

De-Solve it or something is the name of the stuff a couple a refferring to I think

[stevedee]

OK don't laugh, but I got this of a site, who got it of a German bike site, and it totally does work.

Use sugar cubes, yup sounds daft but I ran out of ideas when my goldish pipes got covered in black stuff that no solvent would remove. Could not use anything to abrasive or the gold would come off, tried WD, kero, petrol, turpentine, nothing worked. Stuck the bike out in the sun one Sunday put some news paper down and started rubbing the pipes with the sugar cubes, they wear away quick but gradually they remove the shit without scouring the pipes.

Honest I didnt believe it either, but it works.


spd:-)

[FROSTY]

Thinners-simple paint thinnners --itll rip the shit off in no time
ya could use a copper scouring pad and WD40 when the pipes are warm

[Pixie]

The bag is probably LDPE or HDPE so solvents won't do shit.
Let it carbonise and use stainless polish.

[vifferman]

If it was me, I'd apply further heat (heat gun, or run the engine again), then use a hardwood stick sanded to an edge to scrape it off. When you've got as much off as possible, use a scotchbrite or other non-metallic scouring pad, then follow up with metal polish.
This is what I did when I had shoe melted onto the link pipe to my muffler on my VTR.

[MikeyG]

I use stainless in treatment plant designs. You have to be careful what you use on it or it will rust.

Don't use any metals on the stainless and don't use a scourer pad/sandpaper disc/grinding wheel that has been used on metal.

After stainless is welded or machined it must be neutralised with nitric acid, this is to remove any traces of other metals left in the stainless from the machining or welding process. If there are even trace amounts of carbon steel left in the stainless then your nice shiny stainless will rust in no time.

Also stainless corrodes in the presence of chlorine so don't use a chlorine based solvent.

[Phurrball]

The bag is probably LDPE or HDPE so solvents won't do shit.
Let it carbonise and use stainless polish.

Hmmm - it's getting a spot carbonised. I have no car ATM (and nor would I use one to commute EVER AGAIN) so the bike is being used several times each day as I have no option but to ride it (Gutting eh? :first: )

Have been picking with fingernails when headers still hot-ish and gradually getting bits off. It's not as bad as I thought.

Thanks for the advice MikeyG - will only use a plastic scourer, a 'Vifferman bit of wood' [viffertool perhaps?], and avoid anything metallic.

(On an aside MikeyG - is the metals/chlorine thing why the insides of some dishwashers rust to buggery? Always wondered...anyhow, as you were...)

Will let y'all know how I get on.

Slightly :Offtopic:: Bike is getting a big clean this WE and going in for a new chain and Scottoiler at Motohaus. I wore out the last chain in no time through constant use and neglect. 'Tis a bastard having a sidestand only...with integral engine cut out switch...makes lubing a bastard, bastard job...no excuse I know, but drums up good business for Scottoiler :yes:

[stevedee]

sugar cubes mate, trust me.

spd:-)