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I've been reading posts on a car forum for months about the use of plastidip spray to modify car parts. In essence, plastidip is a rubberized, hard-coating spray that looks like anodizing/powdercoating. People are using it to turn chromed wheels into matte black wheels, to add some color to hoses and plastic parts under the hood, even to touch up scratches on gauge dials, steering wheels, you name it.
www.dipyourcar.com has hundreds of uses of the stuff, tons of pictures, even an Audi that was completely covered (looks a lot like the M-B Black series matte paint).
What's cool about plastidip is both ease of use, and complete reversibility. You don't have to be an expert in masking off areas, in fact you deliberately leave 1/2 inch overspray area and the excess just peels right off. Decide you don't like it? Just peel it off. And it's cheap, comes in a variety of colors, etc.
Thanks to a mishap last year, I had some deep scratches on my chrome trim on my saddlebags. Unwilling to pay hundreds of dollars to replace it, I tried painting one with chrome paint, didn't like the results at all. Decided to try plasti-dipping it to a matte black (so the strips match the tipover black pieces).
Cost: Plastidip from Home Depot. 1 can, $7.99, roll of tape masking tape, $2
Time: fifteen minutes, total (not including wait time between coats)
comes in multiple colors, if you want a shiny finish, also has a gloss coat
scratched chrome strip
Taped off for overspray, leaving 1/2 inch around the strip--no need to tape over the reflector
Per directions, first a very light coat
I did four coats--you have to have it thick enough so you can easily remove what you don't want, and so you can easily remove it later if you want (thinner layers require some rubbing to remove)
plastidip on reflector peels right off
overspray 1/2 inch all around
peels right off
End result--looks great, matches the black trim on the dash, tipover covers, etc.
I plan on plasti-dipping the tipover covers and re-doing my dash area (faded and some of the rubberized paint has worn) next time I have her apart. Had considered doing the whole bike, making it a "stealth LT" or maybe just doing the wheels. Probably will at some point, if I don't like it it peels right off.
Other users say it holds up to washing really well (but chemicals and power-washing can cause some peeling, easily touched up with more of the stuff)
Neat way to deal with the scratches that many of us in the "Droppers Anonymous" club have on the chrome strips, for 1/20th the cost.
www.dipyourcar.com has hundreds of uses of the stuff, tons of pictures, even an Audi that was completely covered (looks a lot like the M-B Black series matte paint).
What's cool about plastidip is both ease of use, and complete reversibility. You don't have to be an expert in masking off areas, in fact you deliberately leave 1/2 inch overspray area and the excess just peels right off. Decide you don't like it? Just peel it off. And it's cheap, comes in a variety of colors, etc.
Thanks to a mishap last year, I had some deep scratches on my chrome trim on my saddlebags. Unwilling to pay hundreds of dollars to replace it, I tried painting one with chrome paint, didn't like the results at all. Decided to try plasti-dipping it to a matte black (so the strips match the tipover black pieces).
Cost: Plastidip from Home Depot. 1 can, $7.99, roll of tape masking tape, $2
Time: fifteen minutes, total (not including wait time between coats)

comes in multiple colors, if you want a shiny finish, also has a gloss coat

scratched chrome strip

Taped off for overspray, leaving 1/2 inch around the strip--no need to tape over the reflector

Per directions, first a very light coat

I did four coats--you have to have it thick enough so you can easily remove what you don't want, and so you can easily remove it later if you want (thinner layers require some rubbing to remove)

plastidip on reflector peels right off

overspray 1/2 inch all around

peels right off

End result--looks great, matches the black trim on the dash, tipover covers, etc.
I plan on plasti-dipping the tipover covers and re-doing my dash area (faded and some of the rubberized paint has worn) next time I have her apart. Had considered doing the whole bike, making it a "stealth LT" or maybe just doing the wheels. Probably will at some point, if I don't like it it peels right off.
Other users say it holds up to washing really well (but chemicals and power-washing can cause some peeling, easily touched up with more of the stuff)
Neat way to deal with the scratches that many of us in the "Droppers Anonymous" club have on the chrome strips, for 1/20th the cost.