100GS refurb ing the handlebars.

Posh Pete

Still got a pulse.
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You know how you start a job and think: "While I'm at it ..."

The black bars are a bit scabby. My immediate thought is clean em up and spay with smooth rite or similar. Then I thought: plastic coat but that'll interfere with the fit of the control units? Finally it occurred: Wonder if there are alternative bars which might be more comfy?

Any ways your 2p worth is invited! :D
 
If you have done a lot to the bike to make it good I’d perefer to keep it as standard as possible depending on other work of course. Would Motorworks or someone like that have a new set? Otherwise a refurbish is a job for the professionals. JJH
 
The G/S and GS bars are from an era where bars were quite high in terms of their bend. There are similar bend bars available now from the likes of Siebenrock ( probably) but most modern bend bars are much lower and to my mind not in keeping with the original style. I’d rub them down and paint with a quality satin black paint. Powdercoat would be too thick for the control perches to squeeze over.
 
Motoworks, Motobins, Seibenrock and one or two others do Tommaselli bars which very closely replicate the original bars- I have a set on mine and they are pretty good.
 
Cut them back with a good cutting compound / cutting polish, fill the scratches with black Rub-N-Buff and seal with a good wax polish.
Armor-All have a OK cutting polish, my Dollar store does small containers of Carnuba ? wax polish which seems to work OK.
My experience with pattern bars is negative in the extreme!
 
In Leicester there is a firm that does proper hot tank blacking (like gun barrels) and that adds no thickness whatsoever. It comes as a shiney, almost black chrome like finish.

What was the original type of finish?
 
It is called Parkerising, after Parker Hale.

It is only as shiny as the steel it is applied to, so there would be a fair bit work in stripping and polishing the bars before application.
 
It is called Parkerising, after Parker Hale.

It is only as shiny as the steel it is applied to, so there would be a fair bit work in stripping and polishing the bars before application.

That is what I know as blacking - Parker Hale were big in the gun trade, the name still is.
 


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