# The Great Ongoing Motorcycle Thread **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [October 8, 2023, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-motorcycle-thread/991279 "2023-10-08T17:12:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 1\ **Showing post:** 210
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2024, 4:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-motorcycle-thread/991279/210 "2024-06-16T04:47:48Z")
The left fairing I received from Germany a while ago was in a box secured with brown plastic tape. The box was… not pristine when I received it. The tape got all over the fairing, and left heavy residue then I took it off. Today I used denatured alcohol to clean it off. Worked a treat. There are a few chips in the paint, but not so bad that it needs repainting. The only thing is that there’s an XJ600N decal on it that needs to be removed. [(I posted in FQ to find out how.)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/removing-a-factory-sticker-from-bodywork/1002930) So, things that need to be painted: The tail fairing, the front fairing, the front fender, and the frame. I’m confidant I can paint the little tail piece. I _think_ the fender shouldn’t be too har. (I need to look at it to see how to get it off the bike.) The front fairing/cowling… The thieves cracked it. I’ll have to find some epoxy to fix it, and some body filler. I think this will be a challenge. I have rattle cans of paint, but this is a big part. I think it will take _much_ work to get the primer even, then the base coat even, then the colour coat even, then the clear coat even. I’ll probably replace the after-market windscreen with an original one. With over 79,000 miles on it, the engine is very tired. I’m thinking of buying a salvaged cylinder head and having it rebuilt. (It’s been rebuilt at least once before.) Having the engine rebuilt would be a good time to paint the frame. The mechanic can strip the frame in Winter. Unfortunately, I can’t paint in Winter because it’s too cold. I might have to take it to a paint shop. Why am I expending so much energy and money on a 30-year-old motorcycle? It was the last thing my late-father bought me for a birthday present. Also the biggest present, since the Yamaha LT2 100 Enduro he gave me for my 12th birthday. The sentimental value far exceeds the monetary value. I mean, I could just buy a yellow '94 Seca II; but it wouldn’t be the same. ETA: I have the original left fairing, but the thieves broke off the block with the pin that secures it to the frame. I have the right fairing, which has the block and pin. I could break the block and pin off of the right fairing, and glue it to the left fairing; then paint the original fairing. But it would be a _lot_ easier to just remove the decal on the already-yellow fairing. --- _[View the full topic](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-motorcycle-thread/991279)._