Discolored headers

In the pics you guys post, nearly all the header pipes are bright and silver. Mine are straw colored, as stainless does, and also have a blue spot at the tightest bend near the head. Is this normal? I've had stainless exhaust systems before, but not with the blue patches. I like the patina of the straw color, and would rather not loose it. Suggestions please.......

My pipes are the lovely straw colour you speak of (done 80,000km+). At the end of each ride I check for tar spots aet on the header pipes and on the Termignoni muffler and I hit any spots needed (and usually a light going over of all the pipe area) with a Meguiar's metal polishing paste. Works a treat.

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Never tried the above but it could be a option if you want to get back to new.

Optiglanz, but it's no longer available here.

Optiglanz? Sounds like something you'd rub on yer knob if you got the clap!

after 15 years of polishing stainless on private yachts, I've tried boxfuls of products.

autosol and a large tub of elbow grease is the winner.

apply with ya fingers and "git in nice an deep" then buff off with an old cotton singlet... or microfibre if you must

you will lose the straw colour and get it back to shiny shiny, but the golden straw will come back after a good hard ride.

the killer for me is the liver spots. these are caused during the pipe bending process and will always return. the bending puts micro cracks in the steel, and its game over

These are from a sport. Started off with toilet bowl cleaner with 10% hydrochloric acid. Spray on wait 30 sec and rinse. Then to the buffer, cotton wheel on an old bench grinder. Start with brown or black compound and finish with white.
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Mine are now permanently dark, As described by Pat. Better things to do, in my opinion, than polish pipes - very little return on investment.

mmmhuh, but some of us like nice shiny bits...

Shiny sucks! Titanium is the way to go with headers. Not only do they go delightful colours but they get so bloody hot that nothing sticks to them!

They also, of course, make your gonads enormous and your trouser bulge becomes the envy of all lesser men! Wimmins flock to you! You have to beat them off with a shitty stick and your entire life becomes one of prurient exhaustion!

(Don't ask Jude for confirmation on this. She will lie and say it isn't true......)

I may have rubbed a nob but never with Optiglanz

Spray the stuff on, wait 5 min and then hose it off. Go back over it with Autosol and a rag then you are done. Once a year keeps them looking new. The only problem is I've run out and no one is delivering to us Yanks


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Rick,
I used Blue Magic, Metal Polish Cream. Available in all auto parts stores and Walmart's in the US. It's about $8 a jar. I rub it on with 0000 (4-zero abrasion level) steel wool. This was recommended to me by Mike Haven at MPH Cycle about 6 years ago when I bought my bike there. Works pretty well without too much effort. I like mine to look like new. I clean them while having a beer every couple of weeks at best. Takes 5-10 minutes.

Thanks guys. I guess I'll try some of these things and report back. Sounds like it may be a multi beer job.

Although I’m not a fan of shiny and have used a scotchbrite pad on my headers and Termi for a racy satin finish I did literally just watch a video on you tube where I witnessed black magic!

They started the engine and warmed up the bronzed and blued exhaust on a BMW RR then sprayed watered down sulphuric acid onto the exhaust which immediately returned to a just fabricated colour - wow!

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well if you are going down that road, the is a metal etch priming fluid called 'Ospho', which is mostly phosphoric acid..... it'll bring yer metal bits up a treat with just a few squirts....
just don't let it get on your paint.
or plastics.
or skin.
or breathe it.
but your pipes will shine