How to Mirror Polish Bike Frame

Visual story, taking you through the journey you can expect to go through if you choose to polish your aluminum bicycle frame.
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[@maxmason6053]

One of the coolest bike video's I've seen in a long time. * Starting a 1994 GT Zaskar Urban Machine 4.0 next week. Every decal is brand new and using 2 coats premium gloss clear coat over the polished frame... Last sand will be 2400 grit. You rock... good video.

[@HAZYFALKIRK]

Done a 96 GT Zaskar a couple of years ago and it looked great, never bothered with the clearcoat, it needs it now;( , just got a merlin frame, gona do the same but clearcoat this time

[@francisnormanmolanoambatal8372]

After a series failed repainting project and after watching what you did you inspired me to do the same with my mtb frame, you did an amazing job sir👍

[@johnnycake020]

Well done mate - any work of art always involves a slow, cautious and patient approach. It paid off in your case. Looks great. thanks for posting.

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

Big John Glad you like it.

[@tonyteevo]

I don't usually comment on YT videos but.....sir you are a LEGEND

[@darrellcoombes]

That looks fantastic.Great video. You have inspired me to get to work on. an old Diamond back in the shed and do a 1980s project

[@marcdebroin6700]

What a nice bike. Congratulations for all that hard work.

[@bendunbar8334]

Bloody hell that must be the best polished frame out there

[@arthurrhiggin877]

Just done mine, using mini wire brushes for the welds so you don't rub the welds away!

[@eerhardhuizinga2632]

Great sounds to go with the build.

[@IGovino]

Just a question any layer u apply to protect the frame from rust

[@abrahammartinez5628]

Aluminum won’t rust like Metal

[@acat6821]

@@abrahammartinez5628it doesnt rust but it does tarnish, and goes dull without protection, waxing is a good way, im unsure if you can paint such a polished metal

[@cheapciggies]

A mechanic friend would always wipe over bare metal bodywork with a bit of oil on a cloth. Wasn't selling anything just worked out the truth with what worked best.

[@MrDegsy69]

@@abrahammartinez5628 aluminium will start oxidizing in contact with air less than 20 minutes after polishing it to a mirror finish. A few coats of clear lacquer can preserve this finish longer but not indefinitely.

[@andygarwood6712]

The background music and the bikes are amazing. Great cool video. You've have great taste my friend. Love it all.....Please please post a playlist. Cant find on shazam

[@fernglez60]

How do you protect the finish. Just with wax? Would clear coating it also work.

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

Recommend a good clear coat if you don’t want to keep on repolishing.

[@androuxdrip2634]

@@californiabikeandsnowboard1925 That bike looks gold after that effort. is rustoleum a good claer coat brand? or would a different process be needed instead of canisters

[@davidminsker5972]

Great music, great video! Thank you!

[@ROBinJVILLE]

i freakin love it and im about to strip my 29r single speed. great video man

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

ROBinJVILLE how’d your project go?

[@geg_otmopo3]

Good big metal brush saves A TON of time in my experience. More important than good paint remover even

[@randywooldridge9064]

Very clean I’m going to do that to my Cannondale 900 V

[@terryoconnor1744]

Awesome video! Do you find that you need to re-polish the frame, or was it a one time thing?

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

I’ll need to re-polish.

[@MrDox123]

Fantastic work! I’m in the midst of doing one myself - a gravel frame. However, mine will have a variation with part paint, part polish. I also plan to apply paint lettering with vinyl masks under the painted front. Not branding, just my own GFX. I also have one of those mirror finish bikes you mention early in the video - a 1994 Cannondale R900. Fantastic road bike it has been. Still ride it. Impeccable Ultegra tricolor components work same as 30 years ago. The one thing that bothers me on the current frame is the typical “ugly” welds on May Alu frames that are not smooth like Cannondale used to do with their double welds. Because of this, I’m considering cheating and cleaning up the welds with plastic metal (Bondo) and shooting the entire bike. The rear would still have the polished look if I shot silver but was considering a variation and making it look like Titanium with its typical “smoky” darker hue. Front triangle (almost), carbon fork and seatpost would get the paint treatment. But… I’m still stripping and sanding. It’s a good workout! :-)

[@MTMXBL]

can you apply a clear coat after the polish? or is the finish too smooth for the clear to stick? How do you prevent oxidisation?

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

@mtmxbl In my case, I didn’t use clear coat. The polish will dull in time in which I would re-polish to bring back the shine. You can apply a clear coat as some bike frame manufacturers do, but it takes away some of the effect of the mirror polished shine.

[@420jacksonian]

it looks nice , but when you move it , the scratches are noticeable, how do you get a true mirror finish ?

[@billmillen29]

Brilliant video. Thanks for sharing.

[@vinu553]

Great video. Just one question though, do I have to put on some sort of lacquer or metal varnish after the polishing to prevent oxidation ?? What method did you use??

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

vinu vinesh you can use a good clear coat spray, but I left mine raw. I will have to eventually re-polish.

[@paulwolfram7774]

Very nice work!

[@ruipires7954]

Outstanding job!!

[@catalickconverta6823]

Always get a jet wash on the frame after you apply the paint stripper blasts the sticky messy old paint right off

[@ninjasagain1201]

Read the disclaimer on the Aircraft Paint Remover. 8t straight up says, "Not for use on aircraft." Lol. I've used it on many of my bikes when I first buy them, its good stuff. I also use it again after I recover them from the asshat stupid enough to steal my bikes. It happens all the time, too, and they always paint my bike and screw it up. My 2008 Superstar New Deal has been stolen 9 times and I've stripped it 10 times on the bike. I don't think it'll be stolen again, though. I duct taped the last dude to a chair and I painted, "steal my bike again, bitches,..." on this chest and abdomin, and finished it off with "and I'll take your hands"" and it wasn't paint i used, it was painted on in Aircraft Paint Remover and left on his bare chest and back and set him on a busy street corner. I came back...nearly four hours later wipeded off the Ai 8srcraft Paint Remover and was thoroughly impressed with my penmanship in elevated red welp. I loled and started to leave him there until he talked about how I better never see him again and what he was going to do to me when he does seem. He got to his second threat when i cut the duct tape and started at him. He shut up and i back handed him, called him a bitch, and walked off. Never saw him again, so i guess I got lucky just like he ssid

[@GhostRiderSpiritOfVengeance]

What the fuck did I just read

[@mountainbiker9330]

@@GhostRiderSpiritOfVengeance same😂, "called him a bitch."

[@lanzwilliam8402]

I'm just curious, how do you protect the finish? Do you spray some clear coat or apply some bike skins? Hope you could respond.

[@coolmusic1579]

Now with all that heavy paint off, you oughta be able to go real fast. 😄 How much to you think the paint weighed. Nice work, but alot of work.

[@swiftshift06]

Fantastic build! I recently picked up an Aluminum frame and I'm trying to figure out what direction I'd like to go with the finish. How many hours of sanding and polishing was involved in the frame?

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

I didn’t track the time I took since I worked on it on my Time off throughout a month. It did take a lot of time. Once you start you got to commit.

[@35PATHFINDER]

Hi, the build was amazing. Would like to know more about building the rims?

[@MiamiCali706]

It came out great. Would clear coating the bike make any difference?

[@admahecha]

Is still shiny after all this time ?

[@CM-1723]

Did the frame last ? With having no paint on it

[@thesupercrashbrothers8459]

Nice! I'm doing this to my MTB 🤘

[@J-bt5jw]

Let me know how it goes man. I'd like to do the same

[@thesupercrashbrothers8459]

@@J-bt5jw it went pretty well I think! I've got a video on my channel if you're interested 😊

[@J-bt5jw]

@@thesupercrashbrothers8459 haha it looks sick !

[@thesupercrashbrothers8459]

@@J-bt5jw thanks 😁

[@johnny-zq5ve]

Sir did you put a top coat paint or not

[@Jfbegood2yourself]

How often do you find yourself re-polishing to keep up that shine?

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

Hi Joseph. Since I recently completed this project in the summer of 2018 and have kept the bike indoors, I have not needed to re-polish yet. I would imagine that you’d re-polish as you see fit when you find the shine dulling.

[@Jfbegood2yourself]

@@californiabikeandsnowboard1925 Nice. in retrospect, would you have considered using a drill with a 3M pad attachment to remove the old paint? I'm going to experiment with this very soon. I will use 2000grit paper after using the drill.

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

Joseph Fasulo you could, but I wanted to do it in the fastest possible way. Sanding with a drill will be difficult in certain angles between the frame tubes. Plus you’d have to get through 3 layers of paint to get to bare metal. Clear coat, paint, then primer.

[@30302829]

Can i apply clear spray paint to restore shine?

[@TheLexiconDevils]

Flap wheel strip disc on a grinder to remove the bulk of paint. Chemical stripper for corners joins welds ect. Felt disc or ball to finish polish

[@andyjamestf]

Lovely bike

[@Xavi-Tenis]

Asome work, i think you can paint with a transparent primer for protect from the white rust on aluminium.

[@michaelgossett1415]

Simply Beautiful!!!

[@olipru4192]

What are the products and tool that you used?

[@joseaiartonsoaresdearaujoj4110]

Does the bike come with a bike lock or any other necessary accessories

[@kyrb53]

For complete contrast, I would polish the steering wheel and cap on the bridge. The bracket itself left black as it is.

[@patrickking1966]

I don't think you can clear coat the polished frame....as my friend mirror polished his car wheels and clear coated...but the clear coat peeled...as the surface was too smooth for paint to key too....awesome build was thinking about doing my bike....but clear coat ...not viable

[@Xavi-Tenis]

Primer transparent coat, this not peel.🥹

[@coachgius]

Did you apply a clear coat after the polish procedure?

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

Giuseppe Cimadoro, I did not apply clear coat after polishing. I do recommend it if you’re able to.

[@coachgius]

@@californiabikeandsnowboard1925 ok thanks mate, because I was wondering how long would that beauty last without some kind of protection layer on top. Probably it should be polished again every so often? What's your experience in time with that frame?

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

Giuseppe Cimadoro been stored in a dry and cool environment. Still looks good. Just a bit dusty now. Lol.

[@myscreen2urs]

Ideally, you'd apply the clear coat before the polish. You'd also have to sand no higher than 800 grit for the clear to hold on to.

[@comedycamping4692]

Looks really nice. I have a mirror polished Marin rocky ridge. But it’s gone really bull and oxidised after about 25 years. I was just wandering did you treat the bike with clear lacquer to stop it going dull over time. As I know the shine disappears pretty quick especially here in the uk where it always damp or raining.

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

Comedy Camping. I didn’t use any clear coating. I’m sure the shine will full in time, but I do store the bike in a dry place.

[@robinrai4973]

You can coat it with something like Evabrite to stop having to repolish it constantly, great job!

[@Jan-uc2pq]

How does this hold up to corrosion? Do you not need clear coat?

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

I can imagine that in certain conditions, corrosion can start to take affect and you’ll see some dulling in the shine. I do recommend a nice clear coat to protect and seal unless You don’t mind re-polishing.

[@FILMCOLLECTOR16]

could i do that with my columbus steel dropouts . currently black . wheel connection aready look mirror like. do you need to lacquer it after?

[@jamesl.7657]

Thanks CBS Amazing

[@nicolajhardbass1608]

Aaah these bars and breaks

[@EvendimataE]

im lucky to find an old mongoose alta sx bike with polished fininsh. i think it has a clear coat that makes the shine like permanent. only got it for $75

[@nathanmoore160]

If I sprayed a clear coat on top will I have to polish again

[@ryanho7033]

good work man

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

Thanks man! Thanks for watching.

[@filthysoap96]

How do you maintain the frame clean? Do you continue using the aluminum polish? How often? Love the build! I want to try doing my own.

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

The shine will dull in time. Re polish as needed and to your liking. Best wishes on your project.

[@lukefriedhoff1614]

So is polishing it a one time thing or will you have to repeat the process after washing the bike? I am planning on doing this to an old mountain bike that I am rebuilding.

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

You will need to re-polish once the shine dulls.

[@antn8387]

looks soooo awesome!!

[@phil5073]

how many pcs of sandpaper per grit do you consume?

[@johnny-zq5ve]

Did you just do a dry sanding or wet sanding

[@michaelalbany]

Cool. I am about to do this on a 2010 Giant Defy. Quick question. What did you use to strip the forks? Or did you just get an new carbon fork?

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

Michael Albany I got a new carbon fork.

[@MajorProblem1990]

Can I use metal polish on aluminum frame?

[@YumiAmakura0803]

Is this kind of finish water resistant?

[@elelegidoriginal]

Good video but wow, that music is annoying AF.

[@ShapezPuller64]

The hype cuts were pretty obnoxious too, honestly...

[@CrazyRespawn]

Holy shit this soundtrack is aweful. Cool build though. Planning on doing this to my beat up paint job.

[@danindeed]

Good video, man. Keep going with these and try your hand at steel.

[@The_Robo_Rascal]

that's some sick looking shit you got there but how do you protect it from the rust?

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

The good thing about aluminum frames is that they don’t rust like steel. Only thing you’ll see is that the shine will dull in time in which you would need to repolish.

[@4VengeanceV]

silicon lubricant will do it for steel

[@glennlozano7621]

Hi, I have a question, after I achieved the mirror polish on the frame can I put sticker in there and put clear coat on in? that would work?

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

Yes, that should work.

[@runride3501]

@@californiabikeandsnowboard1925How a shiny bike. Great. Maybe we should pollish again with Mothers product àfter a month or several month, right? if I apply clearcoat paint in full frame, can U sure the durability of shiny and mirror polish get in a long time?

[@TD-3269]

Nice job!!

[@gelodonut3929]

after you buff the frame did you put a clear coat paint?

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

No, I did not put a clear coat on.

[@francisnormanmolanoambatal8372]

Can I spray clear coat on top of my polished mirror finish frame sir?

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

Yes you can.

[@mrwhiteshorts]

Hey dude, Nice video, thanks! After polishing to your finishing shine, would manufacturers or sponsors transfers/logos go back on with all that polish? Good to note that a clear coat would be ok. I live in Scotland where its always cold and raining! Cheers, mark

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

You’ll first need to find replacement logo/graphic decals that you want to place on the frame since the originals were destroyed with the painting stripping process. Then you can seal in the new logos with a good clear coating.

[@mrwhiteshorts]

@@californiabikeandsnowboard1925 Ah cool, thanks for replying. ok sound, so the transfers will stick. As i say, id need to clear coat even though itll cost a few grams. Brilliant Sir, thanks.

[@gheorghefalcaru]

Fantastic!!!!!

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

Gheorghe Falcaru hey thanks!

[@Pitstershedder7517]

Hi been watching your video about making your bike chrome I got a giant fx2 frame I won't to make chrome just wondering how do you protect your chrome from the weather do I spay it with clear coat varnish?

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

Mimo 87 I didn’t do anything to protect the frame, but you can spray with a good clear coat.

[@Pitstershedder7517]

@@californiabikeandsnowboard1925 Ok thanks

[@fmb7719]

California Bike and Snowboard CBS but do you spray it after or before polishing the frame?

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

Francisco Muñoz Balaresque after polishing.

[@manin4568]

after polish did u apply clear coat ?

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

No, I didn’t apply clear coat. I intend to re-polish the frame periodically.

[@SeanTee604]

Man looks good

[@richardware9676]

Did you use some kind of laquer or wax to keep the frame from oxidizing? Nice work, I'm doing one currently as well and would appreciate the input :)

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

Ric Hard I did not use anything else to protect the frame.

[@richardware9676]

@@californiabikeandsnowboard1925 Thanks a lot, so no oxidazation occured on your frame? Perhaps the Polish you used has some conserving properties?

[@andreluissilva869]

what you can do do preserve the polish look?

[@NickRanger]

Use autosol metal polish

[@TheMrsCubeman]

Is this possible on every frame? I would like to do it on my cowboy 4 (ebike)

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

You frame would need to be made of aluminum.

[@DiGiTaLdAzEDM]

I have a ti frame. I'm pretty sure you can mirror polish titanium. So, does not have to be aluminum. Great job, anyways. Looks nice.

[@mountainbiker9330]

Nice👍

[@kingsenszhu3226]

How can I keep it from rusting after polishing

[@skynetlabs]

Aluminum doesn't rust, genius.

[@mjhoover]

@@skynetlabs it oxidizes super fast just in air, or with hand prints, a bit of moisture etc. It turns sort of white/ opaque actually quite fast. So yes, you DO need to protect it somehow. Methods include clear coat, some people wax it, or in my case I have another coating I am experimenting with... secret for now.

[@gilgeralde39]

@@mjhoover now can you tell us the secret?

[@james-r]

Interesting music

[@OscarCastilloDelacruz]

I just got an old cheap bike for my son with a lil bit of rust. I would like to do something like this to the frame. I don't know if the frame is aluminum. If i want to do a clear coat to protect it, should i use the polish first then spray coat or how should I do it??

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

Oscar Castillo Yes, polish first before applying clear coating. If the frame has rust on it, you probably have a steel frame.

[@OscarCastilloDelacruz]

@@californiabikeandsnowboard1925 thanks i appreciate it. I did some research and found out that the frame is in fact steel but didn't know how to go about it. Tomorrow i will start working on it. I want to do this as a father and son project.

[@oxbadcode6573]

@@californiabikeandsnowboard1925 how do you remove rust from aluminum tho?any tips

[@billmason3861]

@@oxbadcode6573 aluminium doesn't rust

[@oxbadcode6573]

@@billmason3861 what I was thinking but mine has like dark reddish spots that look like rust

[@harveyjoneswoodsman5956]

I like it however the one thing bugging me is that ugly green hanger if you had put a red anodized one it would match better but cool build anyway

[@spandanroy2331]

Lovely ❤

[@soulskater9821]

Great tunes on this video.

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

Glad you think so!

[@MrDegsy69]

@@californiabikeandsnowboard1925 any links to them as they had me hip hopping all the way through the video and dusting off my Cypress Hill CDs.

[@jasonochoa7647]

If sand blasted my frame do I still need to sand it?

[@MrKyleCable]

Yes, you'll still have to follow the sanding process dropping down from rough to fine papers

[@moderbicker525]

Is this going to last on a rainy weather or the frame is going to get rusty?

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

Won’t rust since the frame is aluminum.

[@sethroer-molven3339]

@@californiabikeandsnowboard1925 but it will corode after time rigth?

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

@@sethroer-molven3339 yes. Then you would polish again as needed.

[@Zedia949]

What about clear cloating it will the coat stick to the polish or will it just pill off?

[@moderbicker525]

@@californiabikeandsnowboard1925 OK thanks

[@camilohrnc]

Que belleza!

[@SpeedsterPlayer]

wtf soundtrack ? :D pls :D

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

Dafné_ Soundtrack, love it or hate it?

[@TomFord17]

How long would you say the frame portion took?

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

About 4 days. More or less. Depends on how much time you have and dealing with cramping hands and fingers.

[@TomFord17]

@@californiabikeandsnowboard1925 Ah not too bad then - i've got a scuffed up caad10 that im going to strip - never done anything like this before so lots of mistakes will be made im sure.

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

Tom Ford nice! Let me know how it turns out.

[@mauricevdtillaard]

Did you sand by hand or with that air grinder thingy..?

[@mr.lonely52]

What is the chainline of your triple chainring sir? #9:33

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

Sorry, I absolutely have no idea.

[@mr.lonely52]

@@californiabikeandsnowboard1925 if fine my friend🥰❤️

[@dunks4983]

Does this work for chromoly bike frames?

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

You can polish chromoly, but it probably won’t come out as good. You won’t be able to get a mirror shine. I don’t recommend because of potential rusting.

[@billycousins1365]

Yes, it does work on chromoly. I have a few 30+ year old bmx bikes that look like a mirror. Polishing aluminum to a chrome finish looks awesome initially, but without sealing the aluminium immediately after polishing, it will begin to dull back to a hazy grey again. Mothers is ok, but I have found better at a car show years ago, and have been using it ever since. "Master Fornula" metal gloss and sealer. 2005 Baymer Ave. Unit Q Fullerton, CA 92833 [phone] www.masterformulapolish.com This stuff is awesome! Far less elbow grease needed, and brings metals to a shine quickly!

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

Billy Cousins, Thanks for the info and input. Good to know.

[@anonomous2221]

Actually steel can be polished but it takes more steps since steel is much harder. It would require sanding with progressivly finer sandpaper and compounding before polish. Cromoly steel will still rust but somewhat slower than regular steel because it contains some chromium.

[@jasonochoa7647]

James Keaton if I sand blasted my chromoly fork should I still sand it before polishing?

[@antn8387]

oo shiny and nice

[@jmsalido5493]

Can i do this to a metal frame bike???

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

yuan mikael reyes, Yes you can. Steel frames will not be as shiny as aluminum frames when polished though.

[@Sarms.]

Do you guys have se bikes

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

Yes, we do sell SE bikes.

[@brooklynboi11207]

Any updates?

[@gregramirez774]

Nice job, would have been better if actually showed you doing the work during the sanding process not showing you putting the bike back together

[@tomycavalera6748]

Cool...

[@antonyalwin1138]

What's the material of the frame

[@californiabikeandsnowboard1925]

Antony Alwin It’s aluminum.