Hey Kawa SME's. Tech question for you. I got a pair of panniers cheap with the intention of fixing up.
The crack is easy.
The hinges - easy.
The scratches... a few well placed stickers, but can it be sanded? What grades?
Alternatives? Thanks!
Don't sand the scratches untill you fill them with a plastic filler.
If you sand then back just to get rid of the scratches you are only thinning the surrounding material and making the area weaker.
fill scratches with plastic filler, lightly sand back till surface is smooth using low to high 800 1200 1500 2000 grit paper.
looking at the pics... that is in rough condition.
might be cheaper to buy a Shad case.
As stated previously, glazing filler for the scratches. Buy on ebay for $20.00 That bag is rough and even a daily body shop dude would probably not take that one on. Good luck.
I had (much less) scratches on the corner of my Givi E21s, from a parked tip over in gravel. I sanded the area smoother with 2 grades of sandpaper, don't recall what exactly but one rough, one smooth. Then I used black Kiwi shoe polish to darken and buff the sanded area. Not a flawless repair, but I don't think you can make your damage look perfect again either, so maybe this will help to make it "good enough" like mine.
I can see the subtle digs there but I'm quite realistic with this. I'm not expecting to restore "as new". Cleaning it up is all that's needed.
To put this into perspective and doing the math: Brand new this kit is worth about $1200 AUD, I paid $150. Throw in new locks, the fitting kit, a bit of sand paper and the plastic filler totals around $110.
I'd call this a win.
I'll post later with the results
There is a repair made for plastic auto bumper covers that is supposed to work good. The last one I repaired I just used glazing putty to fill the scratches and then sanded (I used 400 grit water sand paper). Clean good, then prime (sand again with 600 grit water sand paper), paint using paint made specifically for plastics.
I also like a challenge and have repaired some things that should have been replaced. I like the satisfaction of "doing" it myself. Also I'm pretty cheap.
For the crack I would use 2 part epoxy for plastic repair (repair on the inside).
For the crack
I was going to solder a slight "V" trench, tape the channel of the crack from the outside to form a seal. fill the crack with super glue then rub bicarb of soda into the join to make a kind of solid concrete. Air gun out any access powder after drying.
Remove tape, solder join on the outside if necessary, sand and buff.
The broken hinge I'm undecided. repair existing or grind down the old one and bolt a new one. I'll see how it holds after repair.
I like the shoe polish idea!
Your ideas are excellent folks! cheers for the direction!
Don't think that's a good idea - superglue works for things that have broken but STILL fit precisely together (broken pottery, for example). I would fill the crack w/ something like JB Weld.
I agree with Eddie...........super glue won't cut it. I actually have a plastic welder that I would use. Instead of that use the JB Weld or epoxy. Nothing needs to be done with the outside except to fill the gap (which should be small) with glazing putty just like the scratches.
Post pics when done..............
Make sure to scruff up the plastic real good before using whatever you decide to use.
I would first "Frankenstein-sew" it up on at least 4 points along that crack using small nylon tiewraps. Just drill small holes on each sides of the crack for the tiewraps. Make sure the "knot" of the tiewrap is on the inside of the lid (it will remain there in the end, smothered in epoxi) Once I have it fixed solid, I'd slow-dry epoxy the crap out of it from the inside and let the compound fill the crack from the inside (must be turned over for gravity to work). you can lay small patches of fiberglass over the epoxy to strengthen it. Once the epoxy is dry I use filler to cover the crack from the top. I'd fill the rest of the scratches before I begin sanding them down with 800 grit and progressively smaller grit (1,000, 1200) until desired finish. Once it is mostly done, I remove the outer side of the tiewraps and fill the holes with filler, sand, use a Hi-Fill primer for plastics, and rattle-can paint. It is really a good project to do. Save you some money.
My experience with black plastic is it can easily be made to look new again. A coat of semi gloss/semi mat black plastic paint is all that is required. Krylon plastic paint in a spray can. With scratches you can sand with progressively finer grades of paper ending in 2000 grit as long as it is not a textured surface. With textured surfaces the paint itself will help mask imperfections.
When I bought my V used, it came with all black side bags. They were a bit scuffed up like yours.
I sanded the roughness out of the plastic and painted them red to match the bike. Over the 7-8 years I have had the bike now, I have redone the paint job a few times as I have scuffed it u in the garage or in a tip over.
Interesting to note. The candy/tricoat paint is not easily available. I've found two places online located in the USA. Locally most of the big name auto suppliers/paint stores only match to cars. The candy paint is very niche!
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