Stripping spray paint off the plastics.

Klxkdxrider · Post by **Klxkdxrider** » 09:57 am Mar 31 2013

First time poster here. Gotta a 1998 KLX 300 bored out to 340 last summer that I had a blast on riding in high country CO. The dude I bought it from threw in a 1993 KDX 200E that's not running. He said he bought as is and tried to fix it but couldn't figure it out. So, I'm tryin to figure it out. I'm going to come back here with lots of questions but I have 2 for u now. Some dumbass painted the the plastics with white spray paint. What is the best way to get that crap off and bring back the beauty of Kawasaki green? Also, it's leaking gear oil badly but I can't tell where it's coming from. Where would the most likely source be?

I had an 84 KDX 200 when I was a kid and these are my first bikes in about 20 years so I'm really undereducated on fixing one up. I appreciate the help!

Post by **dfeckel** » 10:04 am Mar 31 2013

REgarding the plastics, I would think good old sandpaper and elbow grease will be the best bet. Any chemical strong enough to strip the paint might also damage the plastic underneath. Start coarse to grind the paint away, then work finer to get the plastic smooth again. If you go fine enough with wet sandpaper and then polishing compounds, you can get them looking pretty nice.

A likely candidate for the leaking gear oil is your countershaft seal. Those things can leak a lot, and they can also be a bear to totally seal up again. I like to think of a slightly weepy CS seal as an automatic chain oiler.

sarrant · Post by **sarrant** » 10:53 am Mar 31 2013

I've had good luck stripping spray paint from plastics by soaking in brake fluid. Lifts the paint off without eating up plastic. Slow, laborious process over a few days though.

diymirage · Post by **diymirage** » 02:05 pm Mar 31 2013

sarrant wrote:I've had good luck stripping spray paint from plastics by soaking in brake fluid. Lifts the paint off without eating up plastic. Slow, laborious process over a few days though.

believe it or not, that is the approach i use when i screw up the paint on model cars
i have a big old pickle jar full of brake fluid that will easily hold a 1/24 scale car

Post by **KDXGarage** » 02:51 pm Mar 31 2013

Chemical peel, not mechanical.

Which side is it leaking from, left/right, top/bottom??

Klxkdxrider · Post by **Klxkdxrider** » 10:26 am Apr 01 2013

Thanks for the replies! I'm not completely sure but, I think the Leah is coming from the bottom.

Post by **bufftester** » 04:59 pm Apr 01 2013

From the bottom around the drain bolt? A lot of folks don't replace the copper crush washer when the do an oil change and after a few times a leak can develop there. Only other places likely if its on the bottom would be the case seam. Easy way I check for leaks is clean the are you want to inspect and dry completely then I dust it with talcum powder or flour (whatever you have on hand). The leak locations show up really easy then.

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