Scratches on matte gray body pieces

[artemedes]

Warren I agree about the sun eating the plastic in the South. I could rub my thumb across the luggage rack behind the seat and leave a mark. I think if I tried I could plow a furrow with a fingernail.
The sun is a powerful thing. If you don't believe it spend a full day on a Florida beach and leave the sunscreen at home. Ouch.

Brad

This was my experience as well. I used the NT to commute whenever I could and a couple summers were really hot and dry. I always parked the bike so the sidestand faced north. You could see a dramatic difference between the right and left cowl. The right cowl recieved the full treatment from the sun and was getting brittle. The left cowl was black and didn't easily scratch. I was mainly trying to protect it from further UV damage when I tried the plasti-dip. I felt the plasti-dip was a good option, but using a krylon paint for plastic would be a good option too.

 

[kansjfr]

Do the European bikes have the same issue?

 

[Warren]

A lot of the NT's in Europe are in the UK and from what I understand the do not have any sun only rain

 

[RedLdr1]

Do the European bikes have the same issue?

Same parts, same issues... I suspect it just takes longer for the decay to set in due to the generally cooler climate and fewer bright sunny days. And at least when I lived in Europe most folks took better care of their vehicles than here in the USA.

 

[gbrand42]

Do the European bikes have the same issue?

Yes we have the same issue over here, just takes a bit longer in our climate. There has to be an upside in having crappy riding weather for 4-5 months of the year

Having tried a few of the products on the market, I finally replaced the trim pieces on my 2006 bike this year, now looking mean and moody again instead of grey and slightly moth-eaten (although it did match my hair )

 

[BigBill]

I tried the Wipe New and it didn't work.

I have resorted to just pulling the pieces and painting them.

I am using Rust-Oleum Trim & Bumper Paint in matte black...it has a satin-like finish, not really matte.

The results actually look better than when I got the bike, which had been sitting in the showroom for two years, so the plastics had already started to fade a bit at that point.

I'll post some pics later on when I finish the complete restoration (adding big pannier lids and a Honda top box too).