Help with detailing bikes.

[sparkie]

Sorry to bring up an old post but I figured that would be better than starting a new one looking for the same info. I had a guy ask me to do two of his bikes(pardon my ignorance but I'm not to familiar with bikes) but one is a late 90's harley soft tail and the other is a 1986 harley "liberty edition" with a custom sidecar. I told the guy I would need to do research as I have never done a bike before. I got alot of info from 3dogs post but I was just wondering the best way to price the job and any tips anyone has learned since the last post. Thanks in advance.
Hard to say, doing one maybe Tuesday or Wednesday. Told the guy starting price is 150. I need to see the bike. Done two in the past, didn't charge enough.

[3Dog]

Hard to say, doing one maybe Tuesday or Wednesday. Told the guy starting price is 150. I need to see the bike. Done two in the past, didn't charge enough.
It appears on the surface that it would be so much easier than a car.....doesnt it!!:D

[r_wain]

Hard to say, doing one maybe Tuesday or Wednesday. Told the guy starting price is 150. I need to see the bike. Done two in the past, didn't charge enough.

Thats what I am worried about. I have to do two vehicles and two bikes for this guy, so I want to cut him a deal but don't want to not make any money.

[3Dog]

Sorry..forgot there was a question asked.
Sparkie has the right idea..At least get a good base to start with. Soon you will figure out your extra time that may be spent on different polishing steps and you will be able to adjust your pricing. If it is a total detail with any amount of polishing (one step) then 150.00 is a starting point.

[sparkie]

It appears on the surface that it would be so much easier than a car.....doesnt it!!:D
YEP:D

[D]

Man, I didnt think so much was involved. I was thinking wash, clay bar, polish if needed and wax. Condition leather, plastic, polish wheels, clean engine and thats it.

Ill be doing a friends bike in a little while, a crotch rocket. I dont plan on putting on any tire dressing.

[AL417]

Man, I didnt think so much was involved. I was thinking wash, clay bar, polish if needed and wax. Condition leather, plastic, polish wheels, clean engine and thats it.

Ill be doing a friends bike in a little while, a crotch rocket. I dont plan on putting on any tire dressing.

Detailing bikes is very involved and Biker's are very particular about their bikes. Your plan of attack sounds good. Some people dress the tires, I never do and I recommend not to dress them for safety's sake. Have fun and let us know how it turns out.

[D]

Alright, heres what Ive got.

Dont get water in the exhaust, obviously.
Dont get water on electrical equipment, obviously. There isnt much on this bike anyways.
Dont get a lot of water on the chain.
I wont use any tire dressing.

Heres what Im planning on in more detail. Not in any special order.
Wash with NXT, then clay.
DP wheel glaze
Plexus on the windshield
303 on exterior plastic
Clean seat with DP interior cleaner. Should I condition the leather too? I dont want the seat to be slippery.
Duragloss metal polish and brightener.
XMT 360, probably by hand. And top with Natty's paste.

[Bryan@FiveStarShine]

Make sure if they have a Hypercharger or any other open style air cleaner to cover that up as well.

As far as tires a secret that I have picked up is to add spray pledge on a cloth and then rub it on the SIDEWALL ONLY! Pledge will bring back the natural black color but will not make it shiny, It also doesn't make the tire slick but I would still only place it on the sidewall for safety reasons.

I also put pledge on some of my front end as well because it does a pretty good job of not letting the bugs stick. I mainly use it on the headlight, mirrors, turnsignals, and the front portion of the forks. The key is to use a small amount so that it does not mess up your detailing job. I have not had any issues with yellowing in 3 years of using pledge.

[mjfx]

pledge huh? I gotta try that

[DanielSwe]

My experience from leather is that it's not a problem getting the seat slippery if you don't soak it with conditioner after a proper cleaning. A very soft brush can help out cleaning the leather when using strong leather soap before you use your favourite conditioner. The stuff we use at work comes from Lederzentrum in Germany, I have only good things to say about their products.

It's better to go thin and put on more layers until you are satisfied. You cannot go wrong, man, and let us know the result.