Tired of polishing my Interceptor's engine covers, I painted them black

In almost 2 years of ownership, I've polished the engine covers more than 15 times!

BHPian desideep recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Hello, 650 Owners.

After almost 2 years of ownership of my Interceptor, there was one thing that bothered me a lot, “The Polished Engine”.

A little bit of rain left so many ugly marks on the polished metal. Since I bought the bike in 2020 December, I ended up polishing it more than 15 times. It is a time-consuming and exhausting task for me.

I had made up my mind mid-this year that I need to paint the cases black. I did have the option to buy the black cases, but then the DIY “KEEDA” did not let me do that.

End of November I opened the side covers at my friend’s workshop and prepped them to be Epoxy premiered, after three days of waiting for curing we painted it in 3 coats of Black.

The major roadblock was the Magneto cover gasket, I was not able to find it with any dealers all around Australia. I checked with multiple places in India, no stock is what I was told. Ended up making my own.

Have a look at the below photos. To my eyes, it looks amazing. More to be done to the rest of the silver parts.

Here's what BHPian sandeepmohan had to say about the matter:

Nicely executed for a DIY job. That said, you will likely continue to deal with the issue of keeping them looking in top shape when the case makes contact with water or any water with a little mud in it. No escaping that.

I gave up polishing the cases as it was almost impossible to keep them clean. One rain or a ride through some standing water and the cases would have a few marks on them. I had to clean the bike after every ride. That was getting a bit much, for me. There is no more shine or sheen on the engine cases on my bike anymore. I see them as road or battle scars and have decided to live with them.

Here's what BHPian Viju had to say about the matter:

Looks nice. I personally prefer a bit less glossy and more of a satin finish. But for a DIY effort, the outcome is excellent! If you can stay sober, you could take up painting as a second job as well, lol.

Please check eBay also next time. Almost all the OE spares for the Twins are being sold on eBay by Indian sellers. This includes all the gaskets and filters. Being in a similar situation, I got a couple of parts ordered in Japan. Of course, they end up being more expensive, but I received the items in 4 ~ 5 days. Check out the seller 'Royal Rider' on eBay, I have no affiliation, just good experience.

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.