This HOW-TO is from the zx14ninja.com forum. It was posted by Bud0212 on 3/16/2008.
On my ZX-12r, I "Did not" remove the wheels or tires. But it is a little easier to do it with them removed...so that's the method I'll explain.
First remove the wheels. Then remove the cushdrive and the brake calipers. Then use masking tape to cover the openings in each wheel. Trim excess tape from the edges. If your going to repaint the spokes. Your now ready to strip...yes it's that easy. If your wanting to keep the spokes the same color (That shit brown on the 06 model. Your going to need to do a good job taping off every little bit of the area your leaving painted. The Stripper will remove the paint...Period! So you'll be repainting, if you want to or not. So that brings up the correct tape to use. Do not! I repeat...Do not try to save money here. Because useing cheap tape will just make that much more work for you. So buy a good masking tape. Like Scotch brand. If you get a good brand, It Will....I repeat. It will not bleed under. I've done about 10 pairs of wheels. When I use shit tape, I was repainting. When I used good tape. I stripped and was done. So do yourself and favor. Buy the $4.00 roll not the $1.00 roll. You'll be sorry if you don't. Now as far as removing the tires. If your not putting new rubber on any way. Don't bother. The stripper will not hurt the tires. I've done it both ways. The only advantage to removing the tires is the wheel are a lot lighter. And you are going to be picking them up a lot. So if your buying new tires. Remove the old ones. Strip then mount the new ones. If not, just strip. Now for actually stripping. There are two types of stripper. Both work equally well. Theres a foaming spray on or the type that you apply with a paint brush. I've done both ways. I personally prefer the brush on, because it only takes about two quarts. The spray on takes about 4 cans. So it costs a little more. The methods are the same with either. First make sure the wheels are clean and dry. Spray on or paint on the stripper. Let it sit about a half hour. Then use a garden hose (with water of course) to rinse off the stripper. Wipe it "DRY" of a towel. Let it sit a little bit for the wheel to "DRY" Make sure it's "DRY". Because water totally makes the stripper useless. The second water hits the stripper it stops working! Now while I'm thinking about it "USE RUBBER GLOVES" and change them often. The stripper will eat your skin. I learned the hard way. It burns like hell and once it starts burning, it keeps burning. Even after you washed it off. Now it's not going to eat your skin. It just hurts. Bad! So buy a cheap box of "Food service Gloves" and use them. Then repeat, then repeat, then repeat...over and over and over...It's going to take a lot of applications. So just keep going It will come off....I sware! After about 5 to 10 applications. The paint is going to start wrickling but it's not going to come off. Don't freak out. That's normal.
Yes, That's what it's going to look like. That's a wheel off my buddies Honda Blackbird. After about 15 applications. That's what the wheel looked like. He was cryin like a baby. So I sent his cryin black ass home. Joking! He's one of my best friends. Then I stayed up all night finishing stripping them to look like this.
He walked in my gargage and his face lite up like a kid on christmas!
That's a finished picture on the bike. That's a bad picture. The bike was dirty. But it really makes his bike look great! For a Honda.
Now as you can see from Willliam's bike. I took my time taping it off with good tape. And all I had to do was remove the tape.
The way I did it was. I applied the tape, running over the edge of the center lip on the wheel. Your 14's wheels have that lip also. Then I "Carefully" used a razor blade. and cut along the lip. Be real careful here. Because every time you slip. The blade is going to cut into the soft aluminum of the wheel. And then it's there. Inless you want to do some serious sanding and buffing. Then after you've removed the tape. If there are a few spots that the paint was removed. Don't worry. All you have to do is use a small touch up paint brush, you know. The ones you used on your Hot Rod models as a kid. Then use a matching paint color and touch it up. The best part about this is. The paint does not have to match the color of the paint on the wheel perfect. Because of the ruffness of the finish on the spokes and the fact that they're pretty much covered by brake dics. The color only needs to be close.
Those are the wheels I did on my ZX-12r. The wheels were blue. I used cheap tape on them. So there were a few spots where the paint was stripped completely off. Factory touch up paint at the Kawasaki dealership was over 80 freakin dollars. So I went to Autozone and bought Dodge viper blue. There is no way in hell anyone could have ever known.
Now if you've done everything the way I told you. Your in great shape. All you've got left to do is polish. That is if you stayed away from the sand paper or steelwool. I know...Some of the others have said to use it....Those guys are professional metal polishers......I'm telling you....STAY THE HELL AWAY FROM IT!!! It well only make more work for you. The reason. Kawasaki polishes the wheels then paints them! Yes you heard me right. Polishes them. Just like the old ZX-11 wheels. Ask 11d. He knows what I'm talking about. Then they cover them with that ugly ass freakin greenshitbrown whatever color it is crap! So if your like me and can't polish shit! Don't! So now all you have to do is use some good aluminum polish. Again, take your time here. If you take your time and do it right. It will save you a ton of work on the long run. Start at a point on the wheel and move in one direction. Put a small amount of polish on a rag...CLEAN RAG! Very important! Rub it back and forth, not in a circle, back and forth with the grain of the metal. Intell the rag is "BLACK" When it's black, the metal is polished. Then use a different "CLEAN" rag and wipe the black off the wheel. Only do about a 2 inch section of the wheel at a time. It's going to take some time. But it will be worth it.
Your Done!
Shopping list;
Scotch Brand Masking tape-2 rolls of two inch
Low Odor Aircraft Remover(Paint department at either Autozone or Advance Auto) 2 Quarts
Rags - Lots and lots... A shitload
Mothers Mag & Aluminum Polish
Rubber Gloves
Don't worry, you can do it! If you get stuck. Just PM me. I'll be glad to talk you through it! It took my about 25 man hours to do it. So be ready...It's a lot of work. But for a total cost of around $25.00...It's all worth it!
And just to give you a little kick in the butt!
Before
After
I taped off the parts that I did not want painted, then painted the spokes and the center of the rim black on my 14. I hated the shit brown. I also painted the front brake caliper brackets black.
Good luck and Ninja_zx14 have fun!
_________________
Bud
