The bike came in complete and running — bodywork on, loom connected, brakes and wheels in place. Twenty years of road use had left chain fling down the swingarm, a film of oil mist across the cases, and the sort of heat-baked residue around the headers that no amount of brushing shifts.
Assembled is the hard case. Solvent and a rag get the flat surfaces and push everything else into the case seams, the linkage and the loom. Pressure washing goes straight past bearing seals, connectors and the instrument loom. Media blasting is not an option anywhere near throttle bodies, brake seals or a wheel bearing.
Dry ice sublimates. It hits the surface at −78 °C, shocks the contaminant layer loose, and turns straight back into gas. Connectors get masked, extraction sits under the bike, and the only thing left on the floor is what came off it.
Lift road film, chain fling and heat residue off the cases, linkage and headers with the bike assembled.
Protect the anodised hardware, the wheel finish and every factory decal and warning label.
Keep water and solvent away from bearing seals, brake components and connectors.
Leave a bike that photographs as well at arm’s length as it does across a showroom floor.
