I am a former custom bike painter & have fixed these little cracks very easily & permanently.
The way I do it is I "stitch weld" them.
I don't know anyone who does this other than me & maybe I invented it.
I heat up a slotted screwdriver & "iron in" thick staple fragments in a non parellel manner.
Then I smoothen the inside of the panel which welds the flipside.
This gives excellent structual strength.
Do not overheat the the plastic or go through to the other side.
I have never had any problems doing this, so it can be so hard.

In case you think I am a troll or a joker or am talking out of my *** (since I am 1 day old to this forum), I have included pics to show you, & also the finish my own bike/paintjob.

 

that looks very promising... but I am very much a n00b... could I get you to go into more detail on how and what I need to get this done?

thanks a lot, your bike looks great :P kickin it old school

 

First, you tape the visible side of the fairing as to close the crack as much as possible so the surfaces mate as if you are glueing them, this positions how the peices will bond together.

Basically, you then take roofing staples & straighten them out & then chop them either in thirds or fourths.
Then you place one over the crack on the flip side of the fairing/plastic.
Heat up a slotted screwdriver over a stove flame.
Press the hot screwdriver over the staple.
It will melt the staple fragment into the plastic which would stitch & weld the area.
Then you get another staple & place that over the crack just next to the last one.
Heat up a slotted screwdriver over a stove flame.
Press the hot screwdriver over the staple.
And continue this process of stitching.
When the whole crack is stiched, you heat up the screwdriver on iron the surface welding the flip side and making sure that all the staple fragments are well seated.

I have also fixed my favorite sunglasses this way. They broke at the bottom inside edge below the lens. It is not visible to others & they are still working for me after 4 years since I dropped them.

Now if you WERE to paint a cracked fairing, I would also U-groove the visible side of the fairing, add fiberglass filler in the groove, then prime, paint, clear.

By the way, I value my paint job at a vulgar figure & I have even use this stitching on two of my parts before the painting; that is how confident I am of this process.

If you live near Albany, NY I will weld it for you for free if you bring it to me.

 

i went to school for auto body repair/ refinish, learning how to fix all types of plastics. 3M makes a good product, not sure the product number, but it is a 2 part system. Scuff up the back and front with a coarse sandpaper, make a V shaped groove on the top of the fairing and place tape horizontally across the back of the fairing, fill in with the 3M plastic repair, wait till it dries, sand smooth with a 180 grit sandpaper, then progressively get to a finer grit paper,you may need a finishing putty to get it perfect, then V out the back of the fairing and proceed to do the same, except you don't need to sand the back, just make sure it is roughed up enough and also clean enough for the adhesive repair to stick, sometimes the plastic adhesive repair does not like to stick, all you need to do is use a plastic adhesion promoter and let dry for 15 minutes, then apply the adhesive repair, proceed to prime, wet sand, base, clear. It may sound more confusing that it is, but it's really not, you just cannot read too much into the directions, and im not bs'in ya because i have had to fix many plastics, including my own, and bumpers for cars, have any ?'s just shoot

 

I live in South Dakota, so that answers the free thing (If i were even remotely close I would though)

so I take it the roofing staples are plastic? I am definately going to try this, it sounds fun if nothing else :P I hope i dont f*k it up though hahahahahah

will it be necessary to paint when im finished? thanks a lot man, for showing your findings to me... it looks really good when its finished... like someone took a black marker to it is all

PimpBlueF2... thank you for your advice also... If Tony hadn't come forth with his idea, I would definately be going that route...


thanks all for the help,

Chris


Oh, Tony... you got msn messenger? if you do and arent tired of me yet [:-] lol funnyjoka@hotmail.com

 

I wish I can ask you about a car that I have to weld (rust fixing a panel).
I want to restore my car body & am rebuilding the engine & turbo as well right now.
My body work is limited to bikes & I need to pick up welding sheet metal if I am to do cars as well.

Anyways, nice to have you here with us too.

 

Nope, staple are METAL & they act like braces & they melt the surrounding plastic around them...like rebar in concrete somewhat.

I can weld the back side without messing up the front side, so it won't affect the front or the paint on the front or the finish, but the crack will still be apperant.

"it looks really good when its finished... like someone took a black marker to it is all "
What you seen is the back side, the black is the color of the plastic (it has to be striped before welding...like with metal).

& Nope, don't have MSN, but I do have AOL instant messenger.

BTW, this process does not work best for rubbery plactic like that older F2 I once worked on (although I did not attempt it).
It works best on the type of plastic like the CBR 900RR or that GSXR fairing you see in the pic (thick & non rubberery plastic).

What Questions do you still have? My aol SN is .....you guessed it Tony Mawad as the other 2 car forums as well & I always use the same avatar too.

PS..I don't want to sound rude but, if you can't envision this or don't feel confident, maybe other methods may be for you. I just don't want you to burn a hole through or wreck what you have. It also took you days to even notice it, so it is not that bad anyways. Unless it is on a tension area, it won't get worse.
G/L

 

thanks tony, you da man