Exposed steel on drive side chain stay

[MattTuck]

I really like the look of exposed metal on the drive side chain stay, I think it is a bit more organic looking for some reason, and a touch raw.

I've seen a number of bikes with an exposed section of polished stainless steel, but am wondering:

Can stainless steel be exposed that looks more like matte titanium?

I'm no metallurgist, and I'm not a big fan of the polished look for a number of reasons, but wasn't sure if there was a functional reason for that (as opposed to aesthetic).

Thanks. and feel free to post pics of exposed chain stays.

:beer:

[ultraman6970]

If stainless steel just sand it or use steel wool and clear it.. done.

[slowpoke]

Drive-side chainstays used to be chromed because chainslap would've chipped the paint. And it does look super nice, too.

[maunahaole]

I have heard that steel wool on stainless is a nono. You can get flakes from the steel wool that will stay behind and then pit and rust on the stainless. Try a green scotchbrite.

[RPS]

Can stainless steel be exposed that looks more like matte titanium?

As far as I know stainless chainstays don’t start out polished so I don’t see why it couldn’t work if left more natural; but I believe that’s not the way they are sold. In any case I think you are asking about removing the already existing polish.

I recommend you think twice about it because it may end up being harder than you think to make it look right. Below is a link on different stainless surface finishes and what it takes to get there (just did a quick Google search but didn’t read the entire thing).

http://www.fanagalo.co.za/tech/tech_finishes.htm

Although I worked with stainless tubing systems for many years, I have to admit I never tried to go from a polished to dull surface. Normally people want to go the other way (i.e. – polish for a smoother appearance). The problem I’d fear particularly on a bicycle chainstay is that you’ll end up with lots of scratches that will not look like the matte finish you are looking for. During normal polishing you automatically remove many scratches as you proceed to a finer abrasive, but I’m not sure the process is easily reversed.

One other thought. If you get grease or oil on a polished stainless surface it’s relatively easy to wipe it clean with a cloth and maybe a little detergent. If the surface has tiny surface scratches, it will be much harder to clean and may look like it has smudges (i.e. – darker discoloration of surface) where grease/oil came in contact.

[RPS]

I have heard that steel wool on stainless is a nono. You can get flakes from the steel wool that will stay behind and then pit and rust on the stainless. Try a green scotchbrite.
Stainless steel wool is available and should prevent surface stains that look like rust spots. It’s a good idea not to let carbon steel parts and/or tools come in contact with stainless in order to avoid transfer. Also, tools previously used on carbon steel shouldn’t be used on stainless.

Personally, if it were me I’d practice on a piece of stainless I didn’t care about because I think it’s going to be harder than it sounds.

[MattTuck]

Thanks for the ideas. I don't have a bike with polished stainless, just like the look of a more natural (raw) metal.

And thinking if it is even possible or advisable to have a straight up exposed raw stainless exposed... as (at least in my experience, I haven't seen it very much).

[RPS]

Thanks for the ideas. I don't have a bike with polished stainless, just like the look of a more natural (raw) metal.

And thinking if it is even possible or advisable to have a straight up exposed raw stainless exposed... as (at least in my experience, I haven't seen it very much).
I think it's not common on bikes because of aesthetics, but in industry smaller diameter stainless tubing is left around 2B finish which is probably close to what you want, and larger diameter pipes are even rougher than that. Polishing is not necessary for the tubes to function structurally. In some cases polishing is required for reasons other than aesthetics (like in food industry), but I don't see those reasons being a factor on a bicycle frame.