The engine badges need to be touched up. The black paint has some chips and dings and the chrome lettering needs some polishing. I use brake caliper paint as its very hard and resistant to heat.
Quick Bench Top Paint Booth
I set up a quick paint booth for use on my workbench using a cardboard box and a small packing spacer as a stand.
Quick Bench Top Paint Booth
Then I used paint masking paper and tape to cover all but the badge and put the cover on top of the paint stand.
Masked Starter Motor Cover
A well shaken can of paint and a couple of light passes and the badge is painted.
Badge Painted with Black Brake Caliper Paint
Remove Paint From Lettering
I let this dry for two hours before removing the paint from the lettering with 600 grit wet sand paper. Use the sanding block with a light touch to get the paint off the lettering.
Cleaning Paint from Lettering With Sand Paper
Bake Until Done
Then I backed the cover in the oven at 200 F for 20 minutes.
Baking at 200 F for 20 Minutes
To make the lettering shine again, I used 1500 and then 2000 grit wet paper and carefully polished out the nicks from the letters so I didn’t gouge the fresh paint. Next, I used Griots polish to buff the letters and finally finished up with Autosol metal polish. I rinsed the cover and with a toothbrush I brushed the bits of polish out of the cracks of the letters and dried the cover using compressed air.
Final Result
Here is the final result mounted on the bike.
Repainted Engine Badge Installed
Nice result.
I have the same model, but the engine emblem is without black paint. Is the black paint original on all emblems, or did they also come without it? I’d like to paint mine.
Hi Christian,
I believe all the emblems on the top engine cover were originally painted black.
Best.
Brook.
Hi again Brook,
Any suggestions for getting the R75/5 badge off of the housing? I’m planning on either soda or bead blasting the housing, and my badge has been replaced with a new one. I imagine heat might be the correct way to proceed, but I don’t have a torch. Well, any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!
Hi Dustin,
I would try heating the top engine cover from the inside to see if that will weaken the adhesive. Or, you could put it into the oven at 250 F for 20 mins which should get the glue hot enough to let you peal the badge off. I might try using a putty knife to get under the edge to help lift it off.
If you soda blast, then masking off the badge would protect it and you would not have to remove it.
If you use glass bead, you could try using a 1/4 inch piece of plywood to and silicone seal to attach to the badge to mask it off and again, not have to remove the badges.
I hope that helps.
Best.
Brook.
Hey Brook,
Quick question for you…what sheen did you use for the black paint?
It’s hard to tell for sure in the photos, is it matte or is there a little gloss in there?
Cheers,
Shane
Hi Shane,
I used gloss brake caliper paint. That said, I think BMW may have used matte black paint on later models of the badges. You can get matte brake caliper paint too. I get mine at the local auto parts store.
I hope that helps.
Best.
Brook.