Replacing Alta plastic


rayivers

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Not sure if this should be posted here, but anyway... I just finished changing out most of my MXR's plastic with plain white. I used a Cycra front fender I got at HVM (I'd use Acerbis 2141810002 instead), Acerbis 2401265413 fork guards, and the rest is Alta OEM stuff. In the past I've replaced a bunch of plastic on various older & modern bikes with no issues at all; line it up, screws in, done. The Alta was different enough that I thought I'd point out a few things to watch for.

Removal was no big deal - the LocTited screws were real tight, but they came out OK. There are a number of collars & spacers, some in various colors & lengths. I found it best to change out one piece at a time to avoid confusion.

If you're able to remove all the old LocTite (red & blue), all your new plastic's holes are properly sized & located, and all the various spacers/collars go back in their proper locations, you should have no trouble whatsoever installing the new stuff. My spacers/collars were mostly OK (the front number plate collars had to be pressed in with a vise), but some of the other things above gave me trouble & two tapped threads sustained minor damage.

If the plastic hole is misaligned (a bunch of mine were) and any threads still have LocTite remaining on them, be real careful tightening down the screw. It's easy to cross-thread it, especially if you're levering the plastic's hole into the correct position with the screw while also trying to keep it straight during tightening. In this case I'd recommend installing the screw first without the plastic to get a feel for the amount of thread resistance when properly aligned.

I like the simpler look; the side shrouds look smaller, and the suspension / battery graphics stand out more. I'm still waiting on the subframe, and will post pics once that's on.

Ray
 

WoodsWeapon

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When I swapped all of mine out, the only issue I had was the black plastic piece in front of the seat with the charging port. I spun one of the inserts, not the bikes fault though.
 

rayivers

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Come on Ray, you can do better than that

I just prefer shapes to patterns - always have. I've seen plenty of graphics that look cool to me, but I know if I put them on my bike, within a week I'll wish I hadn't. I do like most pinstriping though, probably because it tends to follow shape lines.
 

rayivers

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White plastic does not stay pure white for long.

Yeah... I think it may even change color on the shelf, or vary between manufacturers. My photo's in overcast natural light and the whites look very even, but in the garage different parts look slightly bluish / yellowish / even kinda pink in comparison to each other.
 

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