polishing questions

[enduro400rider]

im starting to polish some things on my 400ex like the exuast and nerf bars i was thinking about polishing the sub frame and engine cases i heard some people say toput a clear coat on it. does this go on before the polishing compounds and what kind of clear coat should i use. thanks

[sampleez]

i could be wrong, but the stock subframe is steel....i think. as far as clearing it, it will last longer, but it won't bling near as much. i don't think a clear coat would last too long on things like the side cases and nerfs as well. b4 i pc'ed my side case today i was really thinkin about polishing it, but pc'ing it was a lot easier. here's a pic
before
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid154/pf82a2f24b1de94c10a7b820a0c97ea03/f57aed1e.jpg
after
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid154/p32cecde233367e9716077afd7df4be7c/f57581df.jpg

[quad250r_33]

thats smooth!!!

[aviator4]

Clear coating a polished item typically will make it look darker than an item that wasn't clear coated.

If you decide to clear coat, this is the LAST step. You polish the item first, then CLEAN IT VERY WELL to get all the grease off. THEN you can clear coat it.

I wouldn't recommend clear-coating aluminum items, but the sub frame is steel. If you're going to go through the trouble of polishing it, you need to get it chromed to keep it from rusting. clear coat won't last very long on this.