I have been through this delima myself! One option is to have the bracket cut off, sanded down and painted. This will be the most costly but cleanest option. Gateway bigdog told me that they could make a billet cover to go over the bracket and you could have it chromed or painted or powdered...whatever you like. However, in my opinion, this causes even more attention to that area of the bike. If you opt for the removal of the bracket it drastically limits the options for you or future owners of the bike. I decided to keep the BR's on my bike just because of this subject.