| Author | Message | ||
     Tepiddeath |
My precious Ruby-an xb12Ss- is 6 weeks old, and she is totally freakin filthy due to the road construction in my neighborhood, and I am considering breaking down and washing her, hence the not knowing who I am. I have noticed that there are a lot of really tight spaces that my fingers will not fit into. Can anyone please give me some tips on what sorts of brushes I am going to need to remove the layer of mud that is caked onto my motor? Actually the entire bike looks like I do not know how to use a road! THANKS!!! | ||
| P_squared |
Don't let the resident mudbug find out yer cleaning your bike.  | ||
| Mikef5000 |
I go the quick and easy route, clean the smooth surfaces (plastics and frame) and don't even worry about the rest. If it takes more that 5 minutes, then I'd rather be riding. | ||
| Jasonnennig |
I have found, a small white wall tire brush works well. Try a little SuperClean and water solution if there is any tar, oil or road goop on the engine. I'd stay away from the pressure washer when cleaning the motor. The high pressure is hell on all the seals and gaskets, stick to the garden hose. Good Luck... | ||
| Froggy |
I just hose them off once in a while, no real cleaning, as I am too busy riding. I love your post count!  | ||
| Sekalilgai |
leave it out in a rainstorm..... actually, better yet...go for a ride in the rain...it really works, just avoid big trucks carrying a bunch of piggies...DAMHIK (Message edited by sekalilgai on December 09, 2009) | ||
| Mikef5000 |
I love your post count! : D Good Catch! | ||
| Tepiddeath |
I would much rather ride in the rain, but unfortunately, here in sunny south florida, we have reached our dry season, and the rain is difficult to come by. I will absolutely stay away from pressure washing any part of my bike, I work at an aftermarket parts/ repair shop for FAGS(harleys) and have seen first hand the troubles with pressure washing a motorcycle. Basiclly i just want to knock the dingle berries off my girl, and get the crap off the front of the motor- it doesn't make for good heat dissipation! | ||
| Tepiddeath |
I feel a little on the stupid side at the moment what the hell is a post count? | ||
| Two_buells |
S100 Cleaner and power washer | ||
| Bartimus |
post count = how many times you've posted. At the time, your post count was 69, which is mighty fine. Now your up to 71, which is no fun.  | ||
| P_squared |
what the hell is a post count? If you check your profile (can get there by clicking your screename) you will see a count of how many posts you've made. Froggy made his comment when your count was at 69. | ||
| Tepiddeath |
 that is too funny, I wouldn't have thought to check that. NICE call Froggy | ||
| Ulynut |
I hate a dirty bike. I keep my old toothbrushes and use them for the tight spots on the motor. | ||
| Nevrenuf |
leave it to froggy to catch stuff like that. looks like we might get some of that rain up here in tampa but have rainsuit, will travel. who knows, you might get some of that stuff. oh yeah, my buddy said the only reason i ever took a bike into the shop was to get it washed. i don't spend a lot of time cleaning just wiping it off if i get back to the house in the rain, then i'll wipe it down. | ||
| Pattio |
My favorite brush for stuff like that is from Harbor Freight- it's about a foot long and tapered like a conifer. Great for getting into tight spaces on my motorcycles and bicycles. Look for one with 'natural' bristles, boar I suppose but who knows, they hold up well and release the dirt when you rinse them. I learned about the cone-shaped brush from British car guys, who use them on their wire wheels. | ||
| Ourdee |
I just got my rear wheel cleaned. It happened when the shop put on a new tire. | ||
| Tepiddeath |
yeah, I think i have come to my senses, and am no longer worried about my bike being clean! I had a momentary out of body experience or something, but I am over it now!!! It is just too much work and time that I would otherwise be riding!!! And besides, I bought my buell to ride it not to wash and polish it! | ||
| Fahren |
Dilute Simple Green 1/2 and 1/2 w/ water: spray on, garden hose off (don't let it dry on). Great for brake dust as well as general grunge. Can you ride it right after washing to dry it off w/o hitting the messy roads? | ||
| Nukeblue |
i love the s-100. but would never power wash a motorcycle. spray it on & let it soak but spray it all off with garden hose pressure before it dries. works for me anyway | ||
| Ratbuell |
On the off chance I wash a bike...: Get it all wet with a garden hose Spray it all with a 50/50 mix of water and Simple Green *note* - only do that on a COLD bike. You can get chemical staining on a hot bike (hot as in "just been ridden") Rub what you can get to, to remove grime. Where you can't reach, the SG will do a pretty good job of dissolving the gunk. Hose off with the garden hose. Choose to either blow-dry it going down the road, or towel it off And a tip on the translucid plastics - I have a customer who uses CD/DVD repair kits (the liquid/buff kits) to fill in and buff the light scratching. Works awesome. | ||
| Carbonbigfoot |
Choose to either blow-dry it going down the road, or towel it off Leaf Blower. Works awesome. Not as much fun as riding it dry, tho! R | ||
| Fahren |
+1 on Ratbuell - he said it better than I did. | ||
| Koz5150 |
Preasure washer and a leaf blower. Once a year a good cleaning. | ||
| Brumbear |
N/A | ||
| Cityxslicker |
Run it through some puddles, the big chunks will dislodge. caveat, if there is mud to or from the puddle, you have defeated your cleaning efforts but added to the fun factor in an exponential manner MT-60s, its winter out there  | ||
| Cityxslicker |
For all you neat freaks....  | ||
| Etennuly |
But Ratbuell has never washed his bike!  So what would he know? Yeah, Yeah he has probably seen it done some where, perhaps at the dealership he works at, or a video or something! I lived in Florida for seventeen years. The worst thing for any vehicle is those damn love bugs. I kept a bucket of soapy water near the garage door for that, where every evening as I got home from work I washed the front of my white Z28 to keep the paint on it. The best thing to do to clean your bike for the road work you have posted that causes the problem is when you ride in the wet just hose it off when you pull into your driveway. The sandy grunge may stick a bit where it hits the hot parts when it is wet, but most will come off easily if you don't let it bake on. My secret to getting the dried bugs off from all of the forward facing parts is to let the bike set out over night. The dew will soften even the toughest dried on bugs, except for the acid stains that the love bugs leave. Before the dew starts evaporating wash the bike with a soft mit and soapy water then dry using a good shamois or by riding.  I use Purple Power or Simple Green at at 50% solution on oil and grease stains and on the wheels and tires for removing brake dust and road grime. | ||
| Ratbuell |
Vern, Vern, Vern.....I've never washed my *Uly*. The tubers stay clean, especially the S2. It's too purty to let get dirty.  | ||
| Etennuly |
Ok, so I will give you that. Joe, your Uly is more than a door mat to wipe your feet on! Wash that thing at least once a year and you will find an equally beautiful machine to the antiquated one that you have pictured. That is my opinion and I'm sticking with it!  |
