Silicone on tyres

[Flashman]

Hi all.
Just got back into biking after a good 15 year layoff!
Picked up a mint VFR400 to play on but the young guy selling it had kindly sprayed a silicone tyre dresser over both tyres to make it look good before I picked it up!

Any ideas how to remove the silicone? Its slippery as hell and I'd like to stay upright a bit longer!
I tried a degreaser but it didn't seem to do a great deal.

Love to hear some ideas...

[CookMySock]

Try some handcleaner - that one that smells like lemons. Or else just hot soapy water.

It does look bad, but my guess is it's only a few micron thick and you can probably quite safely ride it off. Just don't lean the fucker hard right away.

Steve

[Conquiztador]

Do some riding in dirt/sand/on a beach and it should wear of quickly.

[p.dath]

I had this problem once. I used a solvent to remove it (either turps or methylated spirits, don't remember which and doubt it will make a difference).

Took three applications to get it all off. I'd do a small test spot first, and only on the tyre rubber (will probably remove paint or damage plastic).

[caseye]

"It does look bad, but my guess is it's only a few micron thick and you can probably quite safely ride it off. Just don't lean the fucker hard right away"
Is the best advice so far.
Just don't be like the last wally and use anything like it on her again.

[hayd3n]

do a skid in the dirt/gravel and use a bit of sandpaper on the front tyre

[discotex]

Should make it easier to start a burnout :eek:

[cowpoos]

Hi all.
Just got back into biking after a good 15 year layoff!
Picked up a mint VFR400 to play on but the young guy selling it had kindly sprayed a silicone tyre dresser over both tyres to make it look good before I picked it up!

Any ideas how to remove the silicone? Its slippery as hell and I'd like to stay upright a bit longer!
I tried a degreaser but it didn't seem to do a great deal.

Love to hear some ideas...
Wipe it off with some brake cleaner on the surface only...then go for a ride.

[Flashman]

Cheers guys. I'll give some of these ideas a go.

[YellowDog]

I suspect this is not a case of attempted murder by the bike shop. Don't put anything on there that will mess your tyres up. The alcohol based wipe down suggestion followed by hot soapy water has got to be the safest way to go.

Congrats on the new bike and good luck.

[vifferman]

A short ride on an unsealed road will fix it. While brakecleaner may work, the problem is twofold: it may just spread the silicon around more, and it may suck some of the good juices out of the rubber. No - I'm not (just) being silly: rubber has some volatile compounds in the rubber that help to make it stick to the road. Suck too much of these out, and the tyre will be hard and less sticky. (See for yourself - spray some brake cleaner on the tyre, and wipe it with a rag, and see how much 'goop' ends up on the rag).

[Ixion]

Gravel road or sandy beach

[Conquiztador]

Do some riding in dirt/sand/on a beach and it should wear of quickly.


do a skid in the dirt/gravel and use a bit of sandpaper on the front tyre


A short ride on an unsealed road will fix it.


Gravel road or sandy beach

Strong echo in here... <_<

[JayRacer37]

A short ride on an unsealed road will fix it. While brakecleaner may work, the problem is twofold: it may just spread the silicon around more, and it may suck some of the good juices out of the rubber. No - I'm not (just) being silly: rubber has some volatile compounds in the rubber that help to make it stick to the road. Suck too much of these out, and the tyre will be hard and less sticky. (See for yourself - spray some brake cleaner on the tyre, and wipe it with a rag, and see how much 'goop' ends up on the rag).

We use brakecleen to get the mold release off new tyres, its ok so long as you dont let it sit before you ride it.

Take it back to the shop and have them fit the tyres on said shop boys bike so he can scrub it off for you....that way it won't happen again and it won't hurt your bike when he crashes!

[R1madness]

jay is on the right track . Brake clean spreyed onto a rag and wiped over the tyre is the best bet. Make sure you wipe it all off as well tho...

[FROSTY]

if its a bike shop PLEASE go back and have them deal with it. Silicone is friggin orrible stuff.If private --come here and Ill use my commercial cleaning stuff to get the tyres clean for ya

[vifferman]

We use brakecleen to get the mold release off new tyres, its ok so long as you dont let it sit before you ride it.
That's fine, as long as you can be sure that the mixture of brake cleaner and silicon is actually being completely removed from the tyre, rather than soking into the surface of it.

While we're on this topic, there's a brand of wheel cleaner (can't recall the name) that you spray on, rinse off, then spray on and leave for a while before rinsing off again. It's supposed to stop brake dust and road spooge from sticking to your wheels. DO NOT use this on your bike! I dunno what's in it, but I suspect it's silicon. It soaks into the surface of your tyres, and while they don't look shiny, they are very slippery, especially on wet roads.

Another thing to never do to your wheels is spray engine degreaser on or around them. Any of the suspension of degreaser, water and oil/grease that ends up on your tyres will adhere very nicely to them, as the surface of the tyre is somewhat porous and an ideal substrate for the emulsion to bond to.
If you have greasy or spoogey bits on your rims, swingarm or whatever, either make sure you protect the tyres, or use a rag to wipe it off. Kero, CRC or WD40 on a rag works well to remove crap from your rims, then wipe again with another rag, paper towel or whatever before washing.

[Flashman]

if its a bike shop PLEASE go back and have them deal with it. Silicone is friggin orrible stuff.If private --come here and Ill use my commercial cleaning stuff to get the tyres clean for ya

Alas it was a private sale!
Love to take you up on the commercial cleaner idea Frosty.
Would put my mind at rest!

[tigertim20]

do a skid in the dirt/gravel and use a bit of sandpaper on the front tyre

yep. Spin it up!!!

[Howsie]

burnout burnout burnout! na seriously, gravel road. or a gentle ride on a rough road progressively getting more lean on the corners. i think u have the idea :D

[EJK]

We should create a poll.

I say burn.

[lanci]

Sandpaper!!!

[Marmoot]

Vigorous wash with dishwashing or washing powder diluted with warm water. Use medium-hard brush.

Don't do the redneck way of using brakecleaner. It reacts with rubber harshly. If you won't do it to your condom, don't do it to your tyres.

[cowpoos]

Don't do the redneck way of using brakecleaner. It reacts with rubber harshly. If you won't do it to your condom, don't do it to your tyres.

Ummmm....its done the world over in racing.

[gatch]

get a wheel going !

[xwhatsit]

Well Monday night I was spraying some silicone spray on various exposed metal bits for a bit of rust protection (the rims and spokes!). Tuesday morning I noticed there was overspray all over both tyres. So I rode to uni anyway in the wet -- by the time I got to uni, both contact surfaces of the tyre were clean and unsiliconed. It's still on the sidewalls.

Just ride the frigging thing, same as you'd treat a new tyre from the shop.

[Marmoot]

Ummmm....its done the world over in racing.

You use your racing tyres for more than 6 months?