CLEAN ME!!

[Mongoose]

Quick question: What if anything do you guys use on the vinyl(or whatever it is) seat?

A damp cloth and dry it, any shiney making product also tends to be a slippery making product

[dveus]

A damp cloth and dry it, any shiney making product also tends to be a slippery making product

Though that'd be the go. Was worried about the whole slippery seat thing.

[Jackrat]

I clean mine heaps but never get it all done.
It's a road dirt atractomatic.
I use old rags an sometimes a bit of autosol.
I tend to do one bit one day and another the next time, an try not to look under it to often.
Never bloody ends.

[Blakamin]

I clean mine ...but never paint a bike in yellow pearl, it sucks!
i cleaned it today when i had the fairings off to do the forks... ran them under the hose...
please dont use silicon if you ever want anything painted!

[Shade]

Ok, im about to let you all in on the best ever product I have found....

I have red rims, and they get dirty with the worst road grime ever. I tried everything from simple green degreaser, and other degreasers. Nothing would work , I would scrub and scrub and all it would do is smear the grease over my rims. Then I would sadly watch a trail of red water being hosed away down the drain.

GO AND BUY A PRODUCT CALLED DISOLVIT

Man this stuff is awesome!!!! It doesnt take off the paint, or anything, only a couple of sprays onto the rim and ONE wipe, and boom. ALL GONE!!

Ive been using it on my rims for a while now, and even use it on my lower fairings to take off the dirt, its so good, and nothing has been damaged.

It is usually sold in supermarkets or in Mite10. I personally have seen it at the Dominion rd Foodtown and Dominion rd Mitre10. Will cost about 8 bucks and lasts forever!!!

Comes in a clear bottle with a picture of a orange man on the front. It says "Sticky spot remover", but dont be deceived, its awesome. I was sceptical at first too, but this stuff is so good im amazed!!

*sorry rambling, just love the stuff and wanna spred the word!*

[Posh Tourer :P]

A nekkid bike takes longer to clean...... The beemer longer than most because of them bloody great pots out the side.... and various other hard to get to pieces. Also, I ride every day, rain or shine, commuting, which kinda doesn't help the situation...

I use warehouse Engine Degreaser, works very well, just watch it on paint. You may have to scrape off the worst of caked on grime, but the rest disappears very fast. It needs to be scrubbed on though

[Grumpy]

The 14 can be a bit of a bugger to clean but I have found that the more regulary the clean, the less time required each time.
I used to do my chain every wash but found that I got a lot less km's out of it so this bike only gets the chain done when it starts to look crappy, although that job is a lot easier with a Scottoiler fitted.
I only use a little kero for the scummy bits, wash and wax for the shiney bits and Motowash for the engine bits and she looks the bees knees

[Nutter34]

I wash my bikes depending on frequency and conditions of/when riding, usually with warm water and Handy Andy.
Some times all the chain lube doesn't come off the rear wheel, I try Mr Sheen. It tends to break up the lube.
I use Autosolve on the metal/ally bits.
I then Mr Sheen the tanks/cosmetics.
Also, Contact Cleaner is good for that double-sided tape they use for balance weights.......

[Posh Tourer :P]

The 14 can be a bit of a bugger to clean but I have found that the more regulary the clean, the less time required each time.

Yes but you are probably spending more time overall in cleaning it

[Zed]

Yes but you are probably spending more time overall in cleaning it

Not really. I agree with Grumpy that the more often you clean the bike the less time you spend on it each clean - the dirtier the bike is the longer it takes to clean! I find if I leave off cleaning my bike for a couple of weeks it will take me twice if not three times longer to clean than normal because there is more coverage of grime on the surface and it takes a lot more time and energy to clean it off!

[Magua]

I haven't cleaned my FZR since I bought it two weeks ago. It is a fucking mess, but well......dunno. I keep finding excuses not to do it. I might do it tommorow, time will tell.

[Posh Tourer :P]

Not really. I agree with Grumpy that the more often you clean the bike the less time you spend on it each clean - the dirtier the bike is the longer it takes to clean! I find if I leave off cleaning my bike for a couple of weeks it will take me twice if not three times longer to clean than normal because there is more coverage of grime on the surface and it takes a lot more time and energy to clean it off!

Yes, it is easier to get the dirt off. But you lose on "overheads"....
More coverage? Dont you wash the entire bike anyway, hence coverage shouldn't matter, but stickiness should?

[HDSpringer]

I am with you there David, to get my bike cleaned after a ride takes a while, and then before I leave home on the next ride it has another little dust over, with a quick layer of simoniz on the tanks and front forks. Most cleans take 3 hours depending on the ride, after the cold Kiwi it took me at least 3 hours to wash, then it was time dry and applying the simoniz and autosol.

[Zed]

I haven't cleaned my FZR since I bought it two weeks ago. It is a fucking mess, but well......dunno. I keep finding excuses not to do it. I might do it tommorow, time will tell.

I guess if you own a pig of a bike (no offence Magua) it will be less important to clean it than one which is in showroom condition that you'd like to keep that way!

If you pay good money ($5000+) for a bike and then don't clean it regularly, don't expect to get your money back on it when you decide to sell!

[Posh Tourer :P]

I guess if you own a pig of a bike (no offence Magua) it will be less important to clean it than one which is in showroom condition that you'd like to keep that way!

If you pay good money ($5000+) for a bike and then don't clean it regularly, don't expect to get your money back on it when you decide to sell!

good point...... It never ceases to surprise me that most people will not clean their cars/bikes/boats/washing machines before they sell them. IMHO, giving a car/bike a good clean before you sell it, can put 10% onto the selling price....