Visor Treatment - RainX

[Pixie]

i've used rainx on my Arai for years without issue. soft perspex may be an issue but good quality polycarb is pretty bomb proof. Pledge is OK for stopping fogging inside, but nothing beats Palmolive dish wash liquid. Rainx has proved the best product for not allowing fog condensation to build up - a turn of the head beads it off real fast.

PC becomes extremely weak in the presence of many chemicals,including Pledge.
That's why PC manufacturers forbid the use of most household glass cleaners and polishes - anything that contains alcohols (most glass cleaners,RainX is acidified isopropynol) or petroleum distillates (most polishes)

Sabic (formerly GE Plastics) recommend soapy water for cleaning and Johnsons Paste Wax,Novus Plastic Polish #1 or Mirror Glaze Plastic Polish To polish scratches.

The weakness caused to PC doesn't usually affect it's optical properties but it does affect a visor's ability to prevent an object prenetrating a rider's brain.

Riders without brains will carry on using Pledge and RainX

[Big Dave]

>> but nothing beats Palmolive dish wash liquid. <<

A Pinlock visor beats everything.

[Rosie]

Nikwax is the equivalent product for bike visors.

+1 Nikwax Visorproof is very good.

[vifferman]

PC becomes extremely weak in the presence of many chemicals,including Pledge.
That's why PC manufacturers forbid the use of most household glass cleaners and polishes - anything that contains alcohols (most glass cleaners,RainX is acidified isopropynol) or petroleum distillates (most polishes)

Now the last time said on KB that something or other affected polycarbonate, I spent a long time on teh Interdweeb researching this and turned up nothing of any substance.
Can you provide some data or a link to back this up? (I'm not trying to refute what you said, but I've switched from using Plexus on my visors to using Pledge - it's cheaper and seems to do a better job).

[Mort]

Not sure what RainX will do to a which is why I never use it on a Helmet. On a car it needs to be applied regular or it becomes patch (which is a pain). It works but you need to keep applying it.... eventually I got fed up and used some washing liquid in the washer bottle

[Max Preload]

Not sure what RainX will do to a which is why I never use it on a Helmet. On a car it needs to be applied regular or it becomes patch (which is a pain). It works but you need to keep applying it.... eventually I got fed up and used some washing liquid in the washer bottle

I apply Rain-X to the car windscreen by putting it in the washer bottle, along with Philm-off.

[MarkH]

Now the last time said on KB that something or other affected polycarbonate, I spent a long time on teh Interdweeb researching this and turned up nothing of any substance.
Can you provide some data or a link to back this up? (I'm not trying to refute what you said, but I've switched from using Plexus on my visors to using Pledge - it's cheaper and seems to do a better job).

I have not had a problem with Rain-X and have not tried many chemicals on polycarbonate, however I can 100% confirm that some chemicals will drastically weaken polycarbonate. Whatever is in Lectraclean will definitely weaken polycarbonate as well as MEK.

When I used to race RC cars I had plenty of scraps of polycarb around from when I cut out the RC Car bodies, I also had battery & motor connectors made out of polycarb. Spraying Lectraclean into the electric motor and having it run down to the polycarb connector was bad, there was a metal spring inside the polycarb providing tension and the polycarb crumbled when the Lectraclean ran onto it. Playing around with engine cleaner, MEK & CRC Lectraclean with scraps of polycarb let me see the effect - the best trick was to bend the polycarb so it was under pressure then spray it with the chemical, tough resiliant polycarb became brittle crumbly polycarb!

I have found Rain-X to be not all that great on plastic, though I do like how it works on glass, so I will avoid using it on polycarb from now on.

[Big Dave]

You get a small bottle of rain-x (or similar) in the box with a Shoei X-spirit helmet.

[Sharry]

Meh. Tried both the original stuff and anti-fog on me visor through last winter. IMO Pledge is just as good (my fav is lemon..mmm lemon fresh), is cheaper and doesn't smear. Car windows it works a treat though.

I read on a thread last year that lemon pledge was good for fogging on the visor. I bought a can of orange and put it on my visor.
Next day I had a brand new purple jumper on and put my helmet over my arm and at one point held against my body. Now I have a bright orange line across the front of my jumper and one on my sleeve that wont wash out
I will never use pledge again.

[Big Dave]

I will never use pledge again.

Nice irony!

[cs363]

Now the last time said on KB that something or other affected polycarbonate, I spent a long time on teh Interdweeb researching this and turned up nothing of any substance.
Can you provide some data or a link to back this up? (I'm not trying to refute what you said, but I've switched from using Plexus on my visors to using Pledge - it's cheaper and seems to do a better job).

There's a whole list of what effects other chemicals have on polycarbonate on good old Wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polycarbonate

About half way down under "Interactions with other chemicals"

[cs363]

A Pinlock visor beats everything.

X 2, I am totally converted to these things. They are the shit.

[MarkH]

There's a whole list of what effects other chemicals have on polycarbonate on good old Wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polycarbonate

About half way down under "Interactions with other chemicals"

That list does back up my own experience with some chemicals, MEK for instance is right there on the list of what will damage polycarbonate (mind you, MEK will damage lots of things).

So Rain-X is probably safe then, but many other chemicals are not. I will definitely be more careful about what goes on my visor in future.

[cs363]

So Rain-X is probably safe then.

Well according to Rain-X's UK website I would have to say no to the above:


"Q.Can it be used on transparent plastics?
A.Generally no. The increasing variety of various coatings applied to plastics makes it impossible to pre-test for compatibility under all conditions, and users should satisfy themselves by treating an area outside the normal area of vision. Please note that constant, repetitive use should be avoided due to the possible formation of stress cracking, especially on clear, curved sections. "

I'm pretty sure that rain-X has some sort of spirit/alcohol based carrier that evaporates off, I would imagine that this would be the problem. Probably wouldn't effect high quality visors but some of the cheaper model helmets with less resilient visors could have issues.

Personally I use the pinlock visor for anti-fog and lemon Pledge for cleaning/polishing the visor and have never had a problem.

[Pixie]

Now the last time said on KB that something or other affected polycarbonate, I spent a long time on teh Interdweeb researching this and turned up nothing of any substance.
Can you provide some data or a link to back this up? (I'm not trying to refute what you said, but I've switched from using Plexus on my visors to using Pledge - it's cheaper and seems to do a better job).

I tried to find some up to date info on the web too,mainly on the Sabic website ,without success.

The info I quoted is directly off the protective film that is still on a sheet of GE LEXAN I have at home.

As for the Pledge, I would read the can,if it contains petroleum distillates (most waxes do) I would avoid it.
If you want to test what long term exposure does to a visor,get an old one,regularly cleaned with Pledge, you have used and replaced,bend it double - if it snaps or cracks it has suffered deterioration.If it doesn't the cleaner was probably ok.
Most grades of PC will not snap even if bent back and forwards dozens of times.
Its this property that makes PC ideal for helmet visors and shells and bulletproof glazing.