Quote from: pnaberhaus... and it has kept the white wheels of my '89 GS clean for the past 15+ years. ...

Do I read that right? You've had your GS for 15 years? I'm very impressed and I'm sure that's some kind of record around here

I just wash it over with a bucket of warm water and washing-up detergent,
let it dry and buff the engine over with WD40 or a clone. Normally I scrub the wheels with a nylon brush then spray with WD40 and polish dry, kerosene/paraffin on a rag is also good. WD40 removes any oil splodges or chain-fling. This is all a lot easier with bike on centre stand.

Quote from: pandy

Quote from: RVertigo
It won't mess with my new rubber will it?  

:lol: You shouldn't be using it there anyway...it's a cleaner, not a lubricant.


P.S.  I love Pandy's sense of humor.

i do the similar routine, blow dry with the leaf blower & wipe her down with a coat of pledge (yes, pledge).

Quote from: stefman722What i do is i take the hose and rinse the bike fully, and then i use dishwash soap in a pail with warm water and wipe everything down with the sponge. Then when everything is clean, i rinse it again, then I wipe it down. After everything is dry i apply a coat of Mguires wax. My bike gets extremely shiny. Sometimes i do the windscreen with the plastix stuff when i have time. And i always shine the exhaust can plate with stuff my dad sells. Then i use WD-40 to clean the rims, and i just leave the tires as they are. Just dont get lots of water in the exhaust, some is o.k if you dont use a pressure washer, cauz there isnt enough pressure from a normal hose to go far inside the pipe. When you start the engine, it dries instantly.

I use several different methods of cleaning.  I am VERY picky about what I use and how I wash my bike and cage.  Paint is expensive and I try to keep it looking like new.  Some would call it anal I guess :dunno:

Various stuff...

If you really want to be kind to your finish use Microfiber, higher quality the better.  If they get dirty wash them (no fabric softner though).  I never use a towel I dropped on the ground on my paint without washing it first.  Bath or terry towels will cause swirl marks on paint.  Wool wash mitts are good as well for a bucket wash.  Dish soap will strip wax, I use Meguiars NXT wash.  For a quick clean up of light dust, fingerprints (I have a blue '05 so all the little smudges show up and stuff), and bugs, I use Honda Spray Cleaner and Polish.  This stuff is great!  If I want to drag out the hose I use Hondabrite in the red bottle (Same thing as S100 cycle cleaner.)  Empty into a spray bottle and spray down any areas like engine, swingarm, wheels, in and around rear shock area and fender...wherever I cannot reach with a brush.  Let soak for a minute or 3 and hose down.  Unless your bike is really caked with dirt this should do an excellent job.  NXT and wash mit on the tank and fairings if needed.  Spray out mitt often to keep from bringing dirt to other areas and causing scratches and swirls.  Dry with compressed air and a Microfiber drying towel.  Must sleep, might add some more later...

I prefer the "Honda" brand cleaner/polish. It requires no water, and makes you bike look like you just waxed it.

If the bike is esp. dirty, I would wash it with soap and water first, and then follow with a carnuba wax like mguires.

then from that point on clean with the honda cleaner/polish.

Personally, I like S100 cycle cleaner.  It takes all the bugs, tar, and other road gunk right off.  

When you rinse the soap off of your bike, don't use a sprayer on the hose.  Just use an open hose.  Sprayers can force water into places it shouldn't be.  

I use WD40 to clean the wheels, too.  Just make sure you keep it off the tires and brake discs, since these don't generally take well to lubrication.  You should never, ever use any sort of tire cleaner such as Blech White or Black Magic on motorcycle tires. (Heh, I can just see some Harley guy  wiping out because he wanted his $25k trailer queen to have shiny tires.)