Bonneville America Forums Forums Technical Forums Accessories Cleaning the little lady

So I was thinking the other day when I was cleaning my bike... How do others clean there bike, and what do they recommend to do this. When I clean I use a hose and try to stay away from the chrome and engine. Then go and use glass plus on the chrome, and try to clean the engine.

What are better ways to do this, and can I spray the engine down when I clean it?
Anyone use that jet dry?

I could not find a better place to put this post...

Thanks,

Ryan

Hi Ryan,
I copied and posted the following from another thread. It's what I clean up with:

The following is ALL I usually use on my bike:
1. Car Wash Concentrate(whatever is on sale-they're all
good). And a constantly rewetted rag from sweatshirt.
2. SimiChrome polish for, you guessed it - Chrome. It is
good for all bare metals.
3. EagleOne UltraGlaze & Sealer. Makes finish look wet.
4. Automotive WipeAway from Barr Co. I know WalMart has it.
I guess any of the automotive citrus cleaners would work.
I've used this stuff on warm pipes to remove rubber sole
marks. The marks almost evaporate - they vanish.
5. Honda spray cleaner and polish for touch ups.

I use my electric leaf blower to dry bike after wash.

Enjoy your shine!
Dennis

I know people have said not to, but I was short on time and the bike was really dirty. I went to the self serve car wash. It worked great , but later when I went for a ride, the oil light came on, I checked the sight and it looked like it was pumping ok, turns out the wire for the sensor was all wet(the rubber cover deteriorated quickly and lets water in) I dried it up, put some dielectric grease on and all has been well since. I guess what I am trying to say is, the more water you put on, the more chance of finding a weak link, although, on the bright side, better to find that now than when in a rainstorm.jeff

So can you spray the engine down with a hose?
What about using the Jet dry product that is out?

I would like to make this bike always look mint.

My problem is I don't have a garage to keep the bike in, so I have to keep it outside; yes it is under a cover but it still gets dirty....

Hi Ryan,

Well Vera had a good washing last Sunday. She needed one too. 3100 mile road trip in May then a 400 mile trip to Sunrise. I thought that a 185 mile trip in the rain would clean the engine up, but it did not.

For periodic cleaning, leave the hose alone, but for those times when you want to give her a thorough cleansing, use the hose and don’t shy away from a good blast at her jugs. Get yourself a good parts cleaning brush or some sort of brush that will reach between the fins on the jugs. The spark plug ‘well’ can get a blast of water too. Ensure the spark plug boots are snug on the plugs though.

I use a bucket of Turtle wax’s car shampoo suds, a bottle of Simply Green, one large sponge, one small natural sponge, the parts brush and a couple of rags.

Wet her down with the hose, while trying to direct the water away from certain areas. Areas like the rear end of the slip-ons. Away from the underside of the fuel tank. Away from the handlebar controls. Away from the saddle and pillion. And definitely keep the water away from the fuse box and all key holes. Clean the pipes, the undercarriage, the case, the fenders, then the jugs. Use the suds first, then for the areas that still remain dirty, use the simply green in conjunction with the sponges, rags and brush. The wheels can be done last as I like to lift Vera up and spin her wheels to wash them. You can wet down the carbs then spray them with simply green and rinse them off. When you get the jugs clean, lift her off the side stand and lean her to the right. This will allow the water to drain out of the spark plug’s ‘well’. When all is cleaned up the way you want, fire up some sort of forced air device and blow her off. Break out the Maguiar’s mist detailer and polish her up. But do insure that you take her out asphalt dancing as soon as you can to heat up her heart and evaporate away the residual water that may linger on her jugs and in her spark plug wells.

Another thing to note when giving her a thorough cleansing is to lube the chain after you take her dancing. The chain will get wet and may get some simply green on it when you wash the rear wheel's hub. This re-lubing of the chain is one reason to not use a hose for periodic cleaning. (That and the electrics). Also lube up the choke slide mechanism with some chain wax too if you cleaned the carbs.

OK now your done, right? NO! For an extremely thorough cleansing pull the pillion, the saddle and the tank and clean till she shines. The top of the air box gets full of road silt, the underside of the tank’s console gets filthy too as does the top tube. While the tank is off, use some di-electric grease and rework the ignition coil connections and whatever other connection you see fit. Use a shop vac to vacuum up the road silt, then pull your air cleaner and vacuum the inside of the air box as well. Put all her clothes back on and now you can take her out for a proper dance.

In closing, I do not recommend washing her this way every time. But she can suffer a day at the spa once or twice a year.

This picture was taken right after Vera's Spa day. The breather tube needs a bit more rubbing, the header pipe nuts need some lube, but she enjoyed her day at the spa and didn't rib me for not scrubbing her back. (Removing her pillion, saddle and tank. That will be another day.) In this picture Vera is ready for some elbow grease and simichrome. 3 years and seven months young and only ridden 36500miles.

This is one thing I heartily recommend from HD. They have some excelent bike cleaning and finish care kits. Some include buckets, sponges and lint free rags.
I don't like to use a hose on a bike unless I have to, and then I keep the flow to a trickle to make sure water doesn't go where it shouldn't.
As for cleaning the engine, as long as it is cold, and you make sure to wipe it down completely before starting it, you don't have to do anything special beyond making sure nothing gets into the electrics or intake system.

Ryan,
Maybe I need to change my handle to 'HOSER'. I love using a hose, because my bike is waterproof (except for the fiamm horn). I even go to the local car wash and use the pressure washer to clean under bike, engine and that God forsaken chain. I take my cheap 4x8 bike lift with me and spin the rear wheel while blasting all the chain goop off the chain and sprocket (directly from the sides only). Some say I am crazy, but I replaced my last chain at 28,000 miles and it still had oily goo inside the links that I separated, so the O-rings in the X-ring chain are great.
You're not gonna hurt your bike with water, lots and lots of water. I use lots of water to get road grit and grime out of the way so it won't scratch my paint or chrome while rubbing it with soapy water.
Ride Safe, Keep It Shiny, and Keep The Shiny Side Up!
Dennis
p.s. I do this horrible stuff, and still have the best looking '02 on BA.com (laugh, laugh, chuckle, chuckle).

I use lots of water when I wash mine too. If the bike is going to have problems with water, I'd rather find out in my driveway than 100 miles from home when I get caught in the rain.

You might have the best looking RED one, but....

Gee, I guess I'm the cretin here. I've used the self-service car (pressure) wash since day one. I've never had a problem, except when I peeled the chrome off a stock mirror. I use the presoak on the front end to help with the bugs. I don't use high pressure on the engine, especially the air cleaners, or the chain (back when I had one). Occasionally I use Simple Green and a plastic brush on the wheels. I think I put a coat of wax on it once a few years ago. That Dupont paint is amazing stuff.

I go to Sam's Club and buy 2-500 ct. boxes of Johnson & Johnson double-ended cotton swabs and a 5 gallon bucket of Oil of Olay.... then when the wife and I are done, I take the bike for a ride and hope I find enough big puddles to knock the heavy stuff off the bike.......

You can't dispute Moe's advice, just look at Vera, shiny as a new born.
Two other points I do is firstly when I give Ruby her bath I put plastic bags over the exhaust pipes, held in place with elastic band, stops any water wandering in and sitting.
The other thing I do after bathtime is to spray the motor and frame with WD40 and then wipe it off. Leaves her black motor shiny and sweet and you just gotta love the smell of the WD evaporating as you go for a ride. Apparently the film left after evaporating the WD40 is pure rust preventative, been doing this on all my bikes since day dot.

I washed mine with the hose last weekend and I must have got something wet..it wouldnt start for a few minuites..it didnt do anything..i put kickstand up and down afew times went from 1st to nuetral..checked all the usual things
then it started..

Zooka that is what I am afraid of happening, but Sulg has a point about happening at home rather then on the road...

Grump,
I know exactly what you mean with the swabs - gets all those nooks and crannies. It takes a little more time but the little lady looks great when I'm done - Oh, and sometimes I do the same with the bike. A clean ship is a happy ship.

Nice catch... must be a "Burgh thing...

They all seem to be a little slower than us P-Town boys.

Check it out -

http://www.caswellplating.com/buffs/bluejob.html

I always use a hose too, but only use the "mist" and "shower" setting with bags over the K & N's and silencers. I like Blue Coral soap, Meguires wax, S100 pre-wax, and Nev-r Dull cotton wadding chrome polish. She shines up like a new penny! No problems so far...