Kofla; I cover it with a light nylon cover I've had for years, but the fine dust still makes it through and clings at any speed. Now that all my dogs are gone it'll stay cleaner.

Reptile I love that 11!!!!!!
Mad love
Canine

* Last updated by: Wolfman on 10/1/2013 @ 6:24 PM *

Kofla! Nice ride brotha, I use a product put out by Nappa called Blue Ice to clean bugs. And then I hit the bike with plexus or trox spray detailer. See the results below!

Wolf, your bike looks awesome!

Kofla

* Last updated by: KoflaOlivieri on 4/18/2016 @ 12:05 PM *

Kofla; I cover it with a light nylon cover I've had for years, but the fine dust still makes it through and clings at any speed. Now that all my dogs are gone it'll stay cleaner.

alg8er, true, fine dust gets in regardless.

Kofla

* Last updated by: KoflaOlivieri on 4/18/2016 @ 12:05 PM *

I wash an wax her once a week. I use Maguires wax, Zymol Polish along with wheel wax. I use Honda Polish for my helmets. Believe it or not use Pledge wood polish on my leather jackets works great!

Believe it or not use Pledge wood polish on my leather jackets works great!

Wow, thanks, maybe I should try that!

Kofla

* Last updated by: KoflaOlivieri on 4/18/2016 @ 12:04 PM *

I only wash at a car wash IF I've hit a rain shower or something like that.Grit gets everywhere as we know.But I've never gone koo koo with the wash wand...no way.Too many electrical connections throughout the bike(and grease seals)....I've car washed my bike twice so far in 9500 miles.Otherwise...wet cotton cloth and final dry with a microfiber...works very nicely.Polish?Meguiars Swirl and Scratch remover...and once every several months...Meguiars "Hi Tech" wax(liquid)...buffed to a nice shine...minimal waxing.It can build up on there and take away from the shine over time....and Wolf...your Green Mamba looks beautiful Bro!Good job on her;)

* Last updated by: Grn14 on 10/4/2013 @ 8:49 AM *

Yep forgot about zymol, darn good stuff, and yeah pledge is great still gotta use a little mink oil sometimes

The Ice products are easy and quick to use, they leave no white film and can be used on all surfaces. The wax seems to leave a pretty good protective layer. We are currently in the middle of our Love Bug season here in the south. A ride during the heat of the day will have you stopping every 50 miles just to clean your visor so that you can safely see the road. The bugs simply wipe off clean at the end of the day using the Ice stuff, so far.

Agree. The Turtle Wax Ice Paste Polish leaves a nice durable shine and it fills micro swirls.

I wash with water only if the bike is buggy or was caught in the rain and has grit on it. Water baths include a car wash soap---no realpreference. Stay away from Dawn or other dish soaps. They remove wax on contact....Dawn does, anyway.

DO use a microfiber cloth to wash and dry.

I mostly use the black and pink spray polish with a microfiber cloth. Plexus is great for bare plastics. It DOES leave some sort of very durable slippery film behind. Your bare plastics will shine like never before.

Also Liquid Glass for the mirrors.

At least one time / year I rub the whole body out with a scratch remover. ICE liquid claybar works well. 3M swirl remover is also a good one to use to take away the swirls that acumulate without creating more sever ones. Works on paint and bare plastic. Finish with ICE paste polish and it will look better than new. I can see the larger flat areas of my fairings are smoother and more perfect than the OEM paint finish.

There are some excellent methods here, could this thread be stickied? Mods?

Any suggestions to clean the wheels?

I found a good bike cleaner here in San Diego called All Star Detail...for $60 about every month or so, bike looks good...and I haaaaaaate cleaning the rims!

I just wash it after it gets dirty! ... sometimes waaay after But I try to never let bugs stay on even for a few hours - Their juices eat holes in paint.

Turtle Wax brand waxy soap and water, microfiber towels to reduce the chance of scratches, and then chamois pat dry; no dragging the chamois. The bike is not that big, so patting it dry is reasonable enough for me.

My friend turned me on to microfiber towels. I also use 'em to clean my helmet and faceshield after rides ... just water, haven't even needed soap, as long as I clean it pretty soon thereafter and let the water briefly soak into any bugs ... and so far no scratches whatsoever ... very impressed.

I generally wash every 400 miles, car wash, microfiber mitts (one for body, one for wheels/underbody), and drying cloths. Go for a dry off run after that, lube chain, repeat.

Any suggestions to clean the wheels?

Used Bounce dryer sheets. Or any make of dryer sheets. Works really well.

For tougher caked on grime spray a little brake cleaner on a rag and wipe.

Been using both on my '09 with no problems.

bug and tar remover works miracles on heavy bug deposits. Use sparingly, it turns to a thick slime that softens the bugs and it is hard to remove if sprayed on hevily. It just hangs on ther even if you spray with a hose. Transparent, so it can be hard to see. Never had a problem with even though I'm sure there have been times when I didn't get every last bit off.

I wash mine with water only when it gets noticeably dirty. I don't spray with the hhose or any pressure, just douse it over the top. In between wahes, I use Original Bike Spirits. Always a microfiber cloth to wash and dry and polish too.

All I do for a quick post ride clean is fill one of my wash buckets with some water and dampen my wash mitt. It usually has enough soap residue doesn't really require adding soap. Wipe the bugs off or other splatters and it's all good in a couple minutes. Because it's only damp, don't even have to dry it.

Same thing with wheels. Usually some fling if I want to wipe them off just dampen the wheel wash mitt, a quick couple wipes (move bike to get 100% of the rim) and good to go.

* Last updated by: VicThing on 4/28/2016 @ 11:28 PM *

I use this setup when washing the rims: