That's awesome Kof! Got a freakin team in Kawi shirts washing ur baby! :)) I love it!
I wash Priscilla whenever she needs it, bout once a month in Washington unless I have been riding in the rain. I use a Meguires soap and when she is done, clean fresh microfiber wipedown and hit it with plexus and a buff. Plexus between washes!
C - I love riding my bike, but I hate riding when it's cold and raining.
Between washes, a damp rag on the front end to soften the bug crust and then maybe some Original Bike Polish to clean it up. Plexus is good, too, but that shit's expen$ive.
Danno - it seems a lot of people use Plexus, but you are right, it is expensive. I also use a damp rag to soften the bug crusts.
Like C said when she needs it like today at my local carwash after a day out!
Bean - where I live I have no choice but to use a carwash.
That Honda Polish works on bugs like magic! I detail cars and bikes professionally by trade and use alot of stuff that you can't get over the counter. The best over the counter is Mequiers and Groits for cleaning, a good citrus degreaser is one that is not used to soak internal engine components is good as the harsher ones will break down rubber and are hell on unpainted/coated plastic.
Bobby - you are lucky to be able to get stuff that we can't get over the counter. I think I am going to give Groits a try, thanks!
Around here, the biggest issue are bugs. Once day of riding will leave you caked in them.
jtemple - We don't have a bug issue here in my area. I guess that is one of the advantages of living in a big city.
I wash probably two or three times a year with Turtle Wax Ice Wash using a bucket, sponge & water hose. Then use Ice Paste Wax. Most everyday I quick wipe it with a California Mini Duster when I get home in the evenings. I wipe it down every two to three days as needed using Turtle Wax Spray Wax as a detailer. 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.
dericrey - thank you for adding the images, it helps a lot! A bucket, sponge and water is my preferred cleaning product. I am going to try some of the stuff that people have suggested so far.
j, I may be wrong, but looks like a little gopro'ish. Or maybe a standard editing trick with the Kofla's camera movie type maker? The photos are sharp like a go, which has that digital appeal. But Ko's digital camera may have the video rolling? I'm sure you could take stills of the video and photoshop it that way too. Either way, I've seen how much editing it takes go wise. Unless you type like a madman and have the keystroke shortcuts down for either program, there is some time there. That is a cool pic, Kofla. Billy ruined moviemaker, I have to learn a more complicated new way using win8. Gopro sucks as well. I'll figure them out soon enough.
Hub - the idea for this trick photo originated from a picture I saw in the October issue of Motorcyclist magazine. If you noticed in the original picture, one of the guy's legs are missing, lol. This is a copy of the magazine picture.
Hub - I used a Sony Cybershot - DSC-W530 - 14.1 megapixels, the camera self-timer and a tripod. I took three pictures, and blend the images using Adobe Photoshop editing tool. These are small version copies of the original images I took at the carwash:
Usually I wash mine once a week. Bugs are thick as snot here in Minnesota and I have to drive on a half mile worth of gravel every time I take her out. The dust collects fast in the rims. Here's what mine looks like after just washing it and going for short ride in the evening. Sometimes it can be even way worse.
Nasty - it looks like you've gone through a swarm of bugs! lol
Honda pink and black can spray to gently release surface stuff like bug guts, works like a charm, buffs down, good on metal, plastic and windscreen. I am becoming 'that guy', the one who waxes the tank every week. I have a tank bag so I'm trying my best to limit scratches. Degrease the rear rim often, otherwise driveline gunk builds up. Also a good degrease of anywhere near the driveline when I have the chain guard and rear belly pan off for chain maintenance. Makes for a prolonged but intimate chain maintenance. I need to do better getting grime off from the bottom of the rear fender area. I know nobody can see it but I know its there. I have some mother's polish for the stock pipes but haven't used it yet. That will probably be only so often.
Tooncinator - I am trying really hard to avoid scratches, but is not working. Sounds like you pay attention to details.
Seems like the bike gets dirtier in the garage than on the road, except for the bugs.
alg8er - my bike is always covered when sitting in the garage. I am going to use some of the suggestions on this thread, thanks! btw, that ZX-11 looks great!
To answer the title question: not very often.
hagrid, same thing here, not very often, lol
After every ride.
Neil - Thank you!
As I ride mine almost every Sunday i tend to wash mine almost every Saturday
johnnie - there is a famous spanish joke that it almost translates to "its saturday, time to take a shower", lol
Whenever I ride through some wet lines and dirt and shit sprays everywhere all over it. Other than that I dust off with a really wet chamois and water, then dry off with microfiber. When it's really that really, Meguires car wash, then Mothers California pure carnauba wax to make it really jump out at you.
sweetfa65 - a wet sponge and a microfiber cloth has worked great for me!
Kofla
* Last updated by: KoflaOlivieri on 4/18/2016 @ 12:03 PM *
