Triumphrat

I am relatively new member of the T-Bird owner club and I am having a great time so far. The more I ride it, the happier I am about my investment. Since I intend to keep it that way for some time, I would like to make sure that my Baby is going to stay in mint condition.

Now, I am a bit of a lazy bastard when it comes to household work and all that. In addition, I am not really known for my DIY-skills. However, I see the neccessity of cleaning my bike on a regular basis. I never rode it in the rain so far, but still, after several hundred kilometers, dust, small stains and of course lots of insects killed by the allmighty grunt of the triple are starting to tarnish my T-Birds appearance.

I recently got myself some special bike cleaning product which you spray onto the bike, let it do its work for a few minutes and than rinse it off. In addition, I bought one of them Kärcher high pressure watercleaners. I know that I should adjust it to the lowest possible pressure level to avoid damaging the paint etc.

Still, I would love to hear some basics from you fellow Triumph enthusiats about tips and techniques for the basic bike wash and perhaps a few proven home recipes that actually work without buying tons of cleaning products. Stuff like how to treat the really shiny bits & pieces, cleaning the wheels etc.

Your input is greatly appreciated !!

Ride on

vonbonds

The Thunderbird is probably harder to keep "clean looking" than the Thunderbird Sport due to the fact it has more chromy bits and pieces. I have accepted the fact that I have to clean my bike thoroughly once a week along with the occasional wipe down during the week (frequency I am sure will depend on how often you ride the bike). The major products I use are S100 wheel cleaner. You spray it on and let it sit for 15 minute to 2 hours depending on the grime level. Once you have let it do its thing you spray it off with a hose. I then use a rag to get into the wheels to clean up the big chunks it loosened up but didn't get sprayed off. I also use a product called Honda Spray Wax or Honda Cleaner (can't remember the official name off hand). That sprays on every thing and wipes off to a nice shine. Of course once and a while a proper waxing is good with the wax of your choice.

A buddy of mine takes his bike apart in the winter time and cleans the thing from head to toe! He has a 95 I believe (that pretty light blue model year) that looks like it came off of the show room floor and he actually has miles on it!

Tom

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Slinky

Wash & wax is best for washing the paintwork. Wet the bike with water first (a hose is good ) and then wash the bike down using a sponge on the painted panels and a soft brush everywhere else. I use the kind of brush which is sold for cleaning car wheels, it can be attached to the hose but I never use it that way.

When the bike is rinsed I used a chamois to leather it off and then, if the bike is lucky it gets a wax. Avoid using chrome cleaners on chrome, they tend to be abrasive. Just the normal wash&wax will do the job.

And I would be inclined not to use the pressure washer, they can do a lot of damage.

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97TB

S100 for the engine and wheels - but NOT on the paint. Use regular washing suds (I use Maguiar's) for the paint, followed by spray wax (S100 makes a good spray wax and so does Honda). And, believe it or not, Windex to shine up the chrome.

bborzell

I'm sure that the above admonition is accurate for the S100 Wheel Cleaner, but S100 Total Cycle Cleaner is designed for every part of the bike. I did a recent review of the product in the review section.

As for the pressure washer, I suggest against using it. I have two outside spigots. One is 40 lb. and the other is 140 lbs. When washing the bike (particularly washing off the S100 Total Cycle Cleaner), I use the lower pressure. That's all that is necessary to get the cleaning solution off the bike and much more pressure is likely to force water into places where it was not designed to live. Using the 140 lb spigot does just that. If your pressure washer is anything like mine, even the lowest setting (other than the soap application setting) is way above 40 lbs.

Since you are using a special cleaning solution, there is no reason to try to use water pressure to remove dirt. The solution will do that and you will not have the risk of ingition or other water gremlin problems.

...Bob

shedds

i never use water on my tbird just honda spray wax /polish and keep up with it.even on the wheels it removes all the brake dust and chainwax over spray (tip) don,t let it buildup it will take longer to clean wheels when the brake dust gets thicker inbedded into spokes .

Greaser

Good I am not alone in being a "neat-freak" T-Bird owner
Anyways,First off I spray down the rear wheel are with a degreaser to get off the chain oil. I let it soak then I wash the bike down with water first from the graden hose. Next I use an automotive car wash soap, Armour All brand to wash the bike. I was told that household detergents like dish washing liquid or liquid laundry detergent are too strong and will strip off the layers of protefctive wax on the paint. Wash down with lots of suds, rinse and dry with a chamois. For the wheels I use a semi soft nylon bristle brush that is supposed to be for washing dishes. This is really good and non-damagining when cleaning the rims. I use Turttle Wax non abrasive paste with carnuba wax for the paint. I was using chrome polish but I am switching to the same wax I use on the paint work. For the blacked out engine which is notoriouslly difficult to keep nice looking I use tire cleaner oon it. Just spry it on and let it sit. It does have a high silicone content but dog gone it! It looks factory fresh when I do it. I have been using this stuff for 3 years and the bike still looks factory fresh! I also have some black trim cleaner for the black plastic bits like the rear taillight mount. They can get nasty looking quick. This stuf also restores and protects the black trim and platic. Prevents the plastic from UV rays and drying out.

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upNorth

S100 is the best, keeps parts from rusting, too. I use Zymol on the paint - makes it look deep. Just under 30,000 miles and guys at the shop ask me who details it for me 'cause it looks new. Toothbrush w/S100 on the spokes, avoid the pressurewash. Nothing stronger than the garden hose needed. Windex on the mirrors. She's still sharp!

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mecscc

Think I am in a whole other world. I am a lot less concerned about the perfect looking bike than a lot of you. I ride every day and I don't wash or clean the bike all that much. When I do it cleans up pretty nice, but I am not very concerned if it looks like I ride it. I bought it to ride it, and if you ride every day sometimes it is going to rain or there is going to be water or mud to contend with; and if you have have a life beyond motorcycles there just isn't time to be cleaning and cleaning, etc. On the other hand, I am very particular about keeping up with the mechanical maintenance and repair. Again that comes from riding all the time and not wanting to be stranded, plus not having enough money to go out and buy a new bike every couple of years. I want this one to last.

When I do clean it, (maybe 2 times a month Sue and I clean all three bikes), I use a hose, low pressure, some liquid car wash detergent, and a cotton fleece rag, rinse, dry down with large terry cloth towels and spray everything (except the rotors!) with that Honda Cleaner and Polish and wipe that down with a clean, old T-shirt. BTW: to my way of thinking that Honda cleaner/polish is sort of a miracle product.

In early spring and late fall I use Gunk degreaser on the underside areas, use tar remover to get off any road tar, and wax all the painted surfaces with McGuire's. That's about it. Never have had any rust or paint problems over the years on any of my bikes, which is pretty good considering that I ride a lot (NOT every day) in the winter in the north where they use a lot of road salt. If I do have to ride on a wet road that has been salted I rinse all the salt off when I get home.

In any case, I always admire someone who takes a toothbrush to the wheels, etc. Some bikes really can and do look "showroom" clean. I just don't need or want to take the time to do that.

Take care,

Monte

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Monte

"The Old Ohio Preacher Man"

I use a product called Rennaissance Wax on all of my chrome. I work at a woodworking store and we sell the stuff for many applications but I push it for protecting metal surfaces such as tables of saws, jointers, ect. It's an engineered microcrystiline wax with a toluline or zyline or some line base that cleans the crud like a champ and leaves a thin rock-hard finish that really lasts. There is no dulling of the chrome, in fact it shines like mad after a polishing. I also use it on the seat for a rich black finish and a lasting protectant. The stuff comes in a 1/2 lb can and lasts forever. A little bit goes a long way- I've had a can for almost four years now and it's only about half empty. The Ford Museum uses the stuff for everything. I don't think that I would use it on the paint due to the solvent base- I just use McGuires for all painted surfaces. I'll include a link in case you guys want to check it out- http://www.tools-for-woodworking.com/
John