Riding in Winter does not ruin bikes.

Everyone knows salt is corrosive to bikes, no question there. But that needn't be the reason to worry about riding your bike in winter. All it takes is a little love.

I'm a busy person most days. If I'm not working overtime at work (don't get home 'til half 7 most days), or continuing to polish my NC30 (it'll never be clean enough), I'm out and about doing other non-bike-related activities. i.e. I do like to keep my bikes in good working order, but I have a life beyond my forum nickname/reputation (strange as it may seem). Which means, I don't have a lot of time cleaning the R6.

But then again, it doesn't take a lot of time/effort to keep it looking fresh, despite it being one of the more unorthodox choices for winter commuting.

Unlike the NC30, which I gets treated to an array of accumulated cleaning products, the R6's cleaning routine uses more "budget" items.



(Don't worry, I don't clean the bike with suspension fluid - it's just where I keep my chainsaw oil)

On a daily basis, I get home, leave the bike on the drive, have dinner (so the bike cools down), rinse off any salt with cold water off exposed parts. All of 5 minutes work.

The bike lives outside and only under a cover if it hasn't been rained on already (I don't see the point in trapping the moisture).

At weekends, once the hangover's cleared on Saturday (and it's not chucking it down), the bike gets washed, rinsed, dried and then polished (using Mr Sheene). Wheels, swingarm, exposed aly, etc, get a quick dousing of WD40. This all of an hour's work.

So, here we are, half way through winter on a not very winter bike. The odo read a couple of miles over 7,000 when I picked it up at the beginning of December.















The R6 was in good nick when I picked it up. But then again, so should any bike 4 years or so old. My cleaning experience has usually been around restoration, rather than "prevention" that I use on the Yamaha.

It's a lot easier keeping something clean, than cleaning something up. I'm still confused about how bikes can actually get dirty in the first place.

Coz people like me buy 'em mate & don't keep 'em clean..

the gixer's been in the garage since i was last out on it (about 2 weeks ago) & i have'nt had time to clean it i just lubed everything then left it.

craigs23 if you can get the r6 that clean in an hour can you post your address and will bring my bike for clean hope i am frount of queue

That'll be quite a long queue if I accept any of the numerous requests...

pretty impressive job...

could you post your process to clean? with the stuff you use?

Could do a step by step next time the bike's cleaned I guess...

yeah, that would be quite cool...
cheers!

Craig you sound like a 1950`s housewife in your first post!! only joking..your bike looks lovely!!!
We go to the powerwasher down the road..lazy i know but quick
and then i bring out my trusty babywipes for those stubborn bits
park in garage with a squirt of WD40 and hey presto ..clean bike!!!
oh and put me on the list too please!!!!

You forgot to mention the powerwasher is only on hot wash and not full power.

Powerwasher?

Yeah , POWERWASHER, the best way to wash any lubricant out of your bearings,.That's steering head , wheels, swingarm , rear shock linkages and yer chain. DON'T DO IT!!. You may get away with it for a while , but one day it will catch up with you , or the poor sod that buys your bike, I know ,I had to replace two sets of Bandit head bearings. Stick with brush, sponge and buckets of water, PLEASE!

lol, I prefer doing everything by hand anyway.

Well, it's Saturday morning, so time for that weekly clean. As requested, here's a small write up on how the hour's work was spent. I've only focused on the back end of the bike - other than the engine bay, it suffers the most for built up dirt. I thought it best to focus on this for these photos, rather than the whole bike at this stage (despite me giving the whole bike a clean anyway).

The week's been wet and windy for the most part, including having to ride through several inches of water at times (during the night too, which was a little disconcerting as at first the bow wave didn't register due to poor visibility). I have recently run out of chainsaw oil, which I reguarly use to lube my drive chain. I was a little surprised to how quickly the aerosol chain wax had rinsed off, resulting in rusty chain this morning.

Note that even at this pre-wash stage, my rearsets and foothangers look cleaner than the surrounding items - this is down to rinsing these components before putting the bike under wraps each night. Wouldn't be wanting to scrub off corrosion once a week...



Before washing, I've used paraffin here to get the worst of the built up road grime off. The rusting of the chain also meant that I took the liberty to wash the chain too (usually it doesn't need doing as frequently as once a week). I use quite a bit of paraffin to do this, and as the dirt/oily residue literally drips off, best put some newspaper down to catch the debris. Note that I've been a little careless and got some on my rear tyre - don't worry, I scrubbed this off with hot water later on, but be careful. Once the worst is off (using a paintbrush/tootbrush for application), I used WD40 for the remain areas (swingarm, wheels, etc), which starts to break down the road grime prior to washing. This is usually just sprayed on, paying attention not to get it near rubber or the brake discs/calipers, for obvious reasons.



Now it's time to wash the bike. I tend to use two sponges for this - one for areas that are usually greasey, the other for bodywork. The last thing I want is to spread the odd bit of grit or grime over the bike's bodypanels. Before washing though, I grab one of the sponges and squeeze it, without touching the surface of the bike - so that the clean soapy water can begin to work into the grime.

Then, using the 'dirtier' sponge first, I clean the bottom of the bike (swingarm, forks, engine, etc), before using the 'cleaner' sponge to work from the top of the bike. This also allows the soap to work as it runs down from the top, so I then return and give the lower components another clean. There's not a lot of pressure used in this stage, by now, the dirt literally runs off the bike.

I then rinse the bike once again with cold water from a watering can.



Then, dry with a combination of old towels (lower areas) and microfibres/chamois (for the bodywork). All components, where necessary are checked for maintenance and then relubed. I use WD40 sprayed onto a rag to keep the wheels/frame/forks/swingarm/shock/fairing infills/etc staying shiney and protected (also eases the next time the bike's washed) and Mr. Sheene for the bodywork. I usually treat the paintwork to a layer of wax once a month.



Just gotta restock on some chainsaw lubricant...

craigs23 wrote: I'm still confused about how bikes can actually get dirty in the first place.

Quite easy....some people just dont dont bother cleaning regular, or hardly at all.

Brilliant, just brilliant mate!!!

I usually dont wash my bike much, my thundercat will need a really good clean before I put her for sale..

but with the blade now I want to keep her in top condition!!
I'm already sorting out a permanent system where I have a hose pipe connected permanently, going through the garage right to the door, so that is easier to give her a rinse after a winter ride...

Another fine guide, great work Craigs.

Hi again mate!

So I've started using the blade now… roads are dry but still with salt.
So I'm not taking any chances and I'm rinsing the bike every evening with cold water when I get home….and dry it with old towels…

Would like to know if you have any views / advice on what I'm doing..

Everyday I get home and rinse the bike with cold water and dry her… and that's it (will only this be enough everyday?)

On weekends I give her a good wash, similar to what you do, but I use a 3in1 degreaser which I spray on the engine and exposed alloy (not in places where grease is needed though…)
After washing I also use ACF50, on a rag or brush, on the exposed alloy parts, like footpegs and swingarm… this gives a good protection and I'll leave it on the bike.
One person I know has done a test with 2 identical alloy parts in the garden, one protected with WD40 the other with ACF50, and the one with ACF never got rusty… do you know this product? Even if you have rusty parts you leave it overnight and just removes everything.

What do you use to clean the brake calipers? And rubbers?
I love the way WD40 cleans everything, like rims, swingarm and black plastics, but for the above parts what do you use to make them look good?

Cheers

Just go out and buy some ACF 50 blather your bike in it top to bottom then rinse down after each ride out only use lght cleaning products like fairy liquid only re apply the ACF in the places it gets most stick like the swing arm as it's organic and it lives on your bike it's generally 12 month protection in engine bays and out of site areas (good for leathers n that too ) .
Ive been using it for years on mine and to be fair you wouldnt know it's done every winter for the last 4 years ,
By the way

Lube your chain regular and only when it's warm ,not warm after a short ride ?? get a hair dryer and warm the thing up in the garage then lube it .
Cleaning wont make much difference if you cant adapt your riding style to suit winter conditions as you will soon be saying hello to the tarmac demon

Yeh, I already use the ACF stuff…. I once tried on some old rusty rims and left it overnight soaking, next day wiped it off and… BANG!The rust is gone! LoL

I have always been told to not use fairy liquid to wash it, because the quemichals it has react with salt and makes it even worst….you never had any problems?

Yep.. Chain always gets a good lube after my 20mile commute..
When I need to clean the chain, I use a chain cleaner and brush, take the bike out of for a gentle 5 mile run to warm up the chain and then lube it. Never heard that one with the hair dryer.. Does it really work?

Spot on there, not much point cleaning if you don't take care, I leave the silly riding for summer and dry days.
Been through 3 winters so far with no problems (touch wood)

Hair dryer works yeah either that or get a local rider who reckons they know it all there generally full o hot air

Never had any bother with Fairies ,im straight as they come

Rinse first then apply

What do you use to clean the brake calipers? And rubbers?
I love the way WD40 cleans everything, like rims, swingarm and black plastics, but for the above parts what do you use to make them look good?

All I use is an old paintbrush and some elbow grease. I can't imagine you want to put too much stuff on them... you never know what might "eat" the vital bits.

hmm... this seems quite cool to dry the bike and make sure there's no water left on bolts rusting its way in..

http://www.motorcycledryer.com/

That looks like the kit for the job ... Do they sell those in this country ? If so where ?

I use one of those Flash car wash gun things with a filter for clean water built in, just spray the whole bike with that after cleaning and the clean water evaporates without leaving deposits in nooks and crannies!

I found a company that sells them over here... 170quid!!!!

A tad expensive...will only buy one if the spare engine I have for a thundercat will sell for that money on ebay..

To clean the calipers and all fittings i use a graphite penertrating oil i get it free which is always best great on chains when cleaning them .Leaves a lasting coating that throws the sh it off

so you wash the greasy areas first then to wash the rest of the bike n body panels you put your clean sponge into your dirty grease n grime filled bucket and spread it onto your tank, fairings etc ?

dont use sponges they put fine scratches into the paint it's best to use a wash mitt

Sorry guys your all wasting valuable drinking time here,get the wife to do it while you at the pub

Or just use your compressor...

...or a leaf blower!