Post by bluegoatwoods on Sept 11, 2017 13:08:24 GMT -5
This might be helpful to you. I suppose we all know that washing a scooter isn't all that difficult. But keeping the finish 'healthy' takes more than soap and water. Even 'high end' materials require care. And the cheaper materials on the Chinese scooters?
My main bike right now is an Icebear that I bought in January. That's not really old, of course. Yet it's long enough that the finish could easily be dry and faded by now. At least in some spots.
I've been using this stuff on it.
I'm sure it's essentially Armor All. It's less expensive, though. It comes in a pretty thick form. I guess it's meant to be wiped onto the surface. But I mix it with water. About 50/50. That makes it a thickness that sprays out of a spray bottle very nicely.
Years ago I realized that Armor All protects more than just plastic when I'd use it to keep bicycles clean and shiny. It seems to protect even raw, cheap steel from rust, for instance. In fact, this is what I use to keep chains clean and supple. I don't bother with cleaning and oiling them. I've heard that this stuff leaves some kind of 'silicone coating' on surfaces. And I believe it. Moving parts stay freely moving and they don't rust.
During the time I've had this scooter there has been one time only that I've sprayed it down with a garden hose and then sprayed with a soap and water solution and wiped with rags. And I could tell it wasn't necessary. Grime and bird crap and all that stuff just wasn't even sticking to the bike. I was even afraid that I was doing more harm than good by, maybe, scrubbing away the coating this stuff leaves.
Today I made sure to take photos because I knew that the timing for it was right. I've been a little bit lax about spraying down my scooter. I know it's been six weeks since I've done it. Probably not eight weeks. But maybe seven. That's a little long and a few spots were looking kinda dry. So I took some before and after pics.
These photos are highly zoom-able, by the way. So you can get a pretty close look if you'd like.
Have a look at this CVT cover.
Once again, I haven't been cleaning this in any conventional sense. Merely spraying it with, first, Armor All and later, this AA equivalent. Left to itself, that cover would be looking a lot more grimy and the decal might well have come away by now.
Exhausts can be prone to that 'dry and rusty' look. Particularly cheap Chinese exhausts. But this one doesn't look bad.
For comparison, here's the exhaust on another bike. It's a Taotao I bought about a month before this Icebear. I've all but given it to my daughter. It spends most nights at her place and I don't get my hands on it very often. She's not particularly good about spraying it down. I've given this bike the treatment once, I think. And I remember making her do it once. Maybe it's gotten sprayed a time or two more than that. But maybe not. And this exhaust is looking dry, faded and rusty.
A close look at the Icebear exhaust pipe before today's spray down. And it is looking a bit dry. But it might have been drier and more filthy considering it doesn't actually get washed. Same goes for that center stand.
A look at the front wheel before spray-down. The tire sidewalls aren't looking Sun bleached.
I don't suppose the 'after' photos are going to need a lot of explanation. You'll notice that the bike does look as though it's been sprayed down with something that's kinda cloudy. That look does fade within about a day. One could buff it off. But I'd rather let that protective coating stay right there.
That cloudy look isn't obvious from more than a few feet away. The bike shines like a diamond, as a matter of fact.
And you can still see the cloudy look for quite some time if you look closely. But the overall appearance of your scooter is quite good.
I'll stress once again the fact that I don't actually clean this scooter in the conventional sense. With soap and water or other detergent. The coating that's left behind by the spray keeps the finish clean by itself. Stuff doesn't stick to it. And a spray-down can be done in five minutes.
I'll bet a person can keep a bike looking good for years this way.
My main bike right now is an Icebear that I bought in January. That's not really old, of course. Yet it's long enough that the finish could easily be dry and faded by now. At least in some spots.
I've been using this stuff on it.
I'm sure it's essentially Armor All. It's less expensive, though. It comes in a pretty thick form. I guess it's meant to be wiped onto the surface. But I mix it with water. About 50/50. That makes it a thickness that sprays out of a spray bottle very nicely.
Years ago I realized that Armor All protects more than just plastic when I'd use it to keep bicycles clean and shiny. It seems to protect even raw, cheap steel from rust, for instance. In fact, this is what I use to keep chains clean and supple. I don't bother with cleaning and oiling them. I've heard that this stuff leaves some kind of 'silicone coating' on surfaces. And I believe it. Moving parts stay freely moving and they don't rust.
During the time I've had this scooter there has been one time only that I've sprayed it down with a garden hose and then sprayed with a soap and water solution and wiped with rags. And I could tell it wasn't necessary. Grime and bird crap and all that stuff just wasn't even sticking to the bike. I was even afraid that I was doing more harm than good by, maybe, scrubbing away the coating this stuff leaves.
Today I made sure to take photos because I knew that the timing for it was right. I've been a little bit lax about spraying down my scooter. I know it's been six weeks since I've done it. Probably not eight weeks. But maybe seven. That's a little long and a few spots were looking kinda dry. So I took some before and after pics.
These photos are highly zoom-able, by the way. So you can get a pretty close look if you'd like.
Have a look at this CVT cover.
Once again, I haven't been cleaning this in any conventional sense. Merely spraying it with, first, Armor All and later, this AA equivalent. Left to itself, that cover would be looking a lot more grimy and the decal might well have come away by now.
Exhausts can be prone to that 'dry and rusty' look. Particularly cheap Chinese exhausts. But this one doesn't look bad.
For comparison, here's the exhaust on another bike. It's a Taotao I bought about a month before this Icebear. I've all but given it to my daughter. It spends most nights at her place and I don't get my hands on it very often. She's not particularly good about spraying it down. I've given this bike the treatment once, I think. And I remember making her do it once. Maybe it's gotten sprayed a time or two more than that. But maybe not. And this exhaust is looking dry, faded and rusty.
A close look at the Icebear exhaust pipe before today's spray down. And it is looking a bit dry. But it might have been drier and more filthy considering it doesn't actually get washed. Same goes for that center stand.
A look at the front wheel before spray-down. The tire sidewalls aren't looking Sun bleached.
I don't suppose the 'after' photos are going to need a lot of explanation. You'll notice that the bike does look as though it's been sprayed down with something that's kinda cloudy. That look does fade within about a day. One could buff it off. But I'd rather let that protective coating stay right there.
That cloudy look isn't obvious from more than a few feet away. The bike shines like a diamond, as a matter of fact.
And you can still see the cloudy look for quite some time if you look closely. But the overall appearance of your scooter is quite good.
I'll stress once again the fact that I don't actually clean this scooter in the conventional sense. With soap and water or other detergent. The coating that's left behind by the spray keeps the finish clean by itself. Stuff doesn't stick to it. And a spray-down can be done in five minutes.
I'll bet a person can keep a bike looking good for years this way.
