its caked on there pretty badly. tried wd-40. that didn't work. since the brake dust/crud doesn't want to come off easily, do i even WANT to clean it off? in other words, will the spokes have been damaged by it to the extent that i might as well leave it on?

i know, my fault entirely for letting it progress to this state. now wondering if/how they can be salvaged.

scoot = 2006 street bob. the few clean spokes appear to be chrome, though i doubt they are. in any case, they're very shiny.

thanks...

 

Go get some brakedust cleaner from the autoparts store. Just make sure your wheels are cool, if they are hot the cleaner might stain them.

Also unless the directions state oherwise spray it on dry wheels. When wet they become slippery and the cleaner will just run off.

I hose mine off weekly and "clean" them about monthly.

 

Check out this thread. It has some tips.
https://www.hdforums.com/forum/softa...ct-thread.html

Drew

 

Shout... like you use on stains in your jeans and crap... spray it on, let it sit, hose it off works awesome!

 

I like the shout too. It also works great on whitewalls.

Drew

 

Here's a write-up on how to clean the spokes without hurting your fingers!

 

I use Mean Green, inexpensive and works good, you can get it at either Dollar General or the Dollar Store, can't remember, works as good as Simple Green, just soak the spokes for a few minutes and wash off with high water pressure. You might have to do it a couple of times if they are real trashy.

 

I use an old golf club brush and Glass Plus non ammonia glass cleaner. The brush is about 6" long and has about a 1" very soft wired head on about a 6" handle, no scratches on the spokes and it gets the brake dust off excellently. The only hassle is moving the bike about every 6 spokes to reach new one to clean on the back wheel, front wheel no problems.

Good Luck!

 

thanks for the replies. i picked up a bottle of SHOUT this morning. will give that a try first. if it doesn't work, at least i can still use it on my pants...

 

Never dull, used at the weekend, my spokes are so bright I can hardly look at them!