Since I have brand new rims I need some pointers on cleaning them as my last 2 sets got a little grungy due to my laziness. Trackbizz laid out the entire process for me yesterday, but i want to hear what everyone else does and how often. I know we have a detailing section but this is a very specialized kind of cleaning I feel and think that maybe I'll get more responses here. Mods if you want to move have at it.

Here is the method i have thus far. I have no issue cleaning the white walls, i avhe that down pat. First off it seems that there is no substitute for a weekly cleaning, especially if you live near the ocean as I do. Brake dust is poison to chrome as well.

So, I get a bucket full of soapy water and a wash mit and spin teh wheel with the mit on the spokes and stuff multiple times rinsing in between each soap up. I use Mr. Clean auto dry as it helps it dry "spotless". 3 times seems to be the magic number. Then dry with my metro blaster. This is after i avhe cleaned the whitewalls with magic eraser and som sort of cleaner sprayed directly on it. I use Shout laudnry stain remover, Truckbizz uses the harley cleaner. Then I use some sort of cleaner like purple slice on the rims themselves to ensure they are super clean until i am satisfied with how they look. Then, a micrfiber in between the spokes where they meet the rim. Truckbizz's 3 year old rims still look brand new.

Any helpful hints or suggestions? I am all ears. My old wheels were a little neglected and I had to work really hard to get them clean again after the neglect. That will not happen with these. I spent too much money on them to let them get that dirty this time. The others cost just as much, but I really need to make sure I do this this time. Weekly goddammit. Weekly!

Thanks!

Drew

 

I put (new to me) Ride Wrights on after xmas. Dur to the typical horrible weather we have up here, just started riding again and I have yet to clean them. I'm going to try the shoestring method. Only con I see is if the spokes are really dirty, you're going to spend a lot time rinsing out the shoestring or go through a lot of them. For xmas, I got a wheel detailing ket from Griots Garage. Might try that on my bike as well.

Best plan? Try not to get them dirty in the first place. I hate to admit to being a fair weather rider, but if it looks like it might rain, I don't take the bike out.

 

Spray cleaner like the S100 Total cycle cleaner, rinse thouroughly, then take the wash mit and go around the rim. Run a microfiber cloth between each spoke to get the grime out from between. Rinse again. Mine don't cleaned as much as they should, but they still wipe clean very easily when I get the motivation to do it.

 

Those are the key words for me. I need to make a trip to autozone for all the stuff I need.

Drew

 

I don't think you will find S100 at Auto Zone but there is a guy on Ebay (M/C Dealer somewhere) that lists 2 kits of S100 for $25.00 and IIRC that included shipping as well. I just bought these a few weeks ago.

Karsten

 

I work for a shop and can get almost everything through drag specialties, but thanks.

Drew

 

Got this from the BMW GS forum: Get a cheap smallish (1/2 inch) round and soft paintbrush with no metal fixings and a battery powered drill. Fit brush handle into the drill. Spray wheel with soapy solution and use drill mounted brush at low to medium RPM. The brush will get into all the hard to reach spots and clean out all the muck. Fast and not as tedious as shoe laces.

 

Thanks. I have a mothers power ball that work pretty well as well.

Drew

 

Okay, did the first wash on the rims today. The last set got really grungy as I did not stay on the cleaning as I should have and I am sure not going to let that happen to these.

I got an air force blaster sidekick http://www.metrovacworld.com/Blaster%20SideKick

I gave the bike a nice wash which I almost never do as I hate drying it. I scrubbed the wheels with the bike on the lift 3 times to ensure I got all the brake dust off and washed the rest of the bike too. Then I set to work with the blaster. This is a small piece of equipment but it packs a serious punch. I dry the wheels first as I am completely obsessed with them as they are brand new. It took about 10 minutes with the warm air the blaster was blasting to have them completely dry.

I then set to work on the rest of the bike and was amazed at how fast the entire bike was clean. Watching the water blow off of the portion of the engine behind the rear cylinder really had me perplexed. This part of my bike gets really dirty as my street has tons of dirt and sand on due to the poor condition of the pavement and it is near impossible to keep this part clean at all. As the water disappeared I saw the bike as clean as it was when it was brand new.

Ok, enough raving from me. I used a microfiber on the spokes on each side of the rims and the blaster to dry the hub of each rim. Final result was that the wheels still look brand new as they should. I guess I am going to have to plan a weekly wash (with the amount I ride) to keep the wheels clean and it will not be a burden at all now with my new helper. Now all I need are a few bikini girls to do it for me!

Drew

 

How do you like that Air force Blaster Drew?
I need a blower.