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Corrosion Protection


Guest AceTallPaul

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Guest AceTallPaul

Does anyone have recommendations on sprays etc for winter. 

 

Im sure I had read about something called ACF on here before, but a search of the forum gave no results...

 

 

 

 

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SteveThackery

ACF 50 is what lots of people use and recommend.

 

 

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https://www.bennetts.co.uk/bikesocial/reviews/products/the-best-motorcycle-corrosion-protectants/tested-acf-50-corrosion-protectant-review

 

XCP is better by miles if you want to apply it less frequently. ACF has to be re-applied virtually every week or after every wet ride and that works out very expensive.

If what it looks like doesn't matter in the short term, good old fashioned waxoyl is by far the best but looks awful until you pressure wash, then it looks brand new again. You can't have decent protection if after applying it you can't tell it's there.

ACF shouldn't be applied to brakes according to their 'covering their arse'  instructions but I have sprayed the callipers and bound to have got some on the discs but it simply wipes off with a rag or wears off just like water does and has no effect on the brakes. Probably doesn't pay to soak the pads in it though.

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11 minutes ago, DaveM59 said:

https://www.bennetts.co.uk/bikesocial/reviews/products/the-best-motorcycle-corrosion-protectants/tested-acf-50-corrosion-protectant-review

 

XCP is better by miles if you want to apply it less frequently. ACF has to be re-applied virtually every week or after every wet ride and that works out very expensive.

If what it looks like doesn't matter in the short term, good old fashioned waxoyl is by far the best but looks awful until you pressure wash, then it looks brand new again. You can't have decent protection if after applying it you can't tell it's there.

ACF shouldn't be applied to brakes according to their 'covering their arse'  instructions but I have sprayed the callipers and bound to have got some on the discs but it simply wipes off with a rag or wears off just like water does and has no effect on the brakes. Probably doesn't pay to soak the pads in it though.

 

Years ago a friend and I went camping to Applecross he on his brand new Moto Guzzi Quota, worried the salt air would affect the new unprotected alloy, he bought half a dozen small cans of WD40 and completely soaked the bike in it brakes and all, others were shocked saying he would die from lack of brakes going over the pass, he is still with us, he had no problem it just burned off.

 

This is NOT a recommendation.

 

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I’ll be using acf50 on all the bikes when they go to bed for the winter, of course I keep one or two on the road for the odd nice dry day in the winter and acf applied as needed, up to now it’s worked well.

About 10 years ago I bought a cb550k3 which had been used by a school teacher to commute from new (1978)) it had almost 100k miles on it and still ran faultlessly, it had been wax oiled when new and was still thickly coated in it, it took my several hours to clean it all off using wd40 and many rags, the result was astounding, under the wax oil the bike was still as new, I think I took the mileage to about 108k miles, it still looked and ran like new.

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ACF 50.   I swear by it.  I ride all winter as well as summer.  Some people ACF their bikes once in readiness for winter and then leave it alone.  Personally, to clean and maintain my bike (Im doing  800 miles / week) I spray my bike every Saturday all over with Muc Off, leave it for 15 minutes.  Then I wash all that off with a hose or pressure washer (with care), quickly drying it down afterwards. Then I spray the bike allover with ACF 50, plastics, seats, screen, mirrors, metal, everywhere apart from brake disks and pads for obvious reasons.

 

Then I get a rag and wipe the bike all over, shine up the seat, glass, metal etc.

 

The only part of bike that looks a bit grotty is the exhaust chrome as I havent done that yet, but Harpic toilet cleaner will fix that.  ACF 50 isnt cheap, but you dont need much.

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FS360 but thats only because I bought a 5 litre bottle and need to use it up. Otherwise grease.

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Ive bought some XCP, not used it yet, no point till it gets near salt spreading time, been using acf for years , fantastic stuff, if XCP is better I wont be worrying about corrosion over winter.

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suffolk58

I use the bike all year round and my parking place at work is just yards from the counties salt barns (in winter the gritters test their spreaders right next to my bike).

At home I keep a garden sprayer next to the garage door, filled with FS365, and give the bike a quick spray when I get back home in the winter. It takes no more than 30 seconds and isn't flammable. :)

For a full clean, I have a bottle of ACF 50, which I apply with a soft cloth.

It's done for me and my bike quite well for the last 32,000 miles (and the 50,000 miles of the previous bike).

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MikeBike

I googled FS365 because I hadnt heard of it and came across a comparison test with ACF 50 from one of our fellow forum members (I think)

 

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MikeBike
20 hours ago, AceTallPaul said:

Does anyone have recommendations on sprays etc for winter. 

 

Im sure I had read about something called ACF on here before, but a search of the forum gave no results...

I also searched for DCT and gave no results. I seem to remember it having been discussed once or twice or maybe even more....

I think the forum search just rejects three letter search terms as being too short.

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My very first bike on the road had all the chrome covered thickly with Vaseline for the winter, cleaned it all off with gunk in the spring, chrome was still good as new.

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ACF 50 for me. I have been using it on my all bikes and I feel it really protects it well. I do motorway all year and in winter time, after 5 days on salty, wet roads, I tend to soak bike in some cleaner, wash it off and then re-apply ACF50 - usually every 2-3 weeks. 

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Also, the 'anti corrossion block grease' is an exellent product , if a little expensive . Its around 7 quid for 50g, but a thin film on the vulnerable parts will last well and wont wash off easily.

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3 minutes ago, horobags said:

Also, the 'anti corrossion block grease' is an exellent product , if a little expensive . Its around 7 quid for 50g, but a thin film on the vulnerable parts will last well and wont wash off easily.

You can buy a 454g tub for around a tenner if you do a search.

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MikeBike
1 hour ago, djsb said:

You can buy a 454g tub for around a tenner if you do a search.

Look how far we've come embracing decimalisation in the almost 40 years since it was introduced - still selling 1lb tubs... :-)

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1 hour ago, MikeBike said:

Look how far we've come embracing decimalisation in the almost 40 years since it was introduced - still selling 1lb tubs... :-)

Yep. I'll toast that... With a pint

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Has anyone considered Ballistol? - I've used it for years.

Multiple uses as well. Wood & leather cleaner, knives, guns etc. It's also non toxic and can even be sprayed on an open wound for temporary protection.

It does work on leather & wood as well. Most of our furniture is natural wood and this is what we clean & polish it with. Also use it on my guns, leather jacket etc.

 

Here's a link which tells you the history / uses etc.

 

https://ballistol.com/about-us/

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But is it water soluble? If it is it won't work unless you keep re-applying it. (website states you thin it with water so therefore it will just wash off same as ACF and FS)

I suppose you have to decide whether you want your bike to look like new even when riding in winter and to spend hours cleaning and re-applying protection that washes off in the first half of the next ride, or whether you are happy to apply a product that makes the bike look like a scrapper all winter, then pressure washes off to reveal an as new bike again in spring.

I'm happy for mine to look a right mess all winter in the knowledge it's temporary.

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Yes,

It will / can emulsify with water, but I find it generally stays on, with water just running off it.

Not sure what you're saying about thinning it with water. I just use it neat. Spray on and wipe of the excess.

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MikeBike

I had my bike professionally treated before its first winter with a very good clean and then ACF misting all through. That was in 2015.  Since then I've really just occasionally washed the bike all over and underneath with a hose and hose brush attachment (after each ride in winter), occasionally a pressure wash but not too close and clean off chain oil fling. The centre stand was getting a bit stiff and had some stone chips and surface rust so I took it off cleaned up and repainted, and I replaced a couple of chain guard screws on the swing arm that were starting to corrode with new ones which I gave a proper coat of paint before fitting, The can of ACF I bought languishes in the cupboard and only really gets used if I've got something apart, like a squirt up the swing arm, or in the centre stand etc.

It's 3.5 years old now, I've done about 22000 miles, I live next to the sea with a draughty garage, I ride all year and I get comments saying how good the bike looks. I do have fender extenda, hugger, rad guard for permanent protection.

 

The cost of the screws was about £3 so less than a can of ACF. I don't think the centre stand would have been any different as it needed greasing and had been stone chipped.

 

I do wonder when I hear about all the effort, time and money spent on cleaning and protective spray products etc. when my experience is that a wash down, with lovely soft welsh water mind:-)  seems to suffice. Maybe I should bottle it...

Edited by MikeBike
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There are some interesting products by Bilt Hamber for vehicle body protection, including a clear thin film version Dynax UC here https://www.bilthamber.com/corrosion-protection-and-rust-treatments/dynax-uc

I got a collection of several of their products to try on my cars, haven't been on long enough to really reach any conclusion but the UC might well be suitable for bike protection without looking awful. No commercial connection.

I found their website was the cheapest place to get it once you got up to the free p&p level.

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There is also a good link to the missendenflyer on youtube who gives a demonstration on how he uses ACF50 on his bikes. He interestingly does not use the spray can, but uses a liquid form on applies it in mist form which he claims is more cost effective and manageable. I use ACF50 and swear by the stuff.I also use a very cheap can of DP60 which is brilliant as well. 

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