Washing the beast

Just wondering what precautions, if any, people take with washing the 1250.

I've never owned a bike with electronics before and there seems to be a huge number of connectors of various sorts on the bike which don't look particularly water resistant. In the past I've just done basic stuff like supermarket bags over the handgrips, mastercylinder etc, bit of gaffer tape over the ignition switch, pull the seat off and use a piece of plastic to divert water off as much as possible.

Thanks for any input.

Ive never done anything like that . I do have one rule, ride it after a wash to dry everything off.There is a stack of connectors and they are all different.

Whilst I'm loath to ride in the wet (soft...), the FA gets hit with suds then high pressure nozzle everywhere, I figure if my scooter is designed to be in all weather, that includes water everywhere within reason washing - nothing covered up!

what is this washing thing you speak of.
Come to think of it, what's this water thing you all speak of.

I just wash mine with a 1lt pump bottle with plain water and cloth and polish off with Maguires gear.
Kero on oil/grease spots.

dhula wrote:what is this washing thing you speak of.
Come to think of it, what's this water thing you all speak of.

I just came back from Perth yesterday and loved the warm weather. Back home now and its drizzly rain
Geez I'm sick of Albany weather.

dhula wrote:what is this washing thing you speak of.
Come to think of it, what's this water thing you all speak of.

We're talking about bikes Dhula, not your personal hygiene regimen.

Bucket of Soapy water and a sponge. hose off and shamy dry

Avoid high pressure washes. A bucket of water, sponge, hose and a cloth will do.

On the odd occaison that my bike gets cleaned I use a 'waterless' wash, I can't remember the name of the product I use, but it does work without scratching the paint work (anymore than it already is).

Oh, if you have young kids, make sure they don't help daddy wash the bike. When my youngest was 3 he 'helped' me by sticking the running hose down the exhaust pipe, no damage done, but it pays to keep an eye on the little buggers.

Saikhan wrote:

dhula wrote:what is this washing thing you speak of.
Come to think of it, what's this water thing you all speak of.

We're talking about bikes Dhula, not your personal hygiene regime.

Where's the "like" button

I've gotten in the habit of giving the bike a quick clean when I get home from a ride, not like the occasional "detail" it gets but just so it is 'acceptable' enough for another ride.

Yesterday I sprayed the front surfaces with Bug and Tar Remover and mixed a bit of Chemtech CT18 in an empty icecream container, and washed it all over with a rag, then I added a dash of CT14 to do the greasy bits (near the chain) then a gentle hose off followed by a wipe dry, and a quick spray lube of the chain and voila, not perfect but ready to go again and only took about 10-15 minutes

Thanks everyone - I have a bad habit of trying to make everything more difficult than it needs to be.

I reckon I'll do an occasional wash with a bucket of suds and the hose and a quick wipe over with one of the waterless type cleaners in between washes.