Britbike forum Forums Thread Like Summary - Here's A question....?

After all the Biblical weather we've enjoyed over here in Blighty lately, I'm amazed at how many people wash their cars/bikes as soon as the Sun comes out....

Why...? is my question...

Surely it would be easier to leave the vehicle to be cleaned, out in the rain to soak into all the mud, THEN wash it with soap and a sponge, then leave it out there to rinse off....

Life is far too short to muck about wasting a nice day on such a menial task I feel, suppose it's just like pushing buttons when the Sun shines, so to that end I'm off.....

My philosophy is "Why wash it? It's just going to get dirty again!"

There IS some value to washing your bike, since when you pass your hand over ever square inch of it, your hand can find things that are not right that your eye can't see, like loose nuts or sheet metal, or maybe some oil or fluid where there was none before. So I do it sometimes ... not on a pretty riding day, though.

And I don't use soap and water. I use the old Honda cleaning spray for the paintwork and plastic, and WD40 or something like it for the aluminum, steel, and chrome. Water is what you're FIGHTING on your bike, not something you want to add. Nothing wrong with the "oily rag" look and the bike looks better.

I know folks that keep their bikes looking brand new, using Simichrome polish and Q-tip cotton swaps to get into every nook and cranny every time they ride it. I'm not saying that they don't ride a lot or they're not good riders, but they spend as much time cleaning as they do riding. And good on 'em if that's what makes 'em happy ... everyone needs a hobby. But that's not the way I roll .... !

Lannis