Scottoil or ACF-50. How did yours stand up?

Rob Farmer

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I've just spent a couple of hours cleaning my Airhead and GSA. Both were coated in Scottoil over the winter. The results were pretty good. Theres a couple of rusty bolt heads in the GSA that can easily be replaced and the Scottoil has burnt onto the Airheads barrels; thats going to take a bit of cleaning. Both bikes have come through looking just as they did before the salt was put down. The brake pipe unions on the GSA actually look better now than they did before I sprayed the stuff on.

I got through two containers of scottoil (£14) making it a cheap winters riding. Both bikes looked terrible with the build up of goo on them. I followed the instructions and just coated them over the top of the existing gunge, without washing them.

How did yours come through? I'm interested to see how the bikes that used ACF-50 stood up to the winter. The only problem with the Scottoil is it washes off in rain.
 
Mine is still covered in AFC50. I was hoping to get it cleaned before the hosepipe ban kicked in. Haven't managed it yet. I wiped a bit off in panic the other week, looked fine.

I'll let you know properly when (and if) I clean it.... :thumb
 
My 1150 had a thin coat of ACF-50 put all over it in October. Over winter, it's appearance had degenerated to a scarey state. Cleaned it up a couple of weeks ago and it looked really really great, and I am a fussy b*****d

It's the first time I've used it..............good stuff...........IMHO............... :thumb
 
Spent the winter commuting on mine, when I got back home I didn't hose it down, just sprayed on more F365, washed it last weekend after 5 months, and it looks like new... :-)

A couple of caliper bolts are a bit rusty but thats it.. well impressed.
 
Hi Rob

Dont own a car so bike well used right thru Winter.
Used ACF50 for the first time this year - previously used Scottoiler.
Simply put ACF50 wins hands down.
Bought the big bottle for about £30 but have barely used any :eek:
It really does stick, even thru a pressure wash. Not looking forward to getting it all off. It does pick up the road shite but I guess you wont be bothered by that. I found if you warm it up and apply with a brush you get better coverage. I also spent some time when I had the exhaust and rear shock off for replacement, squirting it in every nook and cranny while laid under the bike. Top stuff. :thumb
 
ACF50 :thumb

To remove it I went for muc off, but wasn't that easy so got halfords degreaser, and used it carefully in certain areas but comes up a treat.
Better still take it to SPC for some work, they managed to get most of it off as well :thumb
 
ACF50 topped up with the occassional spray of Sctottoil 365. Bike came out perfect, not as hard to remove as made out by others. Used Autoglym and shampoo afterwards....mind you I did thisa in stages.
 
Hello all,

I've used my (05) 1150GS everyday through our lovely winter, and I hate rust and corrosion, so...

I've used a mix of ACF50 on wheel rims and up above the telelever in front of the tank, and generally everywhere metallic, then heavy grease (JCB) applied with a half inch paint brush to the fork legs, spoke nipples, brake pipes and hose joints, bolt heads, exposed frame parts.

It's still 'greased up' at the moment, and so looks like something out of Mad Max, but hopefully will come up nice and shiny when I clean it.
(Which is when I'll find the engine oil seal is leaking...)

The only corrosion I've got after 14k in 8 months is a little paint bubbling on the ignition barrel lock.

In my humble opinion, the ACF50 stuff was great at getting to the hard to reach parts. The JCB grease offered better protection, but I could only get it where the brush reached. The Scottoiler stuff was a bit of a waste of time for me as it washed off the day I put it on, whereas the ACF stayed longer.

I'm not cleaning it until June... maybe...

Matt
 
Just a quick question for all the guys who use ACF50. Do you use it on the engine and downpipes? I presume it burns off under the heat, does this damage the paint and chrome? I ask this as I have just ordered some and intend to give my bike its first major clean tomorrow. I have read the threads on cleaning downpipes and the suggestion is to just let them blue and just clean them without spraying on any protectant.

:thumb
 
seb said:
I have read the threads on cleaning downpipes and the suggestion is to just let them blue and just clean them without spraying on any protectant.

Seb,

I never use any of these protection methods (each to their own) but I do use my bike all year.

I give mine a really good clean twice a year. The downpipes take about twenty minutes to get like this....
95112072-M.jpg

95112078-M.jpg

just Solvol and steel wool.
 
MikeP said:
Seb,

I never use any of these protection methods (each to their own) but I do use my bike all year.

I give mine a really good clean twice a year. The downpipes take about twenty minutes to get like this....
95112072-M.jpg

95112078-M.jpg

just Solvol and steel wool.

That is a serious clean!
 
Just spotted that you're from South Devon so you don't see that much salt and grit or am I wrong?
 
S/S cap heads on the front cover, should have got them for the head guard as well :nono

What's the mini tow bar hitch for?
 
Dellis said:
Just spotted that you're from South Devon so you don't see that much salt and grit or am I wrong?
Probably not as much as some of you who live near the Arctic Circle :rolleyes: but being on the edge of Dartmoor it's not exactly unknown to be a bit icy at times!
 
ELIMINATOR said:
S/S cap heads on the front cover, should have got them for the head guard as well :nono
I did at first until I had to drill the S/S one out (too soft to deal with the heat/salt mix). I'm currently sourcing some Titanium replacements.
What's the mini tow bar hitch for?
It's a Ram mount. My brolly is usually attached there (it's off while I do the pre-winter clean-up and polish).
I still maintain that a decent coat of polish is as good (if not better than) any gooey protective coating but that's just my opinion.
 
The M27 around here was coated in the new type gooey salt solution that stays damp when non gritted roads have dried, and is a pig to get off the visor. I had to resort to carrying damp industrial paper wipes.

I've got S/S cap heads on my bike, just put lots of copperslip on them before assembly.There is a compatability problem with aluminium & stainless.

This year I intend to put waxoyl on the lower fork legs, as they almost get shot blasted.
 
ACF-50 - 2 winters, all the way through, cleaned twice during the winter, came up great, no corrosion..
 
Cleaned the bike for the first time today. Took just over two hours. Didn't realise the engine and frame would take so long. Coated all exposed metalwork in WD40, have decided to save the ACF 50 for winter use. Going to invest in some smaller brushes though for the fins.
 


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