Never used it before. I was going to pull the trigger and get some but before I do Ive got some questions... 1. Do I need to clean the bike/areas I want to coat first? - I use sdoc100 on the engine and shitty areas....is that ok? 2. Once its been applied and then the bike gets dirty (invariably it will do) whats the cleaning procedure, can I use SDOC or will that wash the ACF50 off? 3. Like cleaning with WD40 obviously I keep that away from brake discs....is it the same with ACF-50? Cheers to anyone that takes a punt.
1. Clean the whole bike. The idea is that you can get it back to factory fresh so get off as much polish, wax and anything else sprayed on it. 2. Try not to use anything aggressive to clean the bike. The ACF-50 will form a protective layer so any dirt will be on top of this layer (thats the theory). Just hose it off rather than use any shampoos or similar......they just remove the ACF -50. 3. Mask off your tyres and disks. If you're using a can, stick it in hot water for a bit to loosen the ACF-50 and make the propellant work better. If you spray at ambient temp it dribbles out. Spray some in the cap and use a small paint brush for fastenings etc. Dont rub it about.....it'll creep. Have a look here and here and here and most importantly here
Jeez - that's a leap of faith - I must say sdoc100 is clearly the best cleaner ive come across....to not use it for a while is against my religion...it really does a good job... Factory fresh im not sure about....its clean but underneath the engine will take some work...not because ive not cleaned it but more because of the shoddy coatings that ducati use to protect the engine in the first place.... I like my hyper I really do (can see myself getting rid of it any time soon) but the coatings and fixings leave a lot to be desired....theyre shit. My hyper has done 5.8k but the engine especially the barrels looked like they've done 30k - I had an old 04 z1000 a few years back and the engine when cleaned came up like brand new.
It's about what the ACF50 does though. It's purely there to protect. It's not a polish, wax or finishing product. If you coat with ACF50 in autumn/winter it's there to protect the bike against corrosion. Not so critical in the summer as there's no salt on the roads and it's dryer
On top of all of that it garaged, never gets used in the wet unless I get caught in it and then gets cleaned with WD40. Case in point right now is the cover at the front of the frontward facing barrel theres a top cover that holds the bottom of the radiator....most of the coating has cracked off and what it exposed is weathering rapidly. They may as well have used felt tip to protect it.....another one is the guide that holds the two front brake lines - a piece of pressed metal....nothing much but its at the front of the bike, underneath - you would have thought that that would have been coating in something.... Rant over.
Dunno - in the air - its bloody expensive stuff....I may do down the route first of getting everything that is weathered - recoated first.. Im luck to live a couple of miles away from a powder coating place so I just drop stuff in for a few days and hey presto.
Have a look at this link if you've not done so already http://ducatiforum.co.uk/f16/wd40-v-fs365-v-acf50-winner-18407/ WD40 its great when compared to ACF. Why not get it treated professionally? All Year Biker will be able to offer you the best advice and its not that expensive either.
Interesting - thanks for that.....usually I tend to clean it with WD40....day to day cleaning if you will...ride it for a few days (in the dry) then give the whole thing a wipe over. And once a month (maybe more) give it a good clean with sdoc100 - I tend to use it neat on the engine... Im just really surprised that Ducati haven't looked at one of their own bikes a couple of years down the line and thought "we should really be firing the dude in charge of coatings" I don't think ive seen a ducati where ive not looked at the engine and then the odometer and thought jeez from the look of the engine its done 5 times the amount of miles.
I would disagree with the previous poster. I owned an air-cooled Multistrada for three years and rode it daily as a commuter, whilst it lived outside at night. I did the wash and ACF-50 routine at the start of each winter, then when washing it reapplied ACF-50. The engine casing was flaking a little after three years, but it wasn't anything like as bad as any Japanese bikes I'd owned. I found the Ducati surprisingly tough in this regard. The only bike I've had which was better was a BMW...
Really! coo - youd be the first (from what ive personally seen) the fins on mine (and this is at the front mind you) the rear cylinder is a lot better are quite pitted. The exhaust bolts at the front had totally rusted through. I was lucky to get those out as the nut had rusted to the bolt so I had to hammer a slightly smaller socket on to get it off..... As I said the coating has peeled on that cover on top. The mount that holds the brake lines has rusted. All the bolts that hold the engine casing had rusted. The starter motor coating is currently bubbling....that's just from memory... Oh just to add the brake line fittings are pitted also....another job to do....
I clean with muc-off and warm water and sponge. The only bit I use a specific cleaner and brush is the chain. Then I dry it and apply ACF-50 via a cloth to all the bits except the brakes and seat and lights and stuff. I do rub it in, once the cloth is saturated it won't take any off by doing that.
Id just like to add to this to verify - ive got an RSV4 factory with the same amount of mileage. All the bolts are fine, nothing has peeled off of the engine, no brake lines have pitted. The only thing that I can see is on the left hand side low down is the water pump (just by the front sprocket) which has pitted a little. Not trying to conjure up and argument but theyre both Italian bikes, had both the same amount of use (if anything the RSV4 has been caught in more bad weather than the Ducati), granted its faired but when ive had the fairing off to clean it its been fine underneath. Oh the RSV is a 2009 year and the Duke is 2011.
