What the #@LL was I thinking!

[a1bummer]

Hey. I hope I'm not the only one who did this. I used the squeegee at the gas station to wash the bugs of my windshield then used the paper towels to dry the streaks. Now there a bunch of little scratchs all over it. I buffed them till my arm went numb with some stuff I got at the auto parts store that the guy behind the counter said will take them out. I learned he didn't really know what he was talking about.:buttkick:Anyway. Does anybody know a good way to get rid of them?

[SilvrT]

I have used Meguire's clear plastic polishing compound & scratch remover before and with a lot of elbow grease, it does work on "minor" scratches.

 

Dunno what others use to clean their windshields but I've been using good old Lemon Pledge and a soft cloth for years....windshield always looks clear. Gets the bugs off real easy and leaves no smears.

[Wrongway]

Novus has a formula designed for taking out scratches. Available at most shops or online.

[Marcarl]

Looks like I'll be replacing the one on my 85 you can have it. It has a real deep scratch in it that makes all others disappear. Let me know if your interested and we'll work out a price.

[Guest Turbo Rat]

I always carry a pack of the windex glass wipes in my trunk.does great job and does not scratch.

Turbo:225:

[Eck]

Living up to your site name are ya???????

[RoadKill]

I have used Meguire's clear plastic polishing compound & scratch remover before and with a lot of elbow grease, it does work on "minor" scratches.

 

Dunno what others use to clean their windshields but I've been using good old Lemon Pledge and a soft cloth for years....windshield always looks clear. Gets the bugs off real easy and leaves no smears.

 

What's even better and takes up less space is the Plegde Wipes. They come in a Zip Lock package. Takes the bugs off and helps the next wave of bug suicides not stick so bad.

[ediddy]

I do what clearview recommends. I soak a towel in warm water and put the towel on the windshield for apprx 5 minutes. When you remove the towel almost all of the bugs will be gone. If you spray any kind of cleaner on the shield while the bugs are on it the dried bugs will scratch the shield. I then spray with pledge and wipe clean. You should never use paper towels on a cycle shield.

[Guest JGorom]

I do what clearview recommends. I soak a towel in warm water and put the towel on the windshield for apprx 5 minutes. When you remove the towel almost all of the bugs will be gone. If you spray any kind of cleaner on the shield while the bugs are on it the dried bugs will scratch the shield. I then spray with pledge and wipe clean. You should never use paper towels on a cycle shield.

 

Excellent advice above!

 

I have been using the soaked bath towel routine for the past two decades...I typically spay the windshield with my garden hose first...then lay a soaked bath towel over the windshield. Come back 5 to 10 minutes later...and all those bugs and bug parts are loosened up and come off with very little effort. I use this same technique on most of my front end to accomplish the same.

[Steve_Guelph]

I have been using Plexus for minor scratches and find it works great. I use it on my full face helmut (for my sportbike) and all scratches go bye bye.

 

Steve

[SilvrT]

The "wet rag" method is a good idea...I think I'll put one into a zip-lock bag and carry it around with me. On the other hand, I've found that a concentrated spraying on them bugs with the lemon pledge and letting that sit for a minute or so works the same way as the "wet rag" method. As I mentioned, I never have scratching issues and my last bike's windshield was on for 5 years and when I sold it, it looked just as good as new. Having the wet rag just adds to making the process better. Dang, I never even looked for Pledge "wipies"...gotta check that out!

[hig4s]

Not sure about the scratches, but I use 409 at home to clean the screen then use Honda/Kawasaki/Meguiers spray clean and polish. They all seem to be about the same. And I bought a 24 pack of micro-fiber auto polishing cloths from Costco (for $9) and always keep a clean one in my trunk. When on the road I just use water and the micro-fiber towel. But I do like the idea of the Pledge wipes, I'll have to try that.

[a1bummer]

Never thought of a wet towel. So simple! I did dig out a microfiber cloth that I put in a ziplock after the fact. I did get most of the finer scratchs out so the windshield looks crystal clear, that is until night. Oncoming traffic lights show swirls all over the whole thing. I'll try some of the sugestions and see what works. Thanks for the info so far guys.

[SilvrT]

I might add that windex and other such products are not good because something in those products (ammonia I think) causes etching on such things as m/c windshields, laptop screens, etc.

 

A quote from Windex web page...

 

"LEXAN® Windows

For all of you airplane and helicopter owners, we're sorry, but Windex® is not formulated to clean your LEXAN® windows."

 

I believe m/c windshields are made from Lexan or a similar product.

[a1bummer]

Never thought of that either. Just when I though I knew everything too.