Helmet Visor fog and rain

[Dogma]

I carry a little bottle of Rain-x to add to the visor if I think I'm going to get wet.i don't know how long it lasts, but it last longer in storage than a tater.

I also use the Pinlock insert, and like Scott, it's the glasses fogging that really gives me fits. I wonder if I could find a way to put a second layer behind the lenses for an anti fog effect. Eh. Not enough of a problem, I guess.

 

[Gorminrider]

I figure beading up and blowing off is as good as it'll get on a helmet without a wiper and a good product would ideally do this below 50 or 60 mph!...

Otherwise There are devices that fit to gloves..I tried a simple one using a piece of bicycle innertube with variable results but, it helps a bit per saturating a leather glove or wiping dubbin from the same on your shield....

Potato was a fail for me. Simoniz real pastewax (not spray) works better..but beads stay on at low speed so wiping off with glove wears off the wax.

Apparently
RainX need be the special kind FOR PLASTIC ... the car stuff degrades the coating on face shields. Without digging mine out, it may even say so on the bottle too..

The NEW lemon pledge is (from their site)said to be ok on plastics. It should say so on the label...(I still have a 1974 can of Pledge around but it's formula has been changed since then and so I won't use it on my faceshield-the label does not indicate)

Inside, I have the pinlock insert and No glasses so controlling fog inside is generally ok . The helmet can be cracked SLIGHTLY too.

 

[Dogma]

...
Apparently
RainX need be the special kind FOR PLASTIC ... the car stuff degrades the coating on face shields. Without digging mine out, it may even say so on the bottle too..

...

My bottle of Rain-X says to apply to exterior glass. The rest of the label is too beat up to read, since it's been in the left pannier for about 10 years. My HJC doesn't have any special coatings that I know of. If it was tinted or photochromic I think I'd be more nervous about the solvents in whatever cleaners or additives I use with it. Sadly, I haven't taken a visor to the full five year life of a helmet. I think the closest I ever got was about 4 years, and that visor was fine. But then, It's not like I like in the UK or the PNW and need to keep Rain-x on it continuously.

 

[Grimly]

I find a smidge of ventilation works well for keeping the misting up at bay, but there's always the drift of spray droplets that get in sooner or later. Today's vented helmets are much better than the old torture bowls of yesteryear.
Apart from that, if you're out in the murk long enough it will inevitably get clarried up, necessitating a stop and a clean.

 

[Cipher]

I have used rain x on my shoei on the outside and rain x antifog on the inside without harm chipping peeling fading discolouration or any rash

 

[Steve]

... I'm paranoid about scratching or disturbing the coatings on the visor because they are expensive to replace ... but I worry about the visor a little....when you get microscratches or swirls, it can make a night ride scary

Just a tip for anyone with a visor or a windshield: Only wipe the plastic UP AND DOWN, NEVER side to side or in circles. :-k

The science behind that thought: the reason your ride can get scary is because light reflects off all the little microscratches and swirls. Light tends to reflect in a predictable manner, usually toward the same direction, but opposite angle. Most of the lights seen at night come from above the horizon. If they encounter a horizontal scratch, they are going to reflect back UP, which happens to be in your eyes. If they were to encounter a vertical scratch, they will reflect down, away from your eyes. Circles might sound like a good alternative until you realize that the top and bottom of every circle is somewhat horizontal.

Never wipe a dry piece of plastic, even with a wet cloth. I carry a wet microfiber cloth in a zip-lock bag in the saddlebag. There is actually a considerable amount of water in the bag, too. When I stop (fuel, meal, whatever), I open it up and lay it on the windshield. By the time I am done fueling, I will go ahead and wipe the (now softened) dead bugs off the windshield. If nobody is waiting for the pump, I will go ahead and apply a light coat of wax.

.

 

[Rob S.]

When my visor gets covered with bugs, I remove it and wash it in the kitchen sink. I use a tiny bit of dishwashing soap and my fingers - never a cloth. I dry it by waving it in the breeze. If there's a few drops of water left, I use a tissue.

Riding in fog and rain? That was in my 20's - 40 years ago. But I understand the need for transportation if you don't also own a Cadillac.

Just don't do all the things I did in my teens and early twenties: on angel dust with an underage female passenger, 115 mph in the rain, etc., etc., etc.

 

[storm 64]

Just a tip for anyone with a visor or a windshield: Only wipe the plastic UP AND DOWN, NEVER side to side or in circles. :-k

The science behind that thought: the reason your ride can get scary is because light reflects off all the little microscratches and swirls. Light tends to reflect in a predictable manner, usually toward the same direction, but opposite angle. Most of the lights seen at night come from above the horizon. If they encounter a horizontal scratch, they are going to reflect back UP, which happens to be in your eyes. If they were to encounter a vertical scratch, they will reflect down, away from your eyes. Circles might sound like a good alternative until you realize that the top and bottom of every circle is somewhat horizontal.

Never wipe a dry piece of plastic, even with a wet cloth. I carry a wet microfiber cloth in a zip-lock bag in the saddlebag. There is actually a considerable amount of water in the bag, too. When I stop (fuel, meal, whatever), I open it up and lay it on the windshield. By the time I am done fueling, I will go ahead and wipe the (now softened) dead bugs off the windshield. If nobody is waiting for the pump, I will go ahead and apply a light coat of wax.

.

Oh, now you tell me. I've been doing it wrong for 45 years...

 

[Gorminrider]

per Steve's..

Just a tip for anyone with a visor or a windshield: Only wipe the plastic UP AND DOWN, NEVER side to side or in circles

excellent point and what manufacturers recommend too...I suppose too it's that the circular scratches are gauranteed to scatter light in all directions!

When my visor gets covered with bugs, I remove it and wash it in the kitchen sink. I use a tiny bit of dishwashing soap and my fingers

yeah, fingerprints do seem to awful good "rubbers" with dishsoap...maybe because skin has just the right softness in water....

I open it (wet cloth)up and lay it on the windshield.

This is one I do try to practise on my windjammer screen:the hardened bug-guts still need a bit of motion but easing their exoskeletons off before any wiping is probably the main thing.

 

[Gorminrider]

I have used rain x on my shoei on the outside and rain x antifog on the inside without harm chipping peeling fading discolouration or any rash

hmm That's interesting..I have a bottle of the Car stuff I really want to use up but per the info I've read, I 've hesitated, and yet... the Rainx especially for plastic seems to get indifferent reviews.

 

[Dogma]

When my visor gets covered with bugs, I remove it and wash it in the kitchen sink. I use a tiny bit of dishwashing soap and my fingers - never a cloth. I dry it by waving it in the breeze. If there's a few drops of water left, I use a tissue.

etc...

I use the same method before leaving the house, except I usually dry it with a paper towel. I use the vertical strokes, like Steve recommends. Just about any soap will do, as long as it doesn't contain any abrasive like pumice.

At gas stations, I frequently use the cleaner/squeegee thing they keep at the pumps. Make sure the thing is reasonably clean, and there won't be any trouble for the visor. The squeegee is the only thing that doesn't get vertical strokes. Doing this while wearing the helmet is easiest, and often gets a laugh from cagers.

I've been doing these things for over 10 years, and somewhere over 60,000 miles of riding. I haven't destroyed a visor yet with these methods. I figure, even if I have to pay $50 or whatever to replace a visor a couple years early, it's easily worth it for the reduction in hassle.

 

[gustovh]

I carry a can of Pledge with me when I ride, it’s the best thing to get bugs and road grime off. Been using it since I can remember.

V

 

[Buffalo Bill]

Soap works but, right applied before every ride.
I just remember to lift the visor as I slow into a stop sign or light.
Not gonna buy the new mo-betta helmet fo the new mo-betta cool cuase I got mo-money bling-bling… :greedy_dollars:

 

[argonsagas]

When my visor gets covered with bugs, I remove it and wash it in the kitchen sink. I use a tiny bit of dishwashing soap and my fingers - never a cloth. I dry it by waving it in the breeze. If there's a few drops of water left, I use a tissue.

Riding in fog and rain? That was in my 20's - 40 years ago. But I understand the need for transportation if you don't also own a Cadillac.

Just don't do all the things I did in my teens and early twenties: on angel dust with an underage female passenger, 115 mph in the rain, etc., etc., etc.

Meguiars has a solution....works well. I have been using it for a couple of decades.

https://www.meguiars.com/automotive...ar-plastic-cleaner-polish-g12310-10-oz-liquid

 

[cowboyup3371]

Meguiars has a solution....works well. I have been using it for a couple of decades.

https://www.meguiars.com/automotive...ar-plastic-cleaner-polish-g12310-10-oz-liquid

I will +1 this as a great product though I’ve only used it for 8 years now

 

[Guest]

I use the same method before leaving the house, except I usually dry it with a paper towel. I use the vertical strokes, like Steve recommends. Just about any soap will do, as long as it doesn't contain any abrasive like pumice.

At gas stations, I frequently use the cleaner/squeegee thing they keep at the pumps. Make sure the thing is reasonably clean, and there won't be any trouble for the visor. The squeegee is the only thing that doesn't get vertical strokes. Doing this while wearing the helmet is easiest, and often gets a laugh from cagers.

I've been doing these things for over 10 years, and somewhere over 60,000 miles of riding. I haven't destroyed a visor yet with these methods. I figure, even if I have to pay $50 or whatever to replace a visor a couple years early, it's easily worth it for the reduction in hassle.

Ive never seen a cleaner/squeegee at a gas station that is reasonably clean. I am fairly sceptical even of using it for my cars windshields. I saw a child washing his/her grandmothers (I assume) car doors with one, and it physically pained me.

I keep some window/glasses wipes with me, and use those for the visor. Not sure if the chemicals will harm the visor, but they won't scratch it. And visors are consumables anyways.

But maybe they take better care of them where you live.

Why not just use a bottle of windex or isopropanol and a rag?

 

[Buffalo Bill]

Why not just use a bottle of windex or isopropanol and a rag?

Windex is mostly Ammonia, it cuts plastic. Alcohol is a solvent, it also takes off any anti-fog coating.
Any dirt or dust is abrasive, soap works by sticking to dirt so it slips off the plastic without scratching. Works on cloth or hands the same way, the dirt slips off.

 

[Dogma]

Gas station squeegees are pretty hit and miss. A lot of stations don't bother to keep any or they're dry, etc. A cursory examination is all you need to make sure you're not about to plow a furrow into your visor. It's not like there's ever shards of metal or glass embedded in the sponge, and bugs aren't hard enough to matter. If I think I might have something abrasive on the visor, I pop it off and take it into the bathroom for soap and water treatment.

 

[Gorminrider]

And visors are consumables anyways.

often quite hard to find after 2 or 3 years..certainly not in a local store. Too many helmet varieties to stock spares . So, if you can find them, they can be very expensive, shipping and all...

I think the gas station bathroom is the best idea here. Those gas station squeegees-The insect chiton will do for plastics- not sure about glass..but the dust will... I won't even use them on my car windshield if I can help it. The dust/dirt in it can microscratch your windshield and eventually nightdriving exhibits rings around every headlight. (carry your own squeegee and a bottle of lightly soaped water)

 

[Guest]

often quite hard to find after 2 or 3 years..certainly not in a local store. Too many helmet varieties to stock spares . So, if you can find them, they can be very expensive, shipping and all...

I think the gas station bathroom is the best idea here. Those gas station squeegees-The insect chiton will do for plastics- not sure about glass..but the dust will... I won't even use them on my car windshield if I can help it. The dust/dirt in it can microscratch your windshield and eventually nightdriving exhibits rings around every headlight. (carry your own squeegee and a bottle of lightly soaped water)

€40 for the visor, $26 for the pinlock and shipping (since norway add €18 for the privledge of paying vat and 25% vat). Why can't they make one standard across the board? Arrrgh.

When I worked at the gas station, we replaced the water for the squeegie, but never cleaned them. Until they broke they were sandy and gritty. Apart from the first day.