Dirty rotten scoundrel
Getting protection against the slime and grime of winter
There are so many potions with promises on the market now; all boasting some magical formula with nano-somethingorother, and bio-somethingelse. From cleaning products to polishes and other treatments, it’s a baffling maze of chemical juices. One of the few things that really makes keeping your bike cleaner, is making sure that the dirt never really gets a chance to land properly, and that’s what I’ve been testing on the Ninja H2 SX for the last five months, and six thousand miles.
Holding back the tide
The basic premise is that all of your bike’s surfaces give dirt something to bind to because they’re inherently rough and pitted, but if you treat them all with Diamondbrite’s fluorocarbon polymer, what you have instead is an ultra-smooth and hard invisible barrier between the environment and your delicate plastics, metals and painted surfaces. This means that dirt has less to bind to, and so it doesn’t stick. Of course, some dirt will land and stay attached, but getting rid of it is as effortless as spraying some bike wash on, waiting, and rinsing it off again; immediately revealing your gleaming bike. But does it work? Yes, is the simple answer. Diamondbrite claim it will resist road grime, salts, traffic film and tar spots, UV light, bird cack, tree sap and insect guts, not to mention acid rain and other pollutants. It’s hard to confirm the long-term benefits after just five months’ use, but I can tell you that bugs dissolve away when you wash the bike, there’s less dirt to shift than you’d normally expect, water beads off the paintwork like you’re a carnauba waxing addict, and washing the bike takes half the time it used to. And you don’t have to polish your bike at all to get back to that glorious just-detailed shine. I wouldn’t expect the H2 to be showing any signs of age at less than a year old with 8.5k miles on the clock, but there’s no doubt the treatment is helping to keep it spotless and with a three-year guarantee on the treatment it should keep it tip-top for a long while to come yet. Of course, there is a cost , but I think £150 (supplied and applied by a pro, with a big care pack of products – see jewelultra. com for more) is fair, especially as you’ll be spending dramatically less on cleaning potions and polish.