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ACF-50 (Anti-Corrosion
Formula) was originally designed to protect aircraft from
existing and
new corrosion and
is now available to motorcyclists. Aviation products have
to meet rigorously high standards and ACF-50 not
only meets these but has been awarded Aviation approvals
- MIL-SPEC
81309 types II and III which means it is 'approved for
ferrous and non-ferrous metals, electrical systems and
electronic components'. The US Navy carried out tests using
ACF-50 on
the jets on their Aircraft Carriers. They found that ACF-50 so
significantly reduced the corrosion they had previously
experienced they now use ACF-50 all
the time! It works in that type of harsh environment so
imagine
how well it's going to protect your bike! When applied
ACF-50 forms
an 'Active' ultra-thin clear film that will kill any existing
corrosion cells and will protect your
bike against new corrosion forming. On areas such as switches
or under the tank and seat, one application will last
up to 12 months. Other more exposed areas will need topping
up more regularly. ACF-50 has
the ability to 'chemically neutralise road salt' and water
will bead on contact and
literally bounce off. Ideal for the bike that is used all
year round in all weathers, a superb service spray as ACF-50 is
also a lubricant and penetrant (without loosening structural
attachments) and if you put your bike away for the winter,
applying ACF-50 will
ensure that moisture will not be allowed to cause any damage!
Untreated moisture will creep into
cracks and will not freely evaporate - ACF-50 actively
ejects moisture from these areas.
- Kills existing corrosion and prevents
new
- 'ACTIVE' for up to 12 months
- Excellent lubricant and penetrant
- Approved for use on electrics and engines
- Easily applied non-drying, ultra thin, clear film
- Very economical
- Contains no wax, silicon, Teflon or water
 ACF-50 is 95% product, hence virtually
no propellant. Keep the tin in a warm environment, shake
very well before
use and remember a little ACF-50 goes a long way, so
keep a rag handy to soak up any excess - then use the rag
to help spread the product. ACF-50 has strong capillary
action so will creep into all the areas that moisture can,
'actively' pushing out moisture and replacing it with
protection. Go cautiously when applying to callipers to
ENSURE YOU KEEP IT OFF THE BRAKES. Use ACF-50 anywhere,
except the brakes, on your bike including the engine and exhaust
(will smoke on first start and burn off down pipes but
still slows down corrosion process). Safe on paintwork,
most rubbers and brings up black plastic trim a treat.
ACF-50 contains no water and is approved for electrics
so spray directly into electrical joints and components
where it will prevent corrosion induced failures and high
resistance joints. Works well at stopping dirt, mud and salt
from sticking. You can come back from a winter ride with
the bike 'white with salt' - a quick wash off and it's
gone with the bike still protected. Areas not in direct
contact with the elements ie tank/seat areas, electrics
require treating approx once a year. Other exposed areas
re-apply as necessary. You can tell the product is still
'Active; as water will bead on contact...having no water
content and not being water soluble ACF-50 only dissipates
by being 'sacrificial' whilst stopping existing or new
corrosion so just re-treat as required.
Remember, ACF-50 protects jets on US aircraft carriers!
If it works for these jets in these conditions, think how
well it's going to work for your bike!
I ride a bike all year round and I have
been using ACF-50 for about 18 months. My Hayabusa has
not corroded and it is great on the wheels where all the
road salt and grit ends up. All the alloy is corrosion
free, and I will be using it straight away on my ZZR 1400
when I pick it up next week
Highly recommended
I 'discovered' ACF-50 last winter
and was hoping that it was as good as the reports said.
In November I gave
the bike a thorough cleaning, took as many of the removable
parts as possible off my BMW F800ST and gave it a good
spraying. Snowy conditions aside, I commuted 300 miles
per week and didn't wash the bike until the end of March.
The bike was almost black. Guess what? Having removed all
the layers of grime - no corrosion, the bike cleaned up
like new. ACF-50 is amazing, all that's required is a strong
nerve and a little faith!
1200.gs
“My mate
ran this on his Fazer coated the engine, etc. Rode all
winter in the wet, kept outside
under a cover. Washed it off at the end of the winter,
bike looked mint! Mine looked worse
with only a handful of winter dry miles and garaged!
Great stuff
I've used
both: FS365 the winter before last and ACF50 this winter
just
gone. I prefer ACF50. "
Really good stuff! does what it says on the tin, would
highly recommend this to anyone, bike's been fully protected
with acf50 for two and a half years now with absolutely
NO new corrosion or rust! well worth the money, wish i'd
discovered it sooner!
lyn
Location: wild west wales!
The big disadvantage to FS365 is you have to keep re-applying
it, especially after a wet ride. You get home, it's teeming
down with rain and you have to spend a minute or two out
there spraying the engine, fork legs, etc before you can
cover it or roll it into the garage (assuming there's not
enough room in your garage to do this).
With ACF50 you apply a nice coating and ... leave it.
You can spray extra on occasionally, as you see fit. The
engine looks absolutely filthy after a while, but that
means its doing its job. I only cleaned the engine once
or twice last winter, which meant reapplying the ACF afterwards,
and it has survived fine. For the fork legs, I would clean
and reapply every time I washed the bike.
It doesn't take
much ACF50 to get a good coating so a can should last
several winters,
which makes it better
value than FS365 in my opinion.”
"I was sceptical at first but I researched
it on the net - It's used by the US Airforce on their aircraft
carriers, used by boeing and other manufacturers. I have
used it since September and apart from having to reapply
it to my downpipes it has lasted through many washes and
many winter rideouts, no furring on nuts and bolts or whatever.
When you ride a 9 grand superbike it's worth its weight
in gold. I have just replaced my tin having used it on
my other vehicles. I paid 12 quid-ish. Despite the cold
weather I have used my bike far more than before because
I'm less anxious about road salt rotting my pride and joy!"
(MCN Website forum (allanr))
I am not a fanatical cleaner
and polisher of bikes, I like them looking good but I also
like riding them in the wet
- bonkers I hear you say - not at all, it makes you a better
rider and it tones your butt muscles!! Because of this
I considered it prudent to try and give a helping hand
to the shiny bits.
Metals such as steel and aluminium are inherently unstable
and will corrode or oxidise over time in the presence of
air and water. Add a dollop of road salt to the equation
and you have yourself an electrolyte which, as the name
suggests, is electrically conductive. This results in the
formation of rust on steel or aluminium oxide, the grey
powdery coating which we work so hard to polish off. So
I purchased a can of ACF-50, the much lauded anti corrosion
treatment originally produced for the aircraft industry
by Canadian firm Lear Chemical Research, recommended by
The Two Wheel Centre in Mansfield Woodhouse. Now it’s
over 35 years since my Chemistry GCE but having read the
techno blurb on the packaging, my understanding is it works
by neutralising the electrical charge present by emulsifying
the electrolyte. This prevents further corrosion on rusty
or oxidised parts and stops the onset of corrosion on new
parts, a bold claim but one which is backed up by plenty
of testimonials on the web.
Application is either by
spray directly onto the component or by cloth moistened
in the fluid. My recommendation is
a combination of both. As the manufacturer states on the
bottle, the fluid disperses over quite large area so it
is easy to be over enthusiastic. A word of warning, keep
it well away from brake discs, tyres, footrest rubbers
and handlebar grips as ACF-50 is also a pretty effective
lubricant. I also recommend that you do the initial application
over a weekend, first clean and dry the bike as normal
then place plastic food bags on the footrests and handlebar
grips.
Can in hand, carefully
apply the fluid to all bolts, nuts, chrome plated parts,
rear shocks, swinging arm, brake callipers,
switchgear and underside of the bike. Leave overnight to
allow the ACF-50 to creep into all the nooks and crannies.
The following day wipe all the treated areas with the application
cloth used previously to remove any excess and spread it
further by wiping over the frame, fork legs, wheel rims
and spokes. The only areas I didn’t apply it to were
the tank, nose fairing and seat hump as these are waxed
on a weekly basis.
If, like me, you prefer
dry film or wax chain lubes which are great at reducing
oil fling on to your shiny rear wheel
due to their lack of oil based lubricants they can result
in light rusting of the chain following a wet ride or
two. My method is simple, grip the drive chain with a cloth
moistened with ACF 50 and rotate the rear wheel which
gives
an even coating to the side plates and rollers. Apply
your dry film chain lube immediately after and the chain
will
be rust resistant for a couple of months worth of wet
riding
Be warned, when you crack
up the motor for the first time following an application
you will be greeted by
copious
amounts of white smoke billowing off any components
which are subject to high heat! Spectacular but harmless.
Only
time will tell how good the product is.
Three months down the line
and no sign of corrosion despite riding through the winter
and all the torrential
rain
of late, not forgetting my penchant for power washing
the
bike at fortnightly intervals, sooner if needs be.
I am a true believer in this product and would recommend
it
for use on any bike whether you ride in the wet on
a
regular basis or not.
Posted by: Blind Boy
in Products ( Hosted on Hinckley Triumph)
CLICK HERE TO SEE A RECENT REVIEW OF
ACF 50
Click
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here for Application Advice for Motorcycles
(pdf
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