Can anyone confirm or deny

[Houdini]

That the high-dollar spray that came with my windshield when I bought it, which smells like Pledge, is Pledge?  I need more and Pledge is a lot cheaper and easier to get than the spray from the manufacturer.

[LemonDrop]

chuck, you might compare the cans, and check the ingredients... that might give you a clue

[Red Diamond]

Reading one of Daniels books, he swears by "Lemon Pledge". Haven't tried it yet, but intend to. Maybe he just needed something to add to his story, says it's an old bikers trick, aha.

[franco6]

all crotch rocket riders know that one ,the pledge make the plastic shine

[Disco]

I can't confirm that what you got was Pledge, but I'm a second-generation aerosol Pledge user.  Dad's been using it to wipe down his antique cars for as long as I can remember.  Valkpilot keeps a can in his saddlebag, too.  It's not a direct replacement for a good coat of carnauba, but is great for in-between wipe downs.  Works great on oily film and darkens fading black plastic parts you don't want to use Armor-All-like products on.   

For obvious reasons, the Lemon is the best, but the Country Garden works, too.    

[Houdini]

I'm not asking about cleaning the plastic covers on the bike; I have the Honda spray cleaner and polish for that.  I'm asking about cleaning my Lexan windshield.  What do you guys and gals use to clean yours?  One of the first things I had to change on the Valk when I bought her was the windshield.  The previous owner must have used something funky to clean it and it was badly clouded.  I tried a few different plastic polishes and none of them would remove the clouding or film; so I bought a new one and I don't want to have to buy another one because I screwed up this one.

check the ingredients...

There are no ingredients listed on the can Jean; it just says plastic cleaner and has a list of things it can be used on.

[Disco]

Plexus seems to be a big player.  http://www.plexusplasticcleaner.com/cycle.html

Here's more info

http://bikersmag.com/html/how_to_clean_lexan.html

http://allamericanprod.com/hints.html

http://www.delviesplastics.com/waxes_cleaners_novus.htm

http://www.ameriluxinternational.com/assets/docs/lexanSheetCleaning.pdf

http://meguiarsdirect.com/detail/MEG+M1708

http://meguiarsdirect.com/detail/MEG+M1008

[Jess from VA]

That the high-dollar spray that came with my windshield when I bought it, which smells like Pledge, is Pledge?  I need more and Pledge is a lot cheaper and easier to get than the spray from the manufacturer.

Have no clue what came with your (unknown) windshield.  Pledge does work to clean the whole bike including windshield (no abrasives).  I have used multiple plastic polishes and find Plexus to work the best (again, it works great on the whole bike).  Novus #1 is also very good, but Plexus seems to be best/quickest on bugs.  Really I think it is a question of what not to use and that is Windex or anything with ammonia, and towels (which hold grit).  I only touch my shields with clean microfiber cloths.

For years I went to work on my bike with spray polish and rags as soon as I got home, and rubbed the heck out of my shield and front end to get all the bug crud off.  After reading some posts here, I have changed all that.  Now I get a clean microfiber cloth and soak it in warm/hot water (and maybe a little softsoap).  I barely wring it out and while dripping wet go over the shield (first) and front end to loosen up the bugs and road grime.  Takes much less hard scrubbing than plastic polish on a dry bike.  Later, when the bike is dry and water streaked, I go back and polish with microfiber and plastic polish or pledge. 

When I wash and wax the bike, I wax my windshield (with a pure wax, not a cleaner (abrasive) wax).  The beauty of Pledge is that it resists (does not attract and hold) dust like so many other cleaner products and waxes do.

[Red Diamond]

I'm not asking about cleaning the plastic covers on the bike; I have the Honda spray cleaner and polish for that.  I'm asking about cleaning my Lexan windshield.  What do you guys and gals use to clean yours?  One of the first things I had to change on the Valk when I bought her was the windshield.  The previous owner must have used something funky to clean it and it was badly clouded.  I tried a few different plastic polishes and none of them would remove the clouding or film; so I bought a new one and I don't want to have to buy another one because I screwed up this one.

I use the same Honda polish on everything, windshield and all. I'll bet that your old winshield can be polished back to life. Mine was really bad and clouded with some kind of scum. Used fine cut rubbing compound and buffed it back to new looking. Tried all the other plastic polishes and the buffing did the trick.

[Valkpilot]

The previous owner must have used something funky to clean it and it was badly clouded. 

Standard window cleaners like Windex will do this to a plastic windshield.  Either Pledge or the Honda spray cleaner will work just fine on your windshield.  I only use the Plexus products to polish out scratches.

[oldman]

I think it kinda depends on the windshield, Acrylic vs Polycarbonate. Acrylic is clearer and doesn't yellow and can be easily polished, but isn't very durable. Polycarbonates are extremely durable but yellow or dull with UV rays, some are coated with a scratch resistant coating when that gets dull about all you can do is keep something on it to help hide the scratches temporarily. Anything that does not dry out quickly even some floor polishes will work but usually just temporarily.

PS If your shield has a protective coating and gets scratched you could end up with a mess if you try to polish it. Probably better to just keep covering up the scratches with the pledge or whatever you end up using that works.

[Mr.BubblesVRCCDS0008]

I use the honda spray in the black can on all my bikes plastic and windshield and have for many years.

[Houdini]

I used the Honda spray last night and it worked beautifully!  I have been avoiding getting it on my windshields for years and come to find out it will make my cleaning chores easier.  Thanks everyone.

[tybme]

Many goldwing riders swear by pledge for cleaning tuperwear and the windshield.

[john]

Plexus  ... on the clear view
and   lemon pledge on the big yellow....
for real buggy shields ... soak a towel in  h o t  water
and place it on the shield till cool ...
steam'em off ....

[hubcapsc]

It is right-on to worry about avoiding some cleaners on plastic windshields or else they'll cloud...

It works great to wet the shield down with water, wait a little bit for stuff to start dissolving, and then
clean with a wet micro-fiber towel... use all up-and-down strokes to avoid those hateful
swirley marks. Micro-fiber cloth doesn't scratch like paper towels. Hard crunchy bugs might scratch
a little, but hydrated ones, not so much  ...

-Mike

[Fuzzy (Louisiana)]

     I used to use nothing but Lemon Pledge on the old Silverwing.  That is what the guy I bought the bike said to use.  Never tried it on the Valk.  Always have used the Honda spray cleaner.  Pledge did a fantastic job on the bike.  Believe that I might go to using the Pledge on the Valk.  It is cheaper than the Honda spray anyway.

Fuzzy (Louisiana)
Mark

[Baldwin]

Lemon Fresh Pledge or the Pledge with the blue lid works great on mine. 

[Houdini]

I went and read the Clearview website to see what they had to say about keeping a windshield clean-

 Presoak
Always presoak the shield with a large towel or soft cotton cloth. The towel must be soaked with water and laid on the shield for at least 5 minutes to soften things up.  Remove the towel and squeeze out the water over the shield as you lightly move the debris down and off with your hand.  Keep the pressure light to avoid scratching the surface.  It is best to keep this towel for presoaking only. It should not be used on any other stage of windshield maintenance due to the contamination of dirt and debris.  Wash the soaking towel regularly.

Final Clean & Treatment
Once the screen is free of all bug guts and dirt, it is time do your final clean & treatment. This final treatment normally involves starting with a light wax or film coating on a clean screen to disperse the water and make the removal of bugs, dirt and debris easier for future cleanings. We recommend Novus #1 Polish available through Clearview Shields, Rain-X Original Auto Glass Treatment (clear appearance), Honda Line Spray Cleaner or even Pledge Furniture Polish.  Any pre-treatment must be applied in moderation to avoid excess build up.

http://clearviewshields.com/shop/maintaining.php

I thought Rain-X would ruin a plastic shield; I'll probably hit the parts store tomorrow to get me some...

[Disco]

That, from my understanding, is the beauty of the Clearview & Cee Bailey products - they can take Rain-X.

From the All American Products link earlier in the thread.

"...  First of all, you should know a bit about your motorcycle's windshield, especially the Gold Wing. Unlike most automobile or truck windshields, it's not made of glass. The original equipment Honda Gold Wing GL1500 and GL1800 windshield is made of hard coated polycarbonate. Most other manufacturers shields are the same. While polycarbonate is great stuff, if you use cleaner containing alcohol or ammonia (including Windex® or Pledge®), you start softening the hard coating, exposing the windshield to greater tendency to scratches or pitting. Windex, Pledge and other alcohol-based household cleaners work great on glass, but aren't meant for synthetics.

WARNING: Do not use Rain-X® on any coated windshield!

Second, if you grab one of those service station scrubber wands, you don't know what kind of abrasives are imbedded in its spongy or squeegee surfaces. It's worth it to carry your own cleaning materials. At service stations, the temptation is to do a "final wipe-off" with those handy paper towels. Resist the urge! Paper is processed wood pulp. You're essentially scrubbing your windshield with a handful of ground-up twigs! Is it any wonder your windshield quickly goes from crystal clear to a crazy-quilt pattern of swirls and whorls that's especially annoying when riding in the rain or in the glare of on-coming headlights!

Alcohol or high-petroleum-content cleaners are even more destructive to aftermarket windshields made of Lexan®. Spritz a little alcohol on one of these windshields and it immediately turns milky white... "

[Hoser]

Howdy, Texans, advice from Kansas on bugs.  Spray bottle of 50/50 water and Hydrogen Peroxide, spray it on, let set 60 seconds, wipe off with microfiber or wash it off with water, let dry, hit it with the pledge, It melts the bugs to mush, harmless to the plastic, heck you can use it for mouthwash.  Hoser

[Valkpilot]

"While polycarbonate is great stuff, if you use cleaner containing alcohol or ammonia (including Windex® or Pledge®), you start softening the hard coating..."

The source is wrong about Pledge, at least about aerosol Lemon Pledge.  According to both the manufacturer's web site and the MSDS, there is neither ammonia nor alcohol in the product.  It contains isoparaffin (a form of the wax Grandma used to seal her jelly jars), silicones, water, and propellant gases.  

Pretty benign stuff, safe for any material on our bikes.  

Note for any Larry Literals out there: Do not use on tires or brake surfaces.  If you do, it won't hurt the materials, but it will hurt you.

http://www.whatsinsidescjohnson.com/en-us/products-by-brand/pledge/pledge-natural-beauty.aspx

http://www.scjohnson.com/Libraries/Download_Documents/350000003607_Pledge_Lemon_Aerosol.sflb.ashx

[Ghillie]

Windshield material makes a big difference in what you can use on it. Clearview shields are acrylic/lucite and they say rain-x is fine on acrylic. Many shields, including the stock shields on our bikes are made from polycarbonate coated lexan, these materials will not tolerate alcohol or ammonia agents.

[Houdini]

Clearview shields are acrylic/lucite and they say rain-x is fine on acrylic.

Rain-X ROCKS on a Clearview.  I got caught in a rain storm last week and the water just beaded off, just like on my car windshield.  I wish I could use it on my helmet shield.

[Michael K (Az.)]

Howdy, Texans, advice from Kansas on bugs.  Spray bottle of 50/50 water and Hydrogen Peroxide, spray it on, let set 60 seconds, wipe off with microfiber or wash it off with water, let dry, hit it with the pledge, It melts the bugs to mush, harmless to the plastic, heck you can use it for mouthwash.  Hoser

An old biker buddy in Florida convinced me on this method. Not only it softens the bug parts prior to cleaning, but it gives you a certain satisfaction of the mad scientist variety as they bubble and seethe while the peroxide works the organic material.

[Hoser]

It's almost fun, aint it!  hoser

[Michael K (Az.)]

It's almost fun, aint it!  hoser