help cleaning vintage krypto's !

**1KWIKV6** · 08-27-2009 11:23 AM

got a question for anyone who has tried and succeeded in getting black road tar and other grime off of vintage 1970's red kryptonics. have 2 full sets and both on display boards. used bug and tar remover and ultra fine steel wool to bring back some variflex c-3 's to like NOS shape.But the red krypto's are much , much softer and I dont want to destroy the compound. any help would be appreciated . thanks Dave in PA.

**guster** · 08-27-2009 12:07 PM

Put wheels on board, find nice hill, carve down hill a few times...wheels should be much cleaner than when you started. If they are a wheel with a lip, don't carve too hard or you run the risk of chunking them if they are as soft as you are implying. Old wheels love to be ridden, as do old boards...so do them a favor and take them out for a rip around the hood. If you want museum pieces and can't risk the wear, I don't know what to tell you. Good luck!

**nugpop68** · 08-27-2009 12:18 PM

Originally Posted by 1KWIKV6

got a question for anyone who has tried and succeeded in getting black road tar and other grime off of vintage 1970's red kryptonics. have 2 full sets and both on display boards. used bug and tar remover and ultra fine steel wool to bring back some variflex c-3 's to like NOS shape.But the red krypto's are much , much softer and I dont want to destroy the compound. any help would be appreciated . thanks Dave in PA.

Try a citrus based cleaner. I found one that wiped all of that stuff right off. Can't remember the name currently

. I found it by taking a wheel to the store with me, and surreptitiously trying products on it until I found the gold. Stay away from petroleum based solvents. I think they may damage the urethane. If I think of the name of that stuff, I'll update. Good luck. Are they c-series?

The product that worked for me was similar to Goo Gone (that may even have been it). Most grocery stores have several cleaners of this variety. Also, check ncdsa.com. They've got volumes of vintage info. You have to be patient with their search function though. It sucks thoroughly.

**Hot Wheels** · 08-27-2009 07:19 PM

I am with Guster on this one.

Find your self a nice wide smooth CONCRETE road and ride/carve
gently from side to side (no sliding!

). That should do the trick for the surface of
the wheels. The key is getting a nice CONCRETE street. 8)

_______

**nicthekid220** · 08-27-2009 07:25 PM

water?

10char?

**Flying Circus** · 08-27-2009 09:15 PM

Paint thinner.

**Looptail** · 08-28-2009 02:22 AM

Originally Posted by Flying Circus

Paint thinner.

You mean "urethane thinner"?

Non-petro-chemicals is the way to go.
I've used a bottle of squeezy lime juice and an old toothbrush.

**GriffinSk8** · 08-28-2009 09:19 AM

I only use simple green and a green scotch bright pad. For the most part it works great. I have dune it to red kryptos before and it worked good for me.

**8ftbed** · 08-28-2009 09:22 AM

I've started cleaning my wheels with Armorall sprayed on a paper towel. The ones I've done so far look like new afterwards. Most recently a set of translucent orange speed vents that was more of a dirty brown. Back to the clear shine and tar came off the contact patch too. I'm going to try it on some white smokers tonight which really show the swirls from running over the tar snakes.

You might try this if you have some on hand.

**Mile_High_Mark** · 08-28-2009 09:25 AM

Windex. Works like a charm. If you skate indoor bowls/ramps, it's a godsend.

**8ftbed** · 08-28-2009 09:33 AM

Windex.

That'll be forever linked in my mind to 'My big fat Greek wedding'.

Windex is also my goto solution for regular cleaning on my Harley.

I'll windex those tar swirls first tonight. Then armorall 'em and post before/after shots.

**8ftbed** · 08-28-2009 08:50 PM

The hands down final answer to wheel cleaning - Mr. Clean Magic Eraser !!

I took a set of Smokers off. First I tried my ArmorAll and yeah, it was cleaning but the piece of tar was resisting arrest and it was taking a lot of rubbing.
Then I tried glass cleaner. Yes, if you've got it handy, it works pretty good. Still requires some elbow work and the piece of tar was flipping us off. I had a beer break and thought about my secret weapon, the Magic Eraser. That thing is amazing, just wet it and it easily removes all marks and dirt from walls, doors, floors and if you want to bling up your sneakers, it's your answer.
Ran inside and grabbed one of the originals without the light abrasive pad on one side. Wet it quick and ran to the garage and used it on the other wheel. A fraction of the effort with much better results.

Get some Mr. Clean Magic Erasers in probably any store and your cleaning issues are a thing of the past.

This little piece was a pita and is the middle wheel in the 2nd pic.

The other truck on the left. Middle wheel had Armor All then Glass cleaner applied and there was a lot of rubbing and wiping to get to that point. The far right only had the Eraser and took a little more than a minute just to look like that.