fresh road tar
07-23-06, 12:25 PM
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fresh road tar
I cut through a parking lot yesterday afternoon where they had just filled the seams with fresh tar, I was through it before I understood what these guys standing around in orange vests were doing. Now I have a hilarious lump of tar and pea gravel on each tire and big streak of it on my down tube. Anyone know of a solution that won't take the paint off the frame as well as the tar?
07-23-06, 12:39 PM
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WD-40 has always worked good for me when taking tar off of a car. it wont remove the paint and adds a little shine at the same time
07-23-06, 04:44 PM
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WD-40 is good, white naptha (Coleman fuel), lighter fluid, or a product called 'Goof Off' which is available at any Big Orange Retail conGlomerate.
07-23-06, 05:09 PM
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Originally Posted by Bockman
WD-40 is good, white naptha (Coleman fuel), lighter fluid, or a product called 'Goof Off' which is available at any Big Orange Retail conGlomerate.
07-23-06, 05:19 PM
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It will wear off within a few rides.
07-23-06, 05:27 PM
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In my neighborhood, they "chip seal" the country roads with copious amounts of gravel every mean season, rendering what little bike lanes and shoulders you can safely navigate during non-commute hours a dusty, slippery dangerous mess...
07-24-06, 12:22 AM
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Road tar is similar to a compound used in the military for corrosion prevention called tectile. Working with the stuff and getting it in my skin reminded me of some basic chemistry.
As a petroleum based product, using another pretroleum based product to thin it works wonders for removal. Try good old gasoline (a few passes and a slittle saoking and rubbing should do it), if not WD-40 or another thin petroleum product should do a similar job
As a petroleum based product, using another pretroleum based product to thin it works wonders for removal. Try good old gasoline (a few passes and a slittle saoking and rubbing should do it), if not WD-40 or another thin petroleum product should do a similar job
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07-24-06, 11:42 AM
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They sell stuff in auto parts stores for this. It is petroleum based and also a foam so it sticks to the tar while it is dissolving it. Works better than WD-40 and doesn't get all over the place.
07-24-06, 12:04 PM
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The "active ingredient" in WD40 that removes tar is kerosene so if you have some of it around it will do the job.
I once rode through a repaving job so fresh the new asphalt was still steaming and the buildup on my tires was so bad they bound up on the brake pads. I had to use the back of a pocket knife blade to scrape off enough to keep riding.
I once rode through a repaving job so fresh the new asphalt was still steaming and the buildup on my tires was so bad they bound up on the brake pads. I had to use the back of a pocket knife blade to scrape off enough to keep riding.
07-28-06, 02:41 PM
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Once on the return portion of a loaded tour my gf and I got so bogged down in melted tar and gravel that we couldn't ride anymore and had to hitch a ride back home.
I used Mineral Spirits, a common paint thinner, to get the tar off of our bikes. You can buy a plastic jug of it at a paint/hardware store, and it will probably be cheaper per volume than most other compounds people are recommending. This is the same solvent I use for degreasing other bike parts.
I wouldn't use it on the tires and other plastic parts though. After cutting off the worst of the gravel containing tar, I was able to get most of the tar off my tires by carefully pressing an old table knife (i.e. not sharp enough to cut me) up against them while riding.
I used Mineral Spirits, a common paint thinner, to get the tar off of our bikes. You can buy a plastic jug of it at a paint/hardware store, and it will probably be cheaper per volume than most other compounds people are recommending. This is the same solvent I use for degreasing other bike parts.
I wouldn't use it on the tires and other plastic parts though. After cutting off the worst of the gravel containing tar, I was able to get most of the tar off my tires by carefully pressing an old table knife (i.e. not sharp enough to cut me) up against them while riding.
07-28-06, 02:47 PM
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Cheap and easy solution is deisel fuel. Take your safety can to the nearest convenience store and pump up about 0.2 of a gallon. Paint thinner, kerosene, mineral spirits, or jet fuel would work as well, but diesel is usually easier to find in small to large quantities.
Al
Al
07-28-06, 02:57 PM
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I'm not familiar with deisel fuel, but I'm pretty sure automotive gasoline is much more likely to explode on you than mineral spirits, and evaporates faster. Not to mention, mineral spirits reek far less than gas, as measured by the distance my girlfriend keeps me at when I have been working with said substances.
07-28-06, 03:00 PM
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Originally Posted by awagner
I'm not familiar with deisel fuel, but I'm pretty sure automotive gasoline is much more likely to explode on you than mineral spirits, and evaporates faster. Not to mention, mineral spirits reek far less than gas, as measured by the distance my girlfriend keeps me at when I have been working with said substances.
Al
