GT85 Bike Silicone Shine

GT85 Bike Silicone Shine is claimed to provide 'an all-over showroom shine and glossy finish to your bike'. Obviously a no-no for matt and satin finishes, it's reputedly kind to rubber, reduces friction, and translates well to rubberised/suspension components.

Credit where it's due, it does a decent enough job but, speed aside, polymer waxes achieve longer-lasting effects and, for most jobs, good quality furniture polishes will achieve very similar bang for considerably less buck.

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Exact composition is a trade secret but it seems to be a blend of solvents and silicone polymers. The solvents gobble surface dirt on contact and then evaporate, leaving only a gleaming bike behind. It's literally blow 'n' go, too – at least on bikes sporting a little filmy road spatter. Workhorses and mucky cross/mountain bikes demand a good bucket wash and dry first.

Shake the silicone spray vigorously for 30 seconds or so and then apply in short bursts from 25-30cm. In close proximity to disc brake rotors, saddles, handlebar coverings and other situations where overspray spells trouble, squirt into a lint-free rag/micro-fibre cloth, then apply. Although buffing afterwards is unnecessary and does dull the sheen very slightly, it has prevented dirt sticking as readily in the longer term.

Overall effects are really sharp, especially on metallic enamels, carbon fibre, black anodising and electroplate. It has transformed weathered lighting brackets, computer mounts and chrome-plastics too. GT85 reckons it lubricates and protects rubberised components such as suspension/seals without doing anything unkind, and in a pinch, light dustings will keep control cables slick.

It's less sticky than some bike-specific, silicone-based formulas I've used, and machines entering season-specific storage sport precious little dust several weeks later. Following a few wet rides, my Holdsworth's rear triangle, chainstays and bottom bracket shell all wore some residual spatter, but this was dismissed in seconds with a clean rag.

Durability depends on the context but is broadly on par with other bike-specific formulas I've tested over similar timescales. One light coat has lasted several weeks on most of my fleet, exposed to a mixture of sun and showers. Light dirt is easily shifted without stripping the protective layer, although bikes in daily service have required fortnightly applications.

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Several weeks' neglect saw my rough stuff tourer cum workhorse cultivating a deeper layer of grime, though still less than WD40 and similar water displacers in comparable contexts. It also kept a stone chip or two from succumbing to the dreaded orange taint. Two squirts applied via clean kitchen towel restored the showroom sheen.

Convenience is the main draw here: if you're short on time and/or didn't like polishing, it's one for the toolbox. That said, so long as you minimise contact with rubberised/plastic regions, good quality beeswax furniture polish achieves similar results and is considerably cheaper.

Verdict

Convenient, relatively long lasting and on par with other silicone-based formulas