Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

Curmudge: I had a retired neighbour stop me on the street moments ago and ask me how often I waxed by vehicle. The answer is not often because I am too busy waing poetic here, ha ha.

He wants to know what he can use to get wax off of the porous vinyl after he waxes his van. He has tried Armour All which makes things look nice wet, but when it dries the whitish wax residue returns. Is there a "solution" for him? His wife advises that he should leave it alone.

Yes.

He needs to stop into a local automobile Body Shop Paint vendor/factor--the type of place that supplies professional auto body painters.

Have him pick up a can of Pre-Kleeno, or equivalent. This also goes by the generic term "wax and grease remover".

Soak a rag in it and wipe the vinyl top, nice and wet, then immediately follow this with a clean, dry cloth to soak up all the loosened up wax and Armor-All. In a really extreme case, he may have to use a small fingernail brush to loosen things up from the vinyl grain.

Then he can start all over again. But I would just use the stuff to clean the top and leave it unwaxed and un-Armor-Alled.

(In Orange County, AA is known as "Rypinski's Remedy", after Al Rypinski, the marketing whiz who bought the rights from a retired tool and die maker and made millions marketing this silicone/water emulsion...)

Armor-All standard gloss formula--the shiny stuff--is 50% silicone.

Thanks Paul, I will pass this information on to him.

Yeah, I've got Rypinski's phone number here somewhere, too...

(mumbles incoherently)

Paul, are you in Orange County?

Lived in Huntington, Newport, and Missing Viejo from '82-'02. Now in Marin County...

Glad you saw the light Paul.

I heard AA was not good for dash's ect as it actually dries out the vinyl.