Exactly 70 years ago, a local inventor from Pinetown (South Africa) formulated a special blend of chemicals that would prevent vehicle breakdowns in wet weather. Little did William Robertson know that his creation of a multipurpose oil would one day be found in homes throughout South Africa, and be exported to 30 countries world-wide. However, […]

QUESTION I’ve got a few things around my home that are showing signs of rust: A steel gate, boat trailer and some burglar bars. The corrosion looks surface bound for now and not too serious, but I’d like to tackle it before it gets any worse. I’ve removed the rust with sandpaper before and sprayed […]

MAAK ’n PLAN: Few phrases do a better job of summing up the resourcefulness of South African people, the ‘McGyver’ nation. Almost 70 years ago, a fellow South African got tired of his VW Beetle breaking down in rainy weather, so he formulated a moisture-repellent to solve the problem. Today, we call that formulation Q20, […]

If you’re looking for an easy to use, but highly effective rust remover, then look no further than Q12, a rust-busting solution that’s been around since 1967! Thanks to its formulated mixture of hydrochloric- and phosphoric acid, this jelly-like solution works by converting iron oxide (i.e. rust) into iron phosphate, which can then be washed […]

When it comes to vehicle servicing, few jobs are grimier than brake-part replacements. However, aside from being dirty work, making sure that your brake surfaces are clean (before installing new components), is an important part of doing the job right the first time. Thankfully, because of its chlorinated formula, CRC’s Brakleen has been the leading […]

As the second most abundant element on earth, silicon is best known for its wide use in microchips, hence the name ‘Silicon Valley’. The semi-conductive properties of silicon are what make it so popular in the tech industry, but the versatility of this element (when combined with other elements to form silicone – with an […]

Last month, we chatted about ‘dry’ wax-based lubes as opposed to ‘wet’ oil-based ones. Although that blog related to bicycle chains (where a dry lube is preferred in South Africa), it does raise the subject of ‘graphite’ – another great dry lubricant.   Because Q20 is formulated as a multi-purpose oil, in some cases, it’s better […]

WET OR DRY CHAIN LUBE? Mountain bikers will often disagree on a lot of technical issues, but nothing divides opinions quite like chain lube. Remove subjectivity from the argument and chain lubes can be divided into two categories: wet and dry. Their applications are equally simple and self-explanatory: Dry lubes are for dry riding conditions […]

QUESTION I recently heard a debate about mountain bike (MTB) maintenance. The guys were discussing lubrication, and one bloke was saying that a multipurpose oil (such as Q20) could be used on a bike chain, but the other was arguing that it couldn’t, and that a specialist dry lube had to be used. What are […]

Guest post: David Berge I once threw away a camping pot that was so badly rusted it looked like a high-school science experiment. It seemed no matter what I did I couldn’t get the rust off. I tried wire brushes, pot scourers and a combination of potent chemical cleaners, but nothing worked. I eventually gave […]