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<\/a>You don\u2019t forget where you left an Air Force\u00a0Blaster \u2013 at least not the 4hp version that we\u2019ve\u00a0been using for nearly ten years \u2013 and not because\u00a0the unit is huge but because the 10ft hose doesn\u2019t\u00a0tuck away easily.<\/p>\nIt transformed washing test bikes \u2013 long term\u00a0loans particularly, because they inevitably need\u00a0more washing by us \u2013 and on the strength of the\u00a0original review, the people who look after Harley-Davidson\u2019s press fleet, WMB, invested in one and\u00a0were so impressed that they bought a second!<\/p>\n
So, if you\u2019re not familiar with it, what is it?<\/p>\n
A 4hp electric motor from a company that\u00a0makes industrial vacuum cleaners, blowing rather\u00a0than sucking.<\/p>\n
More importantly it is blowing clean, filtered\u00a0air rather than picking up whatever detritus is in\u00a0the general vicinity of the motor \u2013 which is why\u00a0you don\u2019t want to go recycling your leaf blower.<\/p>\n
It turns drying a bike into a game, chasing\u00a0water across painted, chromes or vinyl surfaces,\u00a0and out of switchgear and all those silly little\u00a0water traps on and around your motor: the ones\u00a0that will ultimately take the sparkle off your\u00a0motor, no matter how careful you are. It even\u00a0warms the air that it is blowing, after a couple of\u00a0minutes, a side benefit of cooling the electrical\u00a0motor as it gets hotter.<\/p>\n
I would go as far as to say that it is an essential\u00a0purchase if you want to keep on top of cleaning a\u00a0new bike, preserving the finish for longer.<\/p>\n
You will be annoyed by the monotonous drone\u00a0of the motor \u2013 which inevitably sounds like a\u00a0vacuum cleaner \u2013 and you will spray yourself with\u00a0water that you have liberated from between the\u00a0fins or wherever else it has tried to hide, but the\u00a0result is a clean and dry \u2013 streak-free \u2013 bike that\u00a0is ready to ride, or to polish, in a fration of the\u00a0time required by any other method that I\u2019ve tried<\/p>\n
The selection of nozzles supplied provide a\u00a0range of different characteristics, but I tend to use\u00a0the large rubber nozzle because it provides more\u00a0than enough air pressure from the 29,000 feet per\u00a0minute that the motor pumps to shift water from\u00a0anywhere on a motorcycle. It is also less prone\u00a0to be spat off by the air pressure, which resents\u00a0the restriction. Take particular care to secure any\u00a0other nozzle, not least because they are plastic\u00a0and could damage a more delicate surface.<\/p>\n
I\u2019m pleased to say that it is performing as well\u00a0as it ever did, and even though it now shares its\u00a0duties with a 1.3hp Metro Sidekick dryer, it\u2019s still\u00a0getting plenty of use: the self-contained Sidekick\u00a0is easier to store so lives at the house. But this\u00a0is always on hand at the workshop \u2013 with the\u00a0pressure washer \u2013 where its additional grunt and\u00a0less weight in the hand is appreciated.<\/p>\n