News:

Due to a technical issue, some recently uploaded pictures have been lost. We are investigating why this happened but the issue has been resolved so that future uploads should be safe.  You can also Modify your post (MORE...) and re-upload the pictures in your post.

Main Menu

Westley's White wall cleaner

Started by robert p millian, August 22, 2007, 10:25:40 AM

Previous topic - Next topic

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

robert p millian

Just thought I'd pass this info to all that use Westley's w/w cleaner. Yesterday,I went to my local tire dealer to buy 4 new w/w tires for my 92 Broughm. I was shocked when the sales person told me they had no w/walls of all the thousands of tires they had in stock. Said their not making them anymore as all the new cars come with black walls. He was able to however  special order 4 w/walls for me. Also,2 rechroming shops in my area have gone out of business and you know the reason for that. Now,getting back to Westly's,I got to thinking the company may stop making this product as to weak sales and so I made a call this morning and my worst fears was as I expected. Was told they were going to discontinue the product.

So to those of you that been Westly's buyers,I would suggest the next time you go to your auto parts store you buy every bottle off the shelf while it's still available.

bob

BadJack

I've never been too pleased with the results from Westley's.

I get a much brighter and cleaner whitewall with Soft Scrub and  brush.  I don't see them discontinuing SS any time soon.

BJ

Joe Abernathy #17524
Joe

Dennis DiNorcia #19071

I have used Westleys for quite a number of years but discovered two alternatives. If you read the label it states Westleys Bleach-White. One time when I ran short, I used bleach and got the same results. I have been told amonia works well too so I tried it and it is even better than bleach. If you are carefull and do not scuff your whitewalls while parking, all you need to do is rub it over the whitewall and you will see it turn from yellow to white instantly. Has anyone out there had any experience with these product?

47bigcadillac

I use this
http://www.nytechsupply.com/techtire/tech_prod2.htm

704 Rub-O-Matic, 1 qt., 945ml can

This Rub-O-Matic liquid is a professional tire rubber cleaner. I use it on my brand new firestone white walls (2 cadillacs) and it works great. No need to use water.
I also have the Wesltey spray but it is less effective and requires water to wash it off.
You just need a few drops of this liquid on a towel and will remove any dirt or marks.It did not affect the color of the white wall. It does not remove the yellow/brown layer that sometimes appears on some tires.

Rob
R. Brandys

1932 355B  5 pass Coupe,  Fleetwood          
1935 LaSalle Coupe  5077
1947 Club Coupe      6207

Mike Josephic CLC #3877

Just a word of caution here.  It's not a good idea to use ammonia or bleach on
whitewalls since they both degrade the rubber.  Westley's has as its "magic"
ingredient sodium metasilicate, which is a very strong alkaline chemical (Ph 13)
used in cleaner / detergent formulations, mostly for industrial use.

A potential replacement for this use is called TSP (trisodium phosphate)
that, along with a Brillo pad or similar product, should get any whitewall clean.  
This is available in most any hardware stores and is cheap (about $4.00 will
give you 10 years supply for a 2 pound box).

One caution, WEAR GLOVES when using this stuff.  A few tablespoons in
warm water (about a quart) is enough to clean most anything.  This
product is often used as a prep agent for cleaning (exterior) paint on homes
prior to repainting.  After cleaning your tires and rinsing throughly, apply a
suitable tire dressing to seal the rubber and keep the "clean" and shine.
Also, avoid contact with aluminum as it could "etch" the surface.

Mike

1955 Cadillac Eldorado
1973 Cadillac Eldorado
1995 Cadillac Seville
2004 Escalade
1997 GMC Suburban 4X4, 454 engine, 3/4 ton
custom built by Santa Fe in Evansville, IN
2011 Buick Lucerne CX
-------------------------------------
CLCMRC Museum Benefactor #38
Past: VP International Affiliates, Museum Board Director, President / Director Pittsburgh Region

35-709

I was in Advance Auto Parts this afternoon, right next to the Westley's White Wall Cleaner was Advance's store brand of the same thing.  Bet if Westley's discontinues theirs you'll still be able to buy Advance's brand (unless they buy it from Westley's in their own packaging  ;D).   BJ's method sounds good to me, I'm going to give it a try.
;)
1935 Cadillac Sedan resto-mod "Big Red"
1973 Cadillac Caribou - Sold - but still in the family
1950 Jaguar Mark V Saloon resto-mod - Sold
1942 Cadillac 6269 - Sold
1968 Pontiac Bonneville Convertible - Sold
1950 Packard 2dr. Club Sedan
1935 Glenn Pray - Auburn Boattail Speedster, Gen. 2

Mike Josephic CLC #3877

Knowing how the chemical business works -- I would guess that the
Advance product is a "private label" brand made by the same folks that
make Westley's.  I've seen alot of this over the years, Mike.
1955 Cadillac Eldorado
1973 Cadillac Eldorado
1995 Cadillac Seville
2004 Escalade
1997 GMC Suburban 4X4, 454 engine, 3/4 ton
custom built by Santa Fe in Evansville, IN
2011 Buick Lucerne CX
-------------------------------------
CLCMRC Museum Benefactor #38
Past: VP International Affiliates, Museum Board Director, President / Director Pittsburgh Region

Davidinhartford

A very sad day indeed when Whitewalls are gone forever.

   Thankgoodness we can still special order them if you know the right brand to ask for.

   Todays kids just don't want to be bothered cleaning them.    We live in such an "Instant satisfaction" society now.      Look at how many cars with blackwalls and alloy wheels you see on the road where they are all nasty and blackened from brake dust.    People don't even take pride in keeping their cars washed.  not unless they get a free wash with a fillup of gas.

Granted a Cadillac Escalade may not look good in whitewalls, but you can't tell me that a new Cadillac sedan or Lincoln Towncar still doesn't look good with a set of whitewalls.

   Scrubbing them clean is a messy chore, but it sure is satisfying to look back at the car with a sparkling clean set of WW's.

TJ Hopland

I got a set of 215 75 15's for my deville last winter for $40 each.  They had a fairly wide white wall and the store had like 20 of them in stock.  I guess they have them for cheapo replacements for the 80-90's suvs and trucks for the people that dont want to spend money on LT tires like they should.  I guess they have a standard disclaimer that they are not the right tire for the car but people still buy them.   A friend just picked up a set of Goodyear Regatta2's in a 225 he said those still have a whitewall and cost around $350 for all 4 installed.  That sounded like a pretty good deal.  The Regattas on my Eldo are 11 years old now and starting to get pretty thin on the edges so I may go shoppin next spring.  I have one eldo that came with 235 75 15 LT tires with the raised white letters...... talk about the wrong look!
StPaul/Mpls, MN USA

73 Eldo convert w/FiTech EFI
80 Eldo Diesel
90 CDV
And other assorted stuff I keep buying for some reason

Joe Manna

I recently acquired a Diamond-Back radial tire catalog from N.C..In there little pamphlet they sent,they even said not to use Westley's.They recommend using either spray nine or 409?.But I know Spray Nine for sure.
1951 Chevrolet Bel-Air-50's Style Custom
1963 Cadillac 4 Window Sedan deVille
1991 Cadillac DW69 Brougham,All original and used daily
2015 Cadillac SRX

bill henry

ive always used good old comet and a scrub brush
Bill Henry

Baza

Hi Guys
If I can put my #teo pennyworth' in here, I'm in the UK, and White Wall tyres always have been a rare commodity here.  I have to pay around $160 each for the tyres on my Dodge Ram Day Van, but still believe its worth it for the look.

Anyway, about 10 years ago, when I purchased my first American motor, I met up with a Packard collector at a car show and I asked him where I could buy White Wall cleaner, bearing in mind the scarcity of those types of tire over here, he said he only ever used standard washing-up liquid and one of those household pads that is sponge with an abrasive pad on the reverse.

I use that ever since and even after the staining of the Winter time the walls come up gleaming, and I agree entirely with another  comment made earlier, You can't beat the look of a nice clean set of wheels with White Walls on them.

Best wishes for the UK
Barry (memb. 22329)
Barry Ashdown

Fred Zwicker #23106

Brillo Pads always work well for me. (Available in any grocery store).

Fred
1930 LaSalle Convertible Coupe, CCCA Senior
1939 LaSalle 2-Dr. Conv.  CLC Senior in 2008
1940 Cadillac Series 75 4 Dr. Convertible
1947 Cadillac Series 62 Convertible Coupe
1948 Cadillac Convertible - modified by Holly (driver)
1966 Cadillac DeVille Conv. Restored - Red
See Pictures at www.tpcarcollection.com

homeonprunehill

08-26-07
ALL Reader of this  message board and cleaners of WW tires.
I find "Grandmaw's LYE SOAP" does the job in short order! "The secert is in the Scrubing, it never suds, it never foamed".
Good Luck,JIM
USED,ABUSED AND MISUSED CADILLACS AND LA SALLES

robert p millian

Well,I never expected to get such a feedback. After reading all the comments,I have only this to say to those of you that use a brillo pad,scrub brush or any item such as steel wool. Sure it does the trick and makes your w/w's look like new. But that's the worst thing you can do to a w/w. When you use a brillo pad or anything like a scrub brush you are scratching the w/w, scuffing it,making the surface like sand paper. Once the smooth finish of the w/w has changed to a rough or sandpaper finish from repeated cleaning. It starts to attract the dirt off the roads  into it's pores like a magnet. The pores you created from using that brillo pad or scrub brush. I know what I am talking about,cause I remember way back in the 50's whenever the Westley's bleach w/w cleaner didn't remove a deep scuff mark I used a brillo pad to work my way into the w/w. It was later on that I started to notice where I used the brillo pad was always the area that would get the most dirt ,kinda like a sponge,suck it right in. After that I never used a brillo pad,steel wool or scrub brush. I Would continue using the Westly's over the same area till it finally removed the scuff with a wash mit. I've been using Westly's bleach white w/w cleaner for over 40 years and I swear by it. Also,on every convertable car I've ever owned since 1952  that had a white top got the Westly's treatment. My comments here were not intended to be a plug for Westly's. I'ts just that I find it to be a excellent product then and now. If what you are using gives you good results,then I would continue using it,whatever it is.   

Bob

Whit Otis, 1188

I used Westley's for a number of years.... why?  Because it was easier than scrubbing.  However, after some years of using it on my WW's, I found the sidewalls became chaulky looking, almost like it dried out the tire.  Recently I bought a new set of radials from Diamondback... interestingly, they recommend you scrub your tires with cleanser, SOS, etc. and strongly state that you should not use Wesley's or any bleach product for the reasons I found out in sentence #1.  Info on their website http://www.widewhitewalltires.com/  page 22 in the catalog.
Good luck
Whit Otis
Whit Otis -
1941 6219D Custom
1941 6219D
1940 7533F
1986 Mercedes Benz 560 SEL
1999 Bentley Arnage
2019 XT5
Drawing of AP Sloan Custom by Terry Wenger

Glen

Quote from: Whit Otis on August 27, 2007, 05:59:17 PM
I used Westley's for a number of years.... why?  Because it was easier than scrubbing.  However, after some years of using it on my WW's, I found the sidewalls became chaulky looking, almost like it dried out the tire.  Recently I bought a new set of radials from Diamondback... interestingly, they recommend you scrub your tires with cleanser, SOS, etc. and strongly state that you should not use Wesley's or any bleach product for the reasons I found out in sentence #1.  Info on their website http://www.widewhitewalltires.com/  page 22 in the catalog.
Good luck
Whit Otis

The proper name of the product is Westleys Bleche Wite not Westleys Bleach White. 

I read the page of the Diamond Back catalog and found no mention of Westleys Bleche Wite at all.  They did say not to use bleach on the tires. 

Checking the MSDS for Westleys Bleche Wite at http://householdproducts.nlm.nih.gov/cgi-bin/household/brands?tbl=brands&id=2003016  I notice it does not list bleach as an ingredient. 

My experience with Westleys Bleche Wite is good.  I have not had any noticeable problems with it and I use it for cleaning parts as well.  It does a great job. 

But then I don’t like the oily look on tires that many people have.  I don’t think tires are supposed to shine, they are made of rubber.  Some of my friends in high school used motor oil on their bike tires to make them shine.  Maybe that’s where I got my dislike for the shiny tire look. 

Glen Houlton CLC #727 
CLCMRC benefactor #104

Whit Otis, 1188

Glen, you are quite right, the Diamond Back catalog only says not to use bleach products, so I stand corrected. However, when I bought the tires and spoke with them about tire pressure and proper cleaning issues, they specfically named Westley's as a product that should not be used.  I presume that they would not name a specific product in their catalog due to the possibilities of some sort of resulting litigation.  Since both Westley's cleaner and bleach are a corrosive, one could conclude that the effects on tires might be the same.. however, this is a subject I will leave for others to reseasrch.  In my case, I did not care for the chaulky look that developed after using the product.... literally white and powdery, laying on the driveway.  However, if that is a product you prefer, and you have had results to your liking, I would go ahead and use it.  Also, using my current method of scrubbing the tires does not create a shiny look... just great looking whitewalls
Whit Otis -
1941 6219D Custom
1941 6219D
1940 7533F
1986 Mercedes Benz 560 SEL
1999 Bentley Arnage
2019 XT5
Drawing of AP Sloan Custom by Terry Wenger

Mike Josephic CLC #3877

Quote from: Whit Otis on August 29, 2007, 11:15:58 PM
Glen, you are quite right, the Diamond Back catalog only says not to use bleach products, so I stand corrected. However, when I bought the tires and spoke with them about tire pressure and proper cleaning issues, they specfically named Westley's as a product that should not be used.  I presume that they would not name a specific product in their catalog due to the possibilities of some sort of resulting litigation.  Since both Westley's cleaner and bleach are a corrosive, one could conclude that the effects on tires might be the same.. however, this is a subject I will leave for others to reseasrch.  In my case, I did not care for the chaulky look that developed after using the product.... literally white and powdery, laying on the driveway.  However, if that is a product you prefer, and you have had results to your liking, I would go ahead and use it.  Also, using my current method of scrubbing the tires does not create a shiny look... just great looking whitewalls

Folks:

Check back to my previous post on this subject.  Westley's does not contain bleach --
it contains a strong detergent.  People are mixing terminology here.

I stated that "bleach" (meaning anything with chlorine) should not be used on rubber
and I stand behind that.  The active ingredient in Wesley's is not a bleach, but
sodium metasilicate.

BTY Whit, your "chalky looking" whitewalls could be simply be from aging.  Rubber
compounds (including tires) have about a 10 year lifespan at the most.  After that,
the rubber has deteriorated to the point where they are no longer safe to drive on,
even if they look "OK".  Whitewalls are especially prone to "staining" which is why
tire manufacturers tell you not to "stack" them for long periods.  Also, on most tires,
the rubber (black behind the whitewall) will start after a time to migrate through into
the whitewall making it look yellow.  Diamondback's claim to have a special liner / barrier
to prevent this -- but I'll let time be the judge to see how well they hold up.

I have used Westley's for 35 years without problems - but if it's discontinued I'll
just go with a brillo pad or similiar product or even a stiff brush and a detergent
to clean them.

Mike ("The Chemical Guru")
1955 Cadillac Eldorado
1973 Cadillac Eldorado
1995 Cadillac Seville
2004 Escalade
1997 GMC Suburban 4X4, 454 engine, 3/4 ton
custom built by Santa Fe in Evansville, IN
2011 Buick Lucerne CX
-------------------------------------
CLCMRC Museum Benefactor #38
Past: VP International Affiliates, Museum Board Director, President / Director Pittsburgh Region

David #19063

For years and years, I use a brass brush and spray on Chlorox Clean-up.  Works great.

But all of my cars have blackwall tires now and that is even better (and easier).
David #19063
1996 DeVille Concours