What's new
Van's Air Force

Don't miss anything! Register now for full access to the definitive RV support community.

Plexus windshield cleaner

B

bob888

Well Known Member
I have used Plexus for years to clean the windshield...great product. Now I find it isn't available, at least anywhere I can find it. what alternative products have people found for cleaning/debugging windshields?
 
bob888 said:
I have used Plexus for years to clean the windshield...great product. Now I find it isn't available, at least anywhere I can find it. what alternative products have people found for cleaning/debugging windshields?
Click to expand...
Koenig cleaner/polish. Buy at Sun n Fun or Oshkosh. Don’t pay retail. It can be used on metal and windscreens. It has caranuba wax and does not build up. I buy a case (12 17oz cans) & split it with someone.
 
Plexus is good stuff, but it isn't magic. There are dozens of plastic/vinyl cleaners that are completely equivalent. Search on "plastic cleaner" on Amazon.
 
Jesse23 said:
Koenig cleaner/polish. Buy at Sun n Fun or Oshkosh. Don’t pay retail. It can be used on metal and windscreens. It has caranuba wax and does not build up. I buy a case (12 17oz cans) & split it with someone.
Click to expand...
Yes, I buy it by the case at Oshkosh
 
I like Meguiar’s PlastX, which works fine and isn’t terribly expensive. Agreed that there are plenty of options—probably most important is to have a good, clean microfiber cloth.
 
I had used Plexus for years and recently decided it was too expensive. Based on reviews here on Vans Airforce (do a search as this is a reoccurring topic) I bought Brillianize and Sumner Lab 210. Both do good job but the Brillianize spray bottle absolutely sucks. The sprayer leaks out the nozzle when squirting and drips more out then it spritzes. I have gone to the 210 and like it, not as good as Plexus, but the price is right.
 
Last edited:
I saw someone mention SprayWay glass cleaner here, and have switched to that. Inexpensive, readily available and the wife has adopted it for all the household glass windows and mirrors. Seems to play fine with acrylic. Agree that good clean rags are important. Once a microfiber rag gets any hint of contamination with sawdust or other potentially abrasive particles, I trash it. Stuff's not letting go in the washer...
 
Best stuff I’ve ever used. By the windows manufacture.
 

Attachments

  • IMG_1652.png
    IMG_1652.png
    4.9 MB · Views: 122
I like Prist for windshield cleaning after each flight. The Novus products are good for using every month or so to restore.
 
I looked up the Plexus SDS and see it is butanes and naphtha with a tiny bit of surfactant. My 10Friend said always spray on a towel not the plexiglass. So, I sprayed some naphtha on a towel and have been trying that for the last couple of months. I have been using low TDS water and a little J&J baby shampoo and it works well, but not on any oily residue. Some bug juices disappear easier with the naphtha. I hope it is non sparking 🤯
 
I recently asked this same question. I switched to 210 plastic cleaner and polish after seeing that its MSDS is pretty much identical to Plexus. In fact, if you sprayed plexus and 210 next to each other I doubt anyone would be able to tell a single difference. It's cheaper too!

P.S. I found Prist to be an absolute joke at getting bugs off compared to Plexus or 210.
 
Anybody know what happened to Plexus? Supply chain delay? Out of business? Factory burned down? Other? Will the product be available again in the future, or gone forever?
 
This happened awhile ago, too. Look around and you will probably find some in stock. Haven't used this vendor but:

www.marinemercantile.com

Plexus® Plastic Cleaner, Protectant & Polish

Plexus protects plastic more effectively than ordinary cleaners. Originally designed for the aviation industry Plexus seals the pores with a micro thin layer of protective wax, plastic becomes more…
www.marinemercantile.com www.marinemercantile.com
 
I've been an amateur car detailer for more than a decade. On my cars, I polish the windshield with cerium oxide a once or twice a year then apply Rejex. On my airplane, I find that bugs generally easy to get off the plexiglass with any plastic cleaner, or even a soapy rag. What does bother me is the marring and microscratches that are so visible when flying into the sun when it's at a low angle. Those occur from the abrasion from cleaning the windshield of bugs etc. Those microscratches are easy to get rid of with a random orbital buffer and a good polish/cleaner like Novus #2. I do that a couple of times per year then apply a good UV-protecting polish like Novus #1 or Plexus or whatever...only takes a few minutes.

IMG_1477.jpeg
 
jcarne said:
I recently asked this same question. I switched to 210 plastic cleaner and polish after seeing that its MSDS is pretty much identical to Plexus. In fact, if you sprayed plexus and 210 next to each other I doubt anyone would be able to tell a single difference. It's cheaper too!

P.S. I found Prist to be an absolute joke at getting bugs off compared to Plexus or 210.
Click to expand...
Thanks for the post!! Only missing the surfactant and odor. I am going to give this a try. The missing stuff is in attachment, others are the same.
 

Attachments

  • Screenshot 2024-05-13 at 9.59.53 AM.png
    Screenshot 2024-05-13 at 9.59.53 AM.png
    37.6 KB · Views: 34
BillL said:
Thanks for the post!! Only missing the surfactant and odor. I am going to give this a try. The missing stuff is in attachment, others are the same.
Click to expand...
No problem. There is still a very nice smell to the stuff too despite the difference in data. :)
 
I’ve been using spray on furniture polish for a hundred years over the who.e of all my planed, cheap and effective. Brand name cleaners are a waste!
 
MacCool said:
I've been an amateur car detailer for more than a decade. On my cars, I polish the windshield with cerium oxide a once or twice a year then apply Rejex. On my airplane, I find that bugs generally easy to get off the plexiglass with any plastic cleaner, or even a soapy rag. What does bother me is the marring and microscratches that are so visible when flying into the sun when it's at a low angle. Those occur from the abrasion from cleaning the windshield of bugs etc. Those microscratches are easy to get rid of with a random orbital buffer and a good polish/cleaner like Novus #2. I do that a couple of times per year then apply a good UV-protecting polish like Novus #1 or Plexus or whatever...only takes a few minutes.

View attachment 62719
Click to expand...
What pad do you use on the orbital buffer and do you buff in a particular pattern? I have circular microscratches due to not realizing the impact when cleaning the windshield.
Figs
 
uk_figs said:
What pad do you use on the orbital buffer and do you buff in a particular pattern? I have circular microscratches due to not realizing the impact when cleaning the windshield.
Figs
Click to expand...
I always clay bar the plexiglass first so I'm not grinding grit into the windshield while trying to polish, and I tape off the canopy bracing (slider). I use Adam's Polishes products on my vehicles, and on plexiglass I use their 6 inch white foam (fine) polishing pads on a Porter Cable 7424XP random orbital polisher, starting on low speed then higher speed for the second pass. The pad colors vary from mfgr to mfgr but plexiglass is so soft compared to clear coat that I always use fine foam pads and fine polishing compounds, and start with low speeds on the buffer. I can't emphasize the "random orbital" aspect of that enough. Using a rotary polisher or high speed polisher on something as soft as plexiglass is a sure way to heartbreak and your typical $30 big box store polishers will lead to frustration. If you have circular scratching that you can see, that's a problem that will likely need careful but more aggressive attention. I would still use a fine foam pad but would likely use a more aggressive polishing compound. I've seen people recommend headlight polishing compounds based on standard polishing compound and that would probably be fine, but I'm very comfortable with a polisher and use that with Novus #2 or #3 since it's faster and I think more uniform.
 
Roadjunkie1 said:
I have a small collection of plastic cleaners, some spray, some liquid, that I will put to the test and report my findings. Plexis is one I have used for decades. I like it but have not used Prist.
Click to expand...

I also have used Plexus for years. Found it works great. Since I can't get it around here for less than a fortune any more I am looking for the next best solution. Tried ClearView...hated it....film and streaky. Tried Prist...better but not great...foams more but leaves a film if you don't work at it. Tried WashWax All...OK but still not as good as Plexus. Trying Brillianize....only used once so we'll see. Someone on the forum posted 210 was as good as Plexus. Will try it next if Brillianize doesn't work out.
 
I have: spray cans: Plexus; Davies Klear-to-Land (from my med-evac helicopter friends); Sprayway 848
Liquid: Novis 1 (and 2, 3 for scratches); All Kleer and two others I can't find right now. I have one small can of Plexus in my tool bag in SuzieQ I am hoarding as those are getting difficult to find and pricey. I'd like some small bottle of liquid to fit in my compact tool bag that works just as well without making a mess of things. Tests pending....... :)

I remember landing somewhere and a friend in his RV-4 showed up with his canopy PLASTERED with bugs to the point it was difficult to see out of. What did he have to clean that mess off with? NOTHING!! I was amazed. All that Plexiglass and nothing to clean it. I never leave home without SOMEthing! 😊
 
plehrke said:
I had used Plexus for years and recently decided it was too expensive. Based on reviews here on Vans Airforce (do a search as this is a reoccurring topic) I bought Brillianize and Sumner Lab 210. Both do good job but the Brillianize spray bottle absolutely sucks. The sprayer leaks out the nozzle when squirting and drips more out then it spritzes. I have gone to the 210 and like it, not as good as Plexus, but the price is right.
Click to expand...
When you can get it, Plexus runs at $50 a can here. Its like gold dust. I'm liking the other suggestions.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top