How to clean..........
 

I just dropped my motor yesterday. It is disgusting. I always kept it clean. But the parts you cant see are caked with baked oil. I have a few leaks that I am tending to as well. I am sure over the next weeks I will have many questions. So thanks to all in advance.

Castrol Super Clean, lots of water and brushing !!!!

I am in the same boat, best combo I have found is Berrymans Chemtool and nylon brush for the worst then finish off with some stuff called Awesome..available at Dollar stores..it seems to work even better than brake cleaner to get that oily film off but does little for the thick goop!

I've used the Castrol Super Clean and water, Berrymans Chemtool and other assorted stuff like brake cleaner. The best performance vs. noxiousness and price solution that I've found is denatured mineral spirits -- preferably the "unscented" kind.

* It cleans better then any involving water. It also doesn't rust out a parts cleaning tank (nor the parts themselves!) like water based solutions do.
* It's not as smelly with toxic fumes as Berrymans or brake cleaner
* It quickly desolves off the "goop" that other cleaners would leave behind. (I've also found that using a water based cleaner seems to leave "goop" that is harder to remove then if you'd started with the mineral spirits in the first place. The water based cleaners seem to turn the "goop" into cement.)
* It's cheap and available at hardware stores everywhere.

If you're on a budget and don't have a parts washing tank, get a 5-gallon pail and cover and use it to hold the stuff. A 5-gallon pail can fit most engine parts.

John,
I'd echo the mineral spirits approach, too. The other advantage is that after a short time, the washed parts are fairly odor-free (important to the wife). For small parts I would start with mineral spirits and follow with an alcohol rinse (in a metal coffee can). You can reuse the spirits and alcohol many times.
Mike

I second (or third, whatever) the mineral spirits. Works very well with a brush.

I would consider dropping it off at a shop with a wash tank. Not the typical varsol and brush tank, the hot water high pressure style tank, basically a big dishwasher.

Be carefull with Castrol super clean and similar cleaners. They can do a number on aluminum. You might be left with white residue. I still use it since it works so good, but I'm selective on what I use it on.

I've had good luck doing a final clean use POR metal prep then washing with soapy water.

Haven't used the POR on a motor. Will consider it in other applications

Mineral Spirits I'll try next.

I used in the past. Brake, cleaner, Degreasers, with a scotch brite pad, a plastic scraper, a brush, a tooth brush, and best of all a scotchbrite onan air drill.

Many hours.

New hardware.

Quality paint/PC on accessories.

Poat a pic when project complete

Regards,

Silly question - where can I get mineral spirits?

TIA...

Home Depot/hardware store or a paint store. Comes in a gallon can.

I used a two gallon container of diesel fuel in a cement mixing tub.

before
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1139255942.jpg

after
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1139255980.jpg

That diesel really did the job on your intake and exhaust :-)

well, and powder coat, of course... :)

Jeremy,

When you powder coated your intakes did you do anything to them first? (ie did you just powder coat the rough aluminum or smooth it in any way?)

Is that powder coat on the valve covers as well? Regular or high heat?

What colour is that red? Just a generic red or is it something specific?

Thanx
Kirk

I smoothed over them first to get rid of the seam line, then powdercoated them

regular powder coat on the valve covers -

red - just plain red.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1140789728.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1140789773.jpg

I also had the baked on dirt and oil near the rear of the engine.

I was too impatient with brushes and such so I taped off all vulnerable openings, loaded the engine on my trailor and off to the car wash. I used the degreaser there. After I got back to the garage, I did more detailing in those hard to reach places. I think it took half the time.

Admittedly, it was a PITA to get the motor on the trailor though. Luckily, I have a ATV jack that got it just high enough to put on the trailor.

Jeremy,

I keep looking at the pics of your intake. It looks fantastic. I wouldn't mind seeing the bigger pic of your engine that you are using as your avatar.

Did you powder coat your timing chain covers in black as well?

Thanx
Kirk

http://www.a1-staffing.com/engine8_25_05.jpg

http://www.a1-staffing.com/engine8_20_01.jpg