Preventing rust after tearing engine down.
 

I plan to start tearing down my 1966 2.0 liter engine this month.

Once I have it disassembled, what should I use to prevent rust on the various parts e.g. crank, rods, cylinders, etc.

I had considered Boeshield T-9 but this leaves a waxy film which I don't want to hassle with removing prior to installation. Ditto cosmoline, this is for short-term storage prior to inspection and reuse/replacement.

What have you used in the past? PB blaster? WD-40? New motor oil? Kroil? ATF? Marvel Mystery Oil? KY Jelly?

Thanks in advance.

I've used lots of different things depending on how long it was to be apart and so on but have had better luck with products like white lithium spray than wd40 as the lith seems to adhere to the surface better over time, is easy to see when you have full coverage, and is easy to wash off. I've also used it generally on assembly surfaces (chassis etc not engine) to prevent rusting etc. It prevents rust and will collect grit and dirt and then just wash off leaving a nice clean surface ready to put back together.

Not KY jelly as it is water based. I think it would promote rust.

yeah, save the KY for when your shop is giving you the bill.

I used a thin coat of synthetic motor oil and for parts dirty I soaked them in PB Blaster (well ventillated area). Lot of zip lock bags and even used thin plastic wrap used for food, it holds odd shapes great and molds nicely to any part(s).

Good luck,

Alex

STABIL has a product for fogging engines during the storage months. There is no reason why this would not work on disassembled engines parts.

Any petroleum or synthetic oil would work if the part was stored in a sealed plastic bag. However, if you're thinking of archival storage, I'd consider a heavier bodied lube. I like motorcycle chain lube because it goes on fluid (spray on), but the carrier is designed to evaporate leaving behind a lube coating that doesn't drip off. Also good for lubing parts not readily accessible in the chassis (window regulator, etc.).

Sherwood

Thanks guys. I will be certainly cleaning everything thoroughly before it goes back together, but don't want to create more work for the machinist with a coating that will take more than a blast with brake cleaner to remove. These are good suggestions. For the critical stuff, like the crank, I might just pickle it in new motor oil-- hard to get it to rust when it's submerged!

LPS preservative.

Ahh, the guru from King County has arrived! John, do you mean LPS 3 Heavy-Duty Rust Inhibitor? Or the LPS 1 greaseless lubricant. What number on the can, man?

i can't find my can, but it's the one that leaves a non-evaporating layer. i use it on things like my table saw, lathe bed, as well as engine parts that sit on the shelf for a long time.

Similar to this suggestion, I use chainsaw oil to coat parts in between Assembly, then store in zip lock bags, never had any rusting problems with this technique. Same deal with the bores in the block, but it gets sealed up on the stand inside a 3 mil garbage bag. Chainsaw oil then gets wiped off during assembly, regular motor oil is applied to mating surfaces during assembly, assembly lube on top end areas where oil reaches last during initial startup. For any engine I've rebuilt, I leave the crank as the last part to go to the machine shop for cleaning and polishing, then, the day it is ready to pickup is the day I do the engine assembly. The crank then gets coated with regular motor oil as part of the assembly process, no need to worry about where and how to store such an awkward piece. Of course, take this all with a grain of salt as I have never rebuilt a 911 engine, but some procedures can be common regardless of engine.

Assembly lube.

use wd-40 to keep your engine parts from rusting and the KY to keep your penis from rusting