Cam Corrosion

[74er]

What kind of corrosion is this considered?

[Steve@Rennsport]

I'd need to see a much sharper pic to tell for certain, but looks more like deposits related to what oil you use and how often its changed, than corrosion.

[AlfonsoR]

i would guess that's light surface corrosion from letting it sit too long without running the engine. What year is the car and how many miles?

[Neilk]

I wrapped my cams in newspaper when I took the engine apart about 2.5 years ago. I just unwrapped them and the bearing surfaces look dull, kind of like the picture above.

I wiped one down and lobes got shiny again. Any recommendations on cleaning them? Can I polish them with some kind of metal polish or do I need to send them out?

Thanks,
Neil

[HawgRyder]

We used to polish cams and bearing sufaces with wet paper...like crocus cloth...and water or light oil.
It gets rid of the surface discolouration and lets you see if there are any imperfections.
For round bearing surfaces...a small wet piece of cloth...and a bootlace wrapped around the outside several times will give you a fast fix.

[porschetub]

Have seen this in motors that do very short runs,its not pitting of the lobe surface ,don't worry about it,change the oil and give the car a good fast run on the open road if possible.
Did notice from your pic there is light surface scratches on the lobe that can indicate abrasive particles in the oil as mentioned.
Depending on the mileage covered by the engine an oil tank clean may be in order also.