Head Cleaning

[jpilcher]

Hi Guys

Quick question. Is it okay to power wash the heads to get all the grease and oil off.
As long as I oil everything afterwards? Heads are going to be bead blasted, but need to have all grease and oil removed first.

[toddu]

Get 'em hot tanked.....


Todd

[Mitch1]

Is the machine shop saying you need to clean them? Bead blasting is going to remove everything. Guys I use don't care. They may tumble stuff first. Hot tank for aluminum is an option. I would use carb clean before water.

[Flat6pac]

My shop takes them as removed and the heads come back like new.
Bruce

[jpilcher]

Guy that is going to bead blast them says they need to have all grease and oil removed.

[Mitch1]

That's strange. Maybe find someone else?

[cgarr]

I always wash off the big stuff first before bead blasting just so it doesn't gunk up my beads but never asked a customer to do that.

Is the guy blasting the heads doing the rebuild?

[E Sully]

My shop does not like to bead blast combustion area. He is of the opinion that some of the bead media will end up embedded and can cause issues later. He hot tanks them and they come out great.

[jpilcher]

Only the outside surface is being bead blasted. I'll look into hot tanking.

[Henry Schmidt]

We disassemble the heads, hot tank then bead blast them. We wire wheel the valve before measuring and solvent clean the springs.
Fresh AD Potters glass bead will not embed in the aluminum so cleaning the head will remove all the glass residue.


Just a side note. All the leaking from the head (oily area by the exhaust ports) is caused by the a lack of head stability exacerbated by Dilivar studs.
Dilivar doing what Dilivar does. Poor / inconsistent clamping pressures

[ChrisBennet]

I just send my heads to Bob at Anchor Atlantic. He ultrasonically cleans them before he machines them.

[jpilcher]

Hi Henry

Sent you a shopping list on Monday. Need some of your head studs.

[tocobill]

My 3.6 heads are with Bob @ Anchor Atlantic right now. RS valves have been installed and should be home in a few days. dropping off the towers for cleaning next.

[88911coupe]

Sent my to Comp Engineering not cleaned up, other that wiping down. Came back looking like artwork...

[boyt911sc]

Originally Posted by jpilcher

Guy that is going to bead blast them says they need to have all grease and oil removed.

With the grease and oil removed from your cylinder heads, the media blasting process will be much shorter and easier. Of course, your guy would surely prefer a much cleaner heads than doing heavily carbon coated heads. Plus the blasting material is less contaminated with cleaner heads. I sent my cylinder heads in a box to the machine shop without any cleaning and get them back like new. Whether I deliver the heads with grease or not, the bill I get is the same. So why bother to clean them.

Tony.

[johnman001]

Please excuse my ignorance, but I have to ask (perhaps it may clarify for others as well)

I was always under the impression that "hot tanking" was for cast iron parts, and that "hot tanking aluminum would eat the aluminum.

Is the reference to "hot tanking" in this thread simply a term used for washing in heated aluminum friendly solvent? That is basically what I do to pre-clean parts that I intend on media blasting. (I try to keep liquids out of my blast cabinet as much as possible).


So, my question is: What is the "hot tank" that is referred to in regards to cleaning aluminum?

Thanks,

John

[Mitch1]

While I'm not an expert, there are two different kinds of "vats", or hot tanks. The traditional one for cast iron parts, like small block chevy blocks and heads, and a lower temp vat for aluminum parts, like many transmission shops use.

[tocobill]

I got my heads back to Bob @ Anchor Atlantic yesterday. Great job. He bead blasts them then ultra sonically cleans them. I am very impress with his work and turn around. Heads look brand new.

Easier to quote my last post then copy pics ....

Originally Posted by tocobill

Picked my heads up today from Bob @ Anchor Atlantic. I have to say Im very impressed with the rebuild job and time frame it was completed. Plus hes a super nice guy! He meet me at a location that was convenient for me to drop off and pick up ... pretty much knocked a couple hours off the trip. I had him regrind the seats for 993 RS spec valves and installed the Aasco springs and Ti retainers. He cleaned up the old Na filled OEM valves and measured them for me ... didnt really have to do that either .. just good quality workmanship. Dropped off the cam towers to have cleaned ultrasonically after I got all the gallery plugs removed. Dropped off a bunch of old transmission cases for cleaning to make the trip to southern NJ worth it. The bad of candy hidden in the parts was a nice touch, .