Is it ok to do this? im concerned that i didnt get every last bit of sand material out of the cover and i wasnt sure if that ultra fine sand might have some adverse effect on the engine (bearings, cylinder walls, etc). I rinsed it in a parts washer and then also used compressed air to blow everything out.

anyways heres the cover i picked up recently. i was contemplating a few diff colors but ended up settling with a gloss enamel sunburst yellow. not a high temp paint but held up really well on my old d series so i figured i'd use the same brand again.

heres the yellow one (cam phone doesnt pic up the color all that well)


and my old d cover

 

i have sand blasted a few valve covers before, but i covered all the areas inside the valve cover where blast media could get stuck. After, i washed it several times in the parts washer to get any media that was there that i couldn't see.

 

I'm not sure how you can ensure that all of the media was removed beyond what you already did. And yes, if anything is left over and get's into your oil, it will more than likely ruin your cams and/or bearings in the rotating assembly unless you get super lucky and it never touches anything else.

FYI in the future, try aircraft remover instead of blasting if you're unsure about removing the leftover media. You just spray it on and let dissolve the paint. After, you just rinse and dry.

 

Isn't the oil filter there for something? Just change the oil after you have the valve cover on for a day.

 

True, but however, the oil will still carry the sandblasting media around until it passes through the oil pump (which will appreciate that a lot) and finally to the oil filter. Its gonna get splashed all over the valvetrain, and up the cylinder bores. Add in to the fact that the oil filter has a bypass valve.... If theres enough pressure, it will open and allow unfiltered oil past the filter.

Janos

 

*****! thats not what i wanna hear. maybe i wont bother putting it on then. see i tried aircraft stripper before on the other cover i have but my god did it take forever to get every last bit of paint off. whether i let the stuff sit for a few mins or 10-15 it didnt seem to matter

 

Did you happen to get any of it on you? It burns so badly!

 

soap and water and compressed air is recommended for getting the media off. Solvent doesn't work too well with it though. Then bake it in a oven at like 150-200 for a couple hours. if theres any left, it'll come out if it wants to.

I think a little bit wont really hurt it tho.

Janos

 

hmm i like this soap and water idea. i think i'll run some sudsy water through it for awhile and let it sit in there, then rinse it out real good.

and yes i've got the paint stripper on me. its not a happy feeling lol.