Mag wheel cleaner, we use it on motorcycle engine blocks all day at work. Works like a charm everytime.

 

if that paint is to shiny for you autozone has a diff color that matches the color of a brand new block, ill take pics and post tomorrow

 

CA still gets crappy blocks every once in a while. This one was sittin in the boonies for a while, but I can't complain for free engines:



Hot tanked it to this, which still looked pretty shitty:



So I painted it. Pic looks shittier than it really is. Paint wont hurt the headgasket surface or anything...but if you don't want it on there you can just clean it off easily with brake clean or the like.

 

here you go, before it looked like your blocks
[img][/url]

 

sorry its blurry but you get the idea

 

Final Product. VHT Cast Aluminum Engine Enamel.

 

i've heard it not good to paint the block for cooling purposes

i want to but still not sure

anyone else heard this

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by AK94GSR &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">i've heard it not good to paint the block for cooling purposes

i want to but still not sure

anyone else heard this</TD></TR></TABLE>

I've never heard that before. Tons of people paint their engines, and I have not heard of one cooling problem. They make paint especially for engines, and I'm sure they wouldn't make it if it caused problems.

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Muckman &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Final Product. VHT Cast Aluminum Engine Enamel.



</TD></TR></TABLE>

Looks nice!

That paint makes it look like a brand new block.

 

bringing an old thread back, but what's the sense of starting a new one...

I used aluminum colored engine paint 'with ceramic'..whatever that means..it turned out pretty nice.

 

Someone in this post said "Also, if you use a wire brush on a drill, DON'T use a steel wirebrush--always use a brass wirebrush on aluminum... "

Any reason why? Is it because brass is softer then aluminum and steel is harder?


Also any one grind all the casting marks and ribs off the engine. I heard that doing this makes it stronger and helps prevent cracking.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Muckman &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">OK here are my two choices.
1.) Paint the long block AND tranny aluminum.
2.) Paint the long block aluminum and the tranny flat black.

Which option do you guys like best? </TD></TR></TABLE>


don't paint it black. If you have a leak you'll never find it.

 

Good advice!!! i never thought of that!! LOL.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by TurboEM1 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Someone in this post said "Also, if you use a wire brush on a drill, DON'T use a steel wirebrush--always use a brass wirebrush on aluminum... "

Any reason why? Is it because brass is softer then aluminum and steel is harder?


Also any one grind all the casting marks and ribs off the engine. I heard that doing this makes it stronger and helps prevent cracking.
</TD></TR></TABLE>
This is good advice, using a stronger metal or even some grades of sandblasting to clean up your block will actually harm your block. Metal pours will form air bubbles if the metal is poured at the wrong temperature or cools inconsistently due to varying degrees of thickness. Your better off using a softer metal, like bronze, to do your cleanup with. Fine Steel wool is also fine.

Also unlike iron oxide (rust), aluminum oxide forms almost instantly when aluminum comes in contact with oxygen so your not going to get rid of it, you can polish it, paint it, of just deal with it but its gonna be there.

Casting marks and ribs: some casting marks and ribs can be removed with no problem; however, if you didn't engineer the block yourself I would not recommend removing anything. Engineers and founders are tricky people and we will often try to work our vents and sprues into the normal structure of the object so that we don't have to do as much cleanup after the casting. I've seen objects that I could have sworn were mold seems and found out later that in addition to being mold seems they were also structural.
Flashing on the other hand (those small "cracks" that are actually positive to the surface of the object) you can grind and polish away until smooth.

 

Hey How's about CLR You know, the stuff for bathrooms. If it will take tarnish off a penny? NO I haven't tried it!