Subject: Re: engine casting cleaning
Author: Greg Field
Date: Jun 11, 2002, 6:29 AM
Post ID: 1710412107
Since I think it was me who started this whole Eagle 1 thing on the
regular Guzzi list in about 1997 or so (though I'm sure others tried it
on their own), I've got to add some advice and cautions I learned the
hard way after using the stuff on many Guzzis:
1: It works very well, when done right, making the cases look factory
fresh. It's best to clean the cases when they are off the bike, but you
can do a very good job in situ if you're careful.
2: This stuff is nasty, so be really careful in controlling where the
spray goes. As others have said, it will etch aluminum, ruining the
polish on your wheels, dash and so on. It also deglosses paint. If usng
this on cases in situ, hold a cardboard spray shield in the non-spraying
hand and use it to block the spray to painted and polished parts.
Control the spray or spend many hours in polishing penance.
3: You need incredible amounts of water to thoroughly rinse the stuff
off. Rinse it about 30 times, and then rinse 30 more times. If you don't
get it off and you live in a humid climate (I live in Seattle), you'll
get millions of ugly white spots all over your aluminum in the months to
come.
4: If you want to be dead-nuts certain you don't get the white spots,
you need to neutralize the acid after rinsing 60 times. Here's the easy
way: Mix up a saturated baking soda solution in a spray bottle and hose
down the parts thoroughly. Rinse thoroughly, and do it again.
5: For light corrosion, spray it on, let sit for a few minutes, hose it
down throroughly, and neutralize.
6: For heavier corrosion, such as from battery acid, you need the acid
and scrubbing. A fresh green Scotchbrite worked best for me. Do not use
brass or bronze brushes or wool. They can leave tracks of brass or
bronze color that are very difficult to remove.
7: The acid has varying reactions on different alloys, and Guzzi
apparently uses different alloys on some cases. On the engine cases, it
seems you can leave the acid on for many minutes, and it brightens them.
On the timing case of one bike I did, it turned the aluminum a dull gray
after a few seconds. For that timing case I had to spay a small area,
scrub it quickly, and neutralize immediately before doing another small
area. It was a pain. I've also had this happen on one tranny case and
one rear drive.
Hope this saves someone some grief.
GF
On Monday, June 10, 2002, at 07:10 PM, Alan Dunphy wrote:
| I used a brass bristle brush and stole some citrus cleaner from under the sink that worked real well on the fuel stains below the carbs. Alan '74 Eldorado LAPD Wixomized MGNOC 4352 Alan R. Dunphy adun-@midmaine.com 21 West ST. Pittsfield, ME 04967-1426 ----- Original Message ----- From: "Zerhackermann" <chopp-@hotmail.com> To: <Loopfram-@topica.com> Sent: Monday, June 10, 2002 9:37 PM Subject: RE: engine casting cleaning |