Gnash Posted July 8, 2008 Share Posted July 8, 2008 So, I'm rebuilding the engine on my 81 Honda CM400C. I want to clean the carbon and what not off the valves with a wire brush, and clean the inside of the cases. The manual recommends using a wire brush and solvent. What type of sovent should I use? I have engine degreaser for removing sludge on car engines. Will this work on the valves or is there a special solvent I should use? Also, will the "degreaser" be fine to use on the aluminum motorcycle engine? What should I use for the aluminum cases? Any engine cleaning and rebuilding tips would be appreciated! Also, while I have the frame nearly stripped, I will have new brakes pads, sproket, chain and new tyres put on. What do y'all use to just clean stuff without damaging electrical, rubber and plastic parts? Thanks Shane Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ginger0195 Posted July 8, 2008 Share Posted July 8, 2008 Make sure to take care cleaning the valves, if you scratch or damage the valves they may not seat properly afterwards and you will therefore lose compression and overall engine power. Cellulose thinners should get the majority of the carbon of the valves, but be careful not to get it on any paint work (as it is designed to remove cellulise paints). I don't know if you have WD40 in america but that is always useful for cleaning, it doesn't damage plastics, it can be used to polish chrome, it removes sticky substance from wires etc (according to the back of teh can it is also good at keeping slugs off plant pots!). But if you intend to clean sensitive electrical parts then i suggest you use a specifically designed electrical component cleaner, they are usually non-conductive, evaporate quickly and they do not leave a residue that needs washing off. I have used a run of the mill enigne degreaser on ally cases before and its worked well, but be sure to read the back of the can incase it specifies which materials it should and should not be used on. Adam Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator drewpy Posted July 8, 2008 Moderator Share Posted July 8, 2008 So, I'm rebuilding the engine on my 81 Honda CM400C. I want to clean the carbon and what not off the valves with a wire brush, and clean the inside of the cases. The manual recommends using a wire brush and solvent. What type of sovent should I use? I have engine degreaser for removing sludge on car engines. Will this work on the valves or is there a special solvent I should use? Also, will the "degreaser" be fine to use on the aluminum motorcycle engine? What should I use for the aluminum cases? Any engine cleaning and rebuilding tips would be appreciated! Also, while I have the frame nearly stripped, I will have new brakes pads, sproket, chain and new tyres put on. What do y'all use to just clean stuff without damaging electrical, rubber and plastic parts? Thanks Shane take out the valves and put them in a drill, use fine wet n dry and spin away dead easy. keep an eye on the vavle seats as there maybe a stepped seat and has to match the cyl head. always keep valves in the same place you took them from. ideal for alu engines is vapour blasting some companies can do the complete engine with no stripping involved. i had my head ceramic cleaned in a drum by steve smethhurst in salford uk. and its till as clean 2 years down the line. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
one2dmax Posted July 8, 2008 Share Posted July 8, 2008 How much rebuilding are you doing? You can either take the engine cases in and get them soda plasted or even dry ice blasted. Both medias are excellent for almost all metals and even softer materials. It will look like new and even a bit polished if you use the soda blasting. You can also use that for the valves. I have used a fine wire brush and general solvents (spray can carb and even brake cleaners) to remove the heavier deposits. Sean Morley Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gnash Posted July 8, 2008 Author Share Posted July 8, 2008 Thanks all! We have WD-40 here, and the carb cleaner seems to work pretty well. Sean, I am replacing the crank and rods, and rings. The motor has spun a rod bearing. I will probably leave the top end alone, other than cleaning. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ginger0195 Posted July 13, 2008 Share Posted July 13, 2008 take out the valves and put them in a drill, use fine wet n dry and spin away dead easy. keep an eye on the vavle seats as there maybe a stepped seat and has to match the cyl head. always keep valves in the same place you took them from. ideal for alu engines is vapour blasting some companies can do the complete engine with no stripping involved. i had my head ceramic cleaned in a drum by steve smethhurst in salford uk. and its till as clean 2 years down the line. i think a safer bet than using wet and dry would be to use wire wool with lots of lubrication, this way you don't run the risk of damaging the valves and it will remove the crap just as well as any abrasive paper. It's actually so none damaging to metalic surfaces it can be used to remove corrosion from chrome parts without removing any of the chrome. I have had bad (and costly) experiences in the past of getting over excited with abrasive paper on valves Adam Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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