engine restore

[suzuki42]

Whats the best way to restore the finish on an engine? I purchased a GS850G that has been sitting outside for ??years for $50 and the engine looks like it needs some special care. I'm new to restoring, and was hoping to get some direction. Is sandblasting too much for the aluminum? Is there a better way??

[Agemax]

all depends on what sort of finish you want to end up with. bead blasting is a great key for painting but vapour blasting is a better way to go if you want to shine them up

[dedfish]

I'm sorry to hijack your thread but I have some questions that if we can get answered will help both of us. I also have an old weathered engine I'd like to clean up as much as possible. It has heavy oxidation all over the fins and cases. I hear people say that you can not bead blast an engine unless you take it apart, is the same thing true for vapor? Will vapor take off the oxidation? If an engine has no leaks and you plug the exhaust and intakes with rubber stoppers how could anything get in? I imagine I could also make metal backer plates to secure the stoppers even more by screwing them down. I hate to take apart an engine that ran well the last time it ran.

[Agemax]

blasting a complete engine has been done successfuly but i wouldn't recommend it. if you want to do it that way make 100% sure everything is sealed up and go for the vapour blasting

[Mekanix]

Blasting a complete engine with sand or glass bead is not advisable. As in my case the glass media found its way in, not sure how. Everything was blocked off so I'm assuming it was through a gasket.

The vapor blasting was described to me as called Coke, and it cleans as well as leaves a protective coating so that the part can be left for a few days and not corrode.


If you use sand or glass, you have to paint or powder coat because polishing is very dificult after the surface has been pitted by the media. (lots of sanding)

[dedfish]

Blasting a complete engine with sand or glass bead is not advisable. As in my case the glass media found its way in, not sure how. Everything was blocked off so I'm assuming it was through a gasket.

The vapor blasting was described to me as called Coke, and it cleans as well as leaves a protective coating so that the part can be left for a few days and not corrode.


If you use sand or glass, you have to paint or powder coat because polishing is very dificult after the surface has been pitted by the media. (lots of sanding)

Thanks for the reply. I did some googling on vapor blasting and there doesn't seem to be a lot of people who offer this service in the US. In most cases unless your very lucky to live in the right place it would involve shipping.

Does anyone know anything about soda blasting? It almost sounds like your confusing the vapor blasting and soda blasting. From what I've read soda blasting will leave a film that has to be removed either with a damp cloth or some other means before you finish it with paint or powder coat etc. It has a bad reputation for causing powder coat issues because this film isn't properly removed. My question is can soda blasting be done with the engine together? I do have someone local that does that.