Cleaning Engine Mounting Bolts

[Paul]

Hmm OK, I still think I'll try out the molasis rust treatment trick just as an experiment

[Agemax]

Hmm OK, I still think I'll try out the molasis rust treatment trick just as an experiment

sure worth a try see how it works out. would like to see the before and after pics. try a few different materials. steel,stainless, ali and maybe a bit of copper or brass if you have any lying about.

[eil]

My process is to use simple green and a toothbrush to remove most of the oil/grease, then dump them into a jar of vinegar for 24-48 hours to remove the rust. Works great if you're patient or are waiting for parts to arrive. If you're not patient, the methods above might work better.

[Flyboy]

Scott, all good advice, personnaly I would go with kerosene and petrol, and a stiff brush.
A wire wheel on the bench grinder gets them looking like new, but, leaves them no protection, as you are down to bear metal, they will rust in short order if rust is a problem in your area, so you need to coat them, Caswells sells a relatively cheap home plating kit.
Paint will protect the head but not the shaft.................that didn't come out right

[GateKeeper]

+1 on the advice given by Flyboy....

if you wire wheel them, you will have to paint them or plate them, coat them, or they will rust....

I have a few of the smaller bolts that I cleaned during my restore and are now rusted, these were not seen so I didn't get stainless steel ones as replacements, but I will be changing them out or painting them....

and you will need to repaint them as soon as you get a wrench on them or a socket as the tools will chip off the paint as soon as you put it on....

just a side note, you can wire wheel the bolts, but ever so lightly just to get the grime off but not to take the protective finish off, use a brass brush, it's much softer than the steel ones....no not the one that looks like brass is it's not it's just coated with some yellow looking crap, but the wire is still steel and it's hard.....

.

[cowboyup3371]

I placed the first set in the carb cleaner today and they came out looking good as far as I could tell. I took pictures of them when they went in but not after taking them out as I had to leave my friend's place fairly quickly. I'll post up something Thursday or so.

[Road Rash]

I always keep a small plastic container filled with a product called The Works. It's and acid, drop nuts and bolts in for a few hors while I do other stuff, come back, rinse em off, and good to go. The Dollar General store down the road sells them for a buck a bottle. Can't beat it.

[sparki]

like has already been said.... if you remove the facory coating with vinegar, wire wheels or anything similar they'll look fine at first.... then they will rust as they have no protection... clean em and re-plate them. the cheap diy kits for plating imo don't last very long either and they should be done by a prof plater.... either that or paint em but be gentle when tightening them up...

[Agemax]

like has already been said.... if you remove the facory coating with vinegar, wire wheels or anything similar they'll look fine at first.... then they will rust as they have no protection... clean em and re-plate them. the cheap diy kits for plating imo don't last very long either and they should be done by a prof plater.... either that or paint em but be gentle when tightening them up...

its cheaper to buy new bolts than it is to get them professionally replated

[GateKeeper]

its cheaper to buy new bolts than it is to get them professionally replated

Yes....but unfortunately you sometimes just can't find the exact same bolt......no matter how hard one tries....

I am sure some of the long engine mounting bolts are not all that easy to find....

.

[sparki]

its cheaper to buy new bolts than it is to get them professionally replated

You're getting ripped off then m8.... And I live in London! If you prepare them yourself and give them to a plater he'll not charge that much.... I dropped off a biscuit tin of fasteners (incl spindles, mounts, nuts, bolts, washers, clips) for an entire 650 kat a few days ago..... They'd already been cleaned in vinegar to remove old plating and rust, and was quoted £40 to have the lot done...

So to retain the original bolts, looking like new again for that price... Is a complete bargain I thought.... Plating is cheap if you take the time to prepare the stuff yourself

[SVSooke]

http://www.thegsresources.com/_forum...d.php?t=170297 this is how I get bolt heads painted.

[Agemax]

You're getting ripped off then m8....

depends on where you get your bolts from........

[michaelj_444]

Question

My questions are A: Should you use High Temp. paint and B: Does it change the head size of the bolts? And I guess C is should you clear coat?

http://www.thegsresources.com/_forum...d.php?t=170297 this is how I get bolt heads painted.

[Agemax]

My questions are A: Should you use High Temp. paint and B: Does it change the head size of the bolts? And I guess C is should you clear coat?

A; depends on what the bolts are bolting onto.

B; Yes, by the thickness of the paint, which will more than likely crack/chip/scratch/fall off when you tighten or undo the bolt.

C; only if you want to double the consequences of B