Best way to clean ..

[fury9]

Nasty gunked up grease covered heads.(7.3)Should I take them apart? I don't have a parts washer and I was thinking a tub of gas and wire brushes? I just got these , they are used and I plan to have them checked for cracks and just to see overall if they're okay. I never realized just how heavy duty these things are, they proly weigh in like 70lbs each. Also any info on casting numbers would be helpfull too.

 

[gatorman21218]

I would let them soak in a bucket of grease lighning or someting you can buy by the gallon and agitate it every 30 minutes or so and change the fluid when it become real dirty. thats how i cleaned my valve covers. brake parts cleaner works good but you need a lot of it and it gets expensive

 

[THECACKLER]

More like 90# each. To clean them I scrape all that I can off with an old screwdriver then I use Diesel and a rag and brush then Dish Soap. Don't worry too much about getting them really clean. The Machine Shop is just going to check the area between the valves and Pre-cups and out to the edge from there. Good Luck. I'm taking a pair to the Machinists tomorrow myself. The last pair were cracked.

 

[gatorman21218]

by bucket i mean swimming pool.

 

[icanfixall]

Some of the better machine shops have a oven they bake off the grease and grime with. They get heated up to around 700 degrees. Then all thats left is ash. Others have a hot tank that washes them clean. Be extra careful using gasoline... The vapors creep along the ground and sometimes find an ignition point... Then we loose another member...

 

[fury9]

More like 90# each. To clean them I scrape all that I can off with an old screwdriver then I use Diesel and a rag and brush then Dish Soap. Don't worry too much about getting them really clean. The Machine Shop is just going to check the area between the valves and Pre-cups and out to the edge from there. Good Luck. I'm taking a pair to the Machinists tomorrow myself. The last pair were cracked.

what are they charging ya to test them?

 

[PackRat]

When I have a hub that is greased up, from a bad seal, I use the power washer, with the heat turned up near steam.

When I was at K-W, we had a hot water wash tank. The great thing about the soap, is that usually, you can see any cracks, when the soap dries.

 

[MUDKICKR]

take them to a coin up car wash?

 

[freebird01]

i would let the machine shop clean them....ill bet the dont charge much to hot tank them and will be a ton less work for you

 

[philadelphia]

If anythi8ng i would use mineral spirits..Works pretty well..Not as harmfull as gasoline.

 

[Devilish]

I'd just clean them well around the vaves and head gasket area. Then use a bright light and a magnifying glass to inspect them yourself. If you don't find any cracks then let the the machine shop tank them and reinspect. Oh and you should get a valve spring compressor and remove the valves. Keep valves and springs in order though.

 

[GOOSE]

Soak them with Gunk Engine Bright then either pressure wash or car wash.

 

[Diesel_brad]

i would let the machine shop clean them....ill bet the dont charge much to hot tank them and will be a ton less work for you

 

[THECACKLER]

Like icanfixall says the baking is sweet. I wouldn't waste your money until they are magna-fluxed. The magnet passes a field current through the area between it's legs and they sprinkle iron dust on that area. If the head is cracked the flux lines break at the crack and show up as the iron filings "standing up". You only need to remove the carbon and grease from the combustion chamber to get a good reading. Valves out is better but it can be done to an assembled head. Diesel to degrease, then wire brush, like a cup brush in a drill, then hose it all off. It takes a while, maybe a half hour per head. Don't use gasoline. I had a friend that almost lost his legs because of gangrene setting in after the burns because he was too embarassed to go to the hospital after setting himself on fire. He ended up there anyhow because of the infection. The Dork.