How-To Engine Cleaning
Author: Josh Brown Date Posted:1 October 2017
A good engine is a healthy, reliable and clean engine.
The most commonly overlooked part of engine building, is nearly ALWAYS the most important.
Most people are probably thinking “but I do regular oil changes”…this is NOT what I’m talking about!
I’m actually talking about a complete rebuild. A fresh engine with new bearings and ground journals… no old oil welsh plugs left in the engine for nasties to hide behind.
Or a new hone job…without sludge left clinging to the walls when it is assembled.
It is good practice to start a build with clean parts. It is just as important to have a clean area to assemble. When cleaning an engine block I like to use a degreaser first, followed by a quick gurnie.
Finish it off with warm and soapy water and a soft scrubbing brush.
Wash the cylinders down, followed by the whole block. Take care this time to gurnie all oil holes and lines.
After doing this, I grab my bottle of WD40 and my air line, blow drying the cylinders one at a time, and spraying the WD40 to disperse the water and stop the bores rusting.
Now dry the rest of the block, wipe all the bores dry with a clean cloth, and respray with WD40.
The bulk of the other parts I like to clean with petrol, before putting it in my kero bath. Once they’re clean I use my air-line to blow them dry.
It really is essential to have a clean assembly area before you start washing parts or blocks. I’ve never understood those who put clean parts on a dirty bench…surely that defeats the purpose?
