Cleaning a Model A Engine block

[ifightfire]

I have my engine all taken apart. is it safe to send it to a machine shop and have it cooked or will this hurt the babit?

[Kurt in NJ]

most machine shop cleaning methods are not babbitt friendly

[ifightfire]

thats what i was afraid of . but im glad i asked.
i have a nother question. each of my pistons have cracks in the skirts all cracked in the same place. is that normal?

[Keith True]

Are they really cracked or do you have split skirt pistons?

[ifightfire]

im not sure. the splits all look exactly the same. this is the first time i have ever worked on something this old. im really hoping someone is going to say thats the way they are made.

[1930artdeco]

Sponsored Links (Register now to hide all advertisements)

If the 'cracks' are vertical and look machined then they are split skirt and normal. But just to be sure can you post a pic?

Mike

[ifightfire]

yes they are and each one is exactly the same. i will take a pic tonite and post it. thank you for the help.i have so many questions about this engine my head is spinning. thank you for the help

[Tom Wesenberg]

I use gas and a stiff parts cleaning brush to clean the inside of an engine. If you buy your parts cleaning brushes at H/F check them first because the last batch I saw were all soft as a limp paint brush.

[ifightfire]

i have a parts washer for the small parts but i was thinking about the block till i realized the babit may not fare well in a cooker

[CarlG]

Originally Posted by 1930 coupe

...Check your gas stations and find one that sells STODDARD SOLVENT out of a pump. It does not burn at room temperature and is made for parts washers. Find a five gallon bucket with a lid and put 3 or 4 gallons of solvent in it. put your small parts in the bucket and use a brush on the large parts.

I bought a 5-gallon bucket of Stoddard Solvent from NAPA when I first got my Model A 4-years ago. Still using off of it.

Another good place to buy it is at any of your aircraft supply houses.

[700rpm]

If you have rusty water jackets (and who doesn't?) you can plug your outlets and pour in Evaporust. I've heard that letting that sit for a week or two will completely dissolve your rust, though I haven't done that (yet).

[Purdy Swoft]

I put the bare block on my engine stand, up side down with a tray under it. I use a long small straight head screw driver and dig around in the water jacket to remove crud and dirt that has collected over the years. It will take a while but the finished product will run cooler and be worth the trouble. You can see the results in the tray as you work. Gunk engine cleaner mixed with kerosene works good to remove loose crud and oily residue. I usually then take the block and parts to the car wash for a good going over. You can't get it too clean, take your time.

[wensum]

Here in New Zealand we use Washworld to clean our engine blocks etc.
These are automated car cleaning businesses.
You feed the dollars in and various detergents are available and hot water.
This will clean a block pretty thoroughly and the high pressure can be used for oil passages.
I guess you wouldn't want to turn up with a truly filthy engine, but there's no supervision and the places are set up to catch all the crap.
Four wheel drivers use them after a day of waddling in the mud!

[48fordnut]

I use a scrapper and cheap 2.25 oven cleaner from family dollar/dollar general .Then i use diesel fuel and a brush. Finally a pressure washer.

[Kevin in NJ]

You can clean the water jacket with pointy things and wires.

Work at it for a while and get all the scale off the walls as that will insulate the heat transfer to the water.

I worked for a while. I flipped the block upside down to help get rid of the junk as well as (after the big stuff came out) blowing and vacuuming. A stiff wire is use to get around the corners.

You will be amazed at how much will come out of the water jacket.

[hardtimes]

Originally Posted by ifightfire

I have my engine all taken apart. is it safe to send it to a machine shop and have it cooked or will this hurt the babit?

Google...'evaporust'. Instead of 'cooking it'...which can be expensive and harm Babbitt...., plug the water INLET and fill block to deck. Do as instructed via product and you may be amazed, as no damage to anything except rust. Oh, and next great thing ..to making rust free, you can REUSE the stuff over/over...as opposed to one time use, etc. Good luck

[Purdy Swoft]

Originally Posted by wensum

Here in New Zealand we use Washworld to clean our engine blocks etc.
These are automated car cleaning businesses.
You feed the dollars in and various detergents are available and hot water.
This will clean a block pretty thoroughly and the high pressure can be used for oil passages.
I guess you wouldn't want to turn up with a truly filthy engine, but there's no supervision and the places are set up to catch all the crap.
Four wheel drivers use them after a day of waddling in the mud!

Thats the kind that I use.

[Stretch Cab]

What about putting the block in a tank of mollases and water and then sealing it for a month or so? I have never tried it but have read that it will clean a motor well.

[CarlG]

And when you take the block out, have a pancake breakfast!

[ifightfire]

Here is a picture of my pistons. Are the cracks normal?