Preferred way to clean dirt stained engines

[AKATV 840]

Have a pretty dirty stained. mud baked engine to clean and wanted to see what the general consensus was for the easist way to clean down to normal looking aluminum case

Some of the stuff I have tried and not tried:

-Eagle1 etching Mag cleaner-works well, but tends darken certain aluminum areas a bit 

-Oven cleaner- the strong stuff- heard it works but I have not tried

-Simple Green/Purple Power? Have not tried on engine cases

-WD40 and elbow grease- works but trying to use less elbow grease-lol

Any other magic solutions you might have- I would be wiling try this time around

 

 

Edited April 26, 2020 by AKATV

[Fishfiles 20,147]

Wire wheel on a drill 

[AKATV 840]

I wondered about that -does it seem to scratch or is it more of a polish?

[Fishfiles 20,147]

A polish job.  

[_Wilson_™ 6,592]

easy off oven cleaner..... is what i use on the un coated engine case parts .... ecthing acid is a tad stronge ..... been there (in the past) 

 

westleys bleach white does a good job, and won't hurt any rubber parts / hoses etc ...  wd-40 is used for more of a pertection prep before mud riding ... just avoid getting it on the handle bars seat, and exhaust .. other then those place coat the entire bike ... and mud will slide right off. 

[Goober 1,555]

i use DeepCreep to penetrate and loosen dirt and baked on mud. It doesn’t dry!! I also put a big ol cookie sheet underneath the quad. I bought em at a restaurant auction.

 

I have all sorts of brushes from dental brushes to bottle brushes of all diameters.

once it sits i scrub it around starting at the top. I don’t recall washing it with soap until 

I’m nearly done.

 

i do the same with my carbs—brush and wipe down the outside with Deep Creep 

[Fishfiles 20,147]

I like deep creep for a penetrant never used it as a cleaner before.  

[Fishfiles 20,147]

I just wire wheeled this 300 engine. Then hit it with a lite coat of aluminum paint.  

[_Wilson_™ 6,592]

might also drop @Z7What a line he did these aluminum rims .. 

[Goober 1,555]

Depends what you mean by clean @AKATV.

[Fishfiles 20,147]

26 minutes ago, Goober said:

Depends what you mean by clean @AKATV.

And what is your next step after it is clean 

[shadetree 5,969]

easy off oven cleaner.

[TBRider 1,411]

I use an acid

[jeepwm69 7,721]

I saw a guy on a Rincon board on FB who used a harbor freight soda blaster.  Made the engine look like new.  The soda was mild enough where he did the vent lines, fuel hoses etc too. 

 

I think I'd be hesitant to try it on a finished motor right off.  I've thought about trying it on a motor before I tear it down for a rebuild.  That way I can look and see if the soda does any harm or gets in anywhere. 

[AKATV 840]

I have  blasted baking soda to clean carburetors makes them look absolutely like new inside and out and it’s water-soluble and doesn’t do any damage at all
I only have a small blaster cabinet- crushed walnut shell media works very well also for cleaning the small stuff 

Not trying to make my cases look new or anything just trying to get all that baked on mud and dirt off an easier way.

 

[jeepwm69 7,721]

Well part of me thinks that blasting media into a seam can't be a good thing, but then again we use 3000PSI pressure washers on these things so can media blasting really be worse?

[AKATV 840]

Yeah personally I wouldn’t try to media blast a completed engine I think you have to be very careful anyways at least not to get a shot of whatever media you were using in the crank case breather hole or something

I think I’m just gonna bust out some of the royal purple, a heavy duty scrub brush and  fire up the pressure washer for the first time this year and see where that gets me

[Wheeler 2,527]

How long do you guys leave the oven cleaner on?? I'm going to try it.. heard lots of good about it.

 

 

[_Wilson_™ 6,592]

for me, just a matter of minutes ... doesn't take long ... just don't let it dry  .... best way is in an open shop with no fans on. and use gloves if you scrub any ... Ajax (came to mind to to)  i recall cleaning aluminum rims for my pops as a kid. worked really good, but i haven't seen Ajax around here in years .  

[Wheeler 2,527]

So spray oven cleaner on, leave few minutes then rinse?

[_Wilson_™ 6,592]

you should see the crud lift .... then rinse .... you might need multiple treatments .... but it does work! 

[shadetree 5,969]

25 minutes ago, Wheeler said:

So spray oven cleaner on, leave few minutes then rinse?

spray it on, maybe use a soft brush here and there, wait a few mins, rinse off, watch the mud stains run off !..lol.