Carb is disassembled...now what to clean the parts with?

[Stallion]

I have disassembled (to rebuild) my Q-Jet carb and now that everything is apart it is time to clean the parts. I'm guessing the obvious answer is some form of carburetor cleaner, but my uncle has a parts washer with a solution of "Safety-Kleen" (I'm 99.9% that's what it is called). Would that be safe? Or could I just use the all-purpose cleaner such as Simple Green?

Suggestions? Ideas? Advice?

Thanks

 

[wishuwerehere82]

Stallion,

The parts cleaner will work for getting the crud off the outside, but get some carb cleaner spray to clean out the passages in the carb. It has some agressive solvents in it that will remove the varnish and deposits in the tiny passages.
Also, make sure not to lose any small parts in the parts washer.

 

[Sensei]

I use laquer thinner.

 

[pgtr]

They make special solvents for dipping/soaking carbs in. For many carbs the parts cleaner you have access to may work fine but in some cases they can be seriously gummed up internally (the main body typically) in tiny passageways with varnish and that requires a stronger solvent and more time. You can also buy carb cleaner in a rattle can if you need it for a few small spots. You'll have to be the judge as to whether your carb will be good enough with the parts cleaner or if you need something stronger. I'll warn you that the carb cleaners in a can (1 gal, 5 gal etc...) is VERY nasty stuff - this is much stronger than parts cleaner and it will eat up plastics, etc too! Not quite as bad as paint stripper I'd guess but it's up there. Generally the 1 gal containers are not big enough to get the carb body down into.

 

[Mr. Chuck]

I had good results from a Product from Berryman, got from local parts shop. It came with a parts tray inside to hold those small pieces. It will remove all varnish, even in those small passage ways. One good rule of thumb is never put any parts in that are not all metal. The spay cleaner does a good job on this type of part, even so I don't spray directly on any electrical part to be on the safe side, especially older car part can have small cracks that allow the cleaner in and contaminate electrical components. One side experience: old used parts dip cleaner that stand around for years will / can eat through the can and give you a real mess. You may also want to use rubber gloves or long needle pliers to reach larger parts out of the cleaner or you can end up with chemical burns on your hands & don't drops parts into the cleaner, otherwise you can get splash in your face / eyes; not a fun experience!

 

[Evolution1980]

The best retail-store available stuff I've found is Valvoline SynPower "Carb, Choke & Throttle Body Cleaner". It comes with an attached swivel spray-nozzle hose.
The stuff is bad-a$$, better than chlorinated brake cleaner (which gets the 2nd Place award). Wear chemical resistent gloves and don't work around anything with paint. I was standing in a small puddle of in my garage and it had started to melt the soles of my shoes to the concrete. Again, wearing gloves is very important, as this stuff will instantly remove the oil/moisture from your skin and leave it completely dry. It's bad stuff! (Which makes it 'great stuff' in my book! :L)
The picture below is a different can than what I have, but it's just a newer design I believe.

Product Info