Intake plenum & runners

[RLDaily]

The plenum and runners on my '90 are original and ugly after 20 years, other than polishing, powder coat or plating what can I do to make them look better?

 

[93Rubie]

Steam clean the heck out of them?

 

[RLDaily]

.....beyond the natural finish

 

[G Winter]

Stainless or aluminum paint. The stainless has a little nicer look , I think.


Glenn

 

[KANE]

The plenum and runners on my '90 are original and ugly after 20 years, other than polishing, powder coat or plating what can I do to make them look better?

You can paint them quite easily. Just use green Scotch Brite pads to rough them up after a thorough cleaning. I've painted sets before on my Vettes- as well as polished them myself.

If they come out really nice- and without dings in the tubes- perhaps you could even throw some clear Dupli-Color high temp paint on them and give them a deep, rich finish.

Good luck!

 

[boomdriver]

The plenum and runners on my '90 are original and ugly after 20 years, other than polishing, powder coat or plating what can I do to make them look better?

Any aluminum alloy gets oxidized from time, temp and weather. Dirt, oil and grease do not help...

To effectively clean, find some Eagle-1 brand MAG WHEEL wash (etching)(for cast wheels & mags) and spray that on the runners and plenum. Protect wiring and plastics. Allow the E-1 to work for a few minutes, then rinse away all the oxidation and grime.You may need to use a tooth brush to get the backside of the runners. A small 1" bottle type brush works well, just be wary of the splatter..
Rinse off and You will now have clean, bare aluminum alloy that can be polished or left as is. If polishing is the goal, which is easier than you know, start sanding with 220 then go to 320,then wet-sand 400, 600, 1000, 1500 2000, buff with tripoli then finish with white stick compound. The sanding is how to get the surface smooth enough to raise a smooth highly reflective chrome-like finish. Buff with a 4" sewn wheel in the variable speed drill or bench grinder.Its a Good weekend project with results that make you look for other things to polish !

This "etching" process is the first step in polishing any type of aluminum alloy. Oxidation is to aluminum what rust is to iron. This product is Phosphoric & Sulpheric acid, but it is safe to work with as long as normal precautions are used.

I used this particular product on all of my aluminum suspension parts to keep them looking new. Hubs, spindles, rods and frame sections.
Warning:------> DO NOT allow this chemical to come in contact with the composite springs front or rear. It will cause them to break from a chemical reaction.

When using this on the engine, keep the water hose spraying the underside and control arm area so no pure cleaner drips down on the spring. The rear spring can be wrapped in plastic then the entire rear suspension can be sprayed and hosed off.

For any pourous or cast aluminum this is the simplest and fasted way to good results.