The old girl is down.

[crause]

Well, for the first time since I have owned my vette, she is not running. I finally decided that I was going to paint the engine and engine compartment and wanted to get it done before October (going to Cruisn the Coast). As things usually go with these old cars, one thing leads to another and one project into another. I decided to pull the carb. off so that I could get to more of the intake for painting. Since the carb. was going to be off, now is a good time to put a kit in it. The four inner bolts on the intake were leaking oil so now is a good time to pull them out and reseal them.
After taking off the carb and wrapping the dist. and sealing off anything I didn't want wet; I sprayed the whole thing down with engine degreaser (3 cans worth) and let it sit overnight. The next morning I sprayed it down some more with degreaser and let it sit until afternoon. I then cranked up the pressure washer and went to work. Wow! Not only did a ton of grease and crap come off but lots of loose paint. I am now going to let it dry real good and then start taping so that I can start painting. I forgot to say that I covered the entire car with plastic to prevent any of the cleaner or over spray from getting on the car. I took pictures but not digital; will post after being developed.
When I finish painting I am going to replace the fuel pump, spark plugs and wires and no telling what else.
Question: before I paint the engine is there anything else that I can do to make the paint (engine) stick better?
Thanks for listening and I will keep you all posted.

Andy

 

[mike weyman]

just clean with varsol and wipe with a clean rag. mikei

 

[crause]

just clean with varsol and wipe with a clean rag. mikei

"varsol" I haven't seen that since I was a kid. can you still buy that stuff.. Do you pour it on or wet a rag with it?

Thanks.

Andy

 

[mike weyman]

get a small rag,dip it in varsol, wipe the area, then wipe dry with a clean dry rag.this will remove any oil that the varsol lifted from the surface. when it dries it will be clean brown steel. i did this with mine and it cleaned up real well.
what color? i went with the good old orange.

 

[81LT4]

"varsol" I haven't seen that since I was a kid. can you still buy that stuff.. Do you pour it on or wet a rag with it?

Thanks.

Andy

Can't find it here so far, in Houston

 

[crause]

get a small rag,dip it in varsol, wipe the area, then wipe dry with a clean dry rag.this will remove any oil that the varsol lifted from the surface. when it dries it will be clean brown steel. i did this with mine and it cleaned up real well.
what color? i went with the good old orange.

I don't think I can buy varsol here, is there something else that will work the same way? How about kerosene? I am going with chevy orange for the block and intake and valve covers then black and silver for other parts. I purchased some 1500 degree silver paint with ceramic to paint the exhaust manifolds. I have never used this before but I will let you know.

andy

 

[mike weyman]

any paint thinner will do the same. i'll bet your local hardware store has it. the turpentine is worth a fortune for some reason.
i was thinking of painting my valve covers and air filter orange too. they are cast aluminum and are hard to clean(impossible)so i want to paint them except the ridges and writing, i'll leave that part aluminum and polish them.
is the high heat paint duplicolor??i have it too but have not run the engine much since.this silver will look $hitty on the alternator ,brake booster etc.
walmart (and others) sell rebuilders cast spray that looks great on the alternator also duplicolor sells a spray for painting rims (2 shades of silver gray)this looks great on the brake booster steering linkages, drive shafts .brake calipers etc.
i've been building mine for 2 years now and am almost ready for paint (maybe this week) i had almost forgotten the 10 cans of spray paint and the endless hours lying under her.mike

 

[Mac]

I purchased some 1500 degree silver paint with ceramic to paint the exhaust manifolds. I have never used this before but I will let you know.

andy

A word of advice on the heat paint, andy. The only way for heat paint to work worth a darn and not end up flaking off is to spray while the metal is hot- not warm, hot. Hot enough to boil any moisture out of the metal. I used a torch to heat my exhaust manifolds and sprayed them with CastBlast, then heated again and sprayed again. It's been two years... they still look like new.

-Mac

 

[Mac]

Can't find it here so far, in Houston

Check at household paint supply; they usually have varsol (aka varnish solvent) in the same area as paint thinner.

-Mac

 

[crause]

Thanks for all the great advice. As is usually the case these projects tend to snowball and this one is no different. The day after I pressure washed the vette, I walked into my shop and there was a ton of oil under my baby!:cry I only pressure washed a little under the engine but figured that I knocked something off and it was now leaking oil. I could see it dripping off of the bottom of the oil pan but didn't see it running down anywhere. Closer inspection showed two spots on the front facing part of the oil pan where oil was seeping through the metal. I guess the only thing holding the oil in the pan was grease and road grime. You couldn't see any holes, just the oil coming through. After much searching, I found a new oil pan here in Baton Rouge and since I was dropping the pan I may as well change the oil pump. I bought a new high performance oil pump with a new rod and screen. Since I was going to have the bottom off of the engine I figured that I may as well pull the front off. I bought new timing chain and gears, new timing chain cover, water pump and all new gaskets and seals. My weekend is going to be full. If anyone knows of things that I should be on the lookout for or any warnings that will keep me from messing something up, post quickly. I plan on starting Sat. morning.

Andy

 

[citruspilot]

I did the same thing with my 79 back a few months ago. I removed the intake, waterpump, valve covers, replaced all the gaskets and hoses, belts, wires, rotor, cap and sparks plug. I even had the carb overhauled. But before I painted the engine I used 6 full cans of "brake clean" to clean the upper, sides, and underneath the engine. Get it at NAPA. Its about $2.50 per can. I might add that brake clean will remove any residue left behind by the engine degreaser and help the paint stick better. Thats my suggestion. Just use it in a well ventilated area......or you'll be seeing things!

I learned from reading here that "tin foil" makes for a great way to mask off areas of the engine you dont want paint on. Wrap it around your exhaust manifolds, hoses, suspension and any other area that you dont want to have blue/orange paint on. It worked great for me............

Hope these ideas help you. Good luck!

Jeff