Aristotle,
Hours and hours and hours of labor, put simply. Â The heads and cylinders were media blasted during their professional repair. Â The top cover, air box, and valve covers were powder coated while the timing chain chest cover was hand prepped and painted (high heat rattle can) by me, by hand. I spent many hours experimenting with the aluminum cases and covers. I found out the hard way a lot of these aluminum parts have different alloy mixes and don't respond to chemical treatment equally. Without boring you with all my failures, I found deep cleaning the surfaces thoroughly with diluted Simple Green, stiff grout brushes, and brakleen then a dry rub with a green industrial scotchbrite pad the best and most consistant procedure. The challenge was getting a clean consistant surface without polishing or buffing the integrity of the natural pitted surface. No acid based chemicals were used, or WD40. Â I experimented with many over the counter acid chemical solutions on a spare oil pan with no success towards the finish I was in search for. I would have rather have had the entire engine media blasted but the engine was never completely disassembled and I would not endanger the engine for fear of abrasive media material penetration. Â
