Ultrasonic cleaning

[BooG]

Is there an effective cleaning solution that I can brew: i have heard lemon juice and vinegar mentioned.

[Bengt_Phorqs]

What are you wanting to clean BooG?  I like CLR as a general purpose cleaner.  Plain water and vinegar is a good household product.  I'm not sure about the lemon juice for cleaning although I do like a dash in my iced tea or perhaps in my pie filling.  Lemon & lime definitely does not belong in beer.

It kind of depends on whether you want to clean a textile, a painted surface, a greasy/grimy surface or glass.  

[Motu]

When I had an injector cleaner I used windscreen washer fluid in the ultrasonic tank.It was pretty close to the expensive fluid the maker recommended.

[BooG]

Gonna be stripping the carbs right down and cleaning the whole lot: casings, jets etc. Something that will help clean out passageways is the main aim; a nice finish is helpful, but not essential. Whilst we're on recipes, I have also heard that if you cover the casings in Tomato sauce and leave for a time, this can also aid the finish. Something to do with the acids?? Season as required.

[Bob_Roller]

I have an ultrasonic cleaner, I cleaned the carbs offof my '81 R65 about 3 years ago .

I used a cleaner specifically for use in ultrasonic cleaners for cleaning aerospace aluminum .

I was less than pleased with the result, while the surfaces were clean, the aluminum was darkened quite a bit .

Also, I'm not so sure how good a job an ultrasonic cleaner is on small passageways like the Bing carbs have .

Ultrasonic cleaners work because of microscopic bubbles in the cleaning solution collapsing and sending out shock waves, the shock waves are what do the cleaning .

If the cleaning solution is not in contact with the blockage (inside the passageway), no cleaning action will occur .

If you do find something that will brighten the aluminum while in an ultrasonic cleaner, please post it, my '84 LS carbs are in need of a good  cleaning/brightening .

If you like, do a generic search for ultrasonic cleaning principles, and you'll get the general theory behind it .

[Semper Gumby]

The best cleaner I have seen for the from the shop is brake cleaner in the can.  Don't get the stuff or the mist on your paint though.  

[R65_Mark]

..........If you do find something that will brighten the aluminum while in an ultrasonic cleaner, please post it, my '84 LS carbs are in need of a good  cleaning/brightening.

Bob,

If you are looking for a quick solution to brighten your carbs you might want to think about blasting with walnut shells.  I've cleaned the outsides of Bings, Strombergs and AMALS in the past few years with a great deal of success.  The media leaves a surface that is just a little more polished than the original finish.  Plastic media is another option, but while I know people that swear by it, I have no experience to call upon.

Mark

[MrRiden]

BooG,
For what it's worth I've just done a set of AMAL carbs using the el cheapo baking soda blaster found elsewhere here. Magnificent result including the passageways in the carb body. The blasted surface took to polishing on a wheel with amazing result and now shine like they were plated. Though I don't know how long this will last. The mechanical removal of debris in the passageways by the baking soda was second to no other method I have ever used.

[montmil]

Here's the link to the DIY Soda Blaster. I've been using mine frequently.

Note the use to clean the inside of carbs. The great thing about the bicarb of soda is that it dissolves in water. A good rinse out will leave passage clean of blast media.     Monte

http://www.aircooledtech.com/tools-on-the-cheap/soda_blaster/

[chewy4x4]

http://www.letterville.com/steps/hines/
This is a cool build of a cabinet.

[Flash]

Does anyone know of a good media to blast dirty wheels?
That baking soda did a great job on the carb bodies.

They sell large bags of the stuff at pool chemical stores pretty cheaply.