muriatic acid, OK for carb soaking?

Muratic acid or spirit of salts....nasty, just "old timer" names for HCL, to get round the fact suppliers are not usually allowed to sell HCL to the general public without recording lots of details....

thats hydrochloric acid.... even diluted you don't want it in your eye...once its in it just eats through into the optic nerve and well.....just NO...

It nasty

aluminium has its own protective oxide layer so it won't necessarily eat it away instantly but it is so nasty you wll end up with holes in your clothes or hands or eyes....!

The only thing i use it for is motor cycle petrol tanks, and they need treating with caustic soda followed by bicarb and water afterwards.

use it on nuts or bolts and it casues embrittlement so don't be using that reclaimed bolt to attach your brake caliper.!

if i was going to use any kind of acid i'd use phosphoric acid, it shoould attack the gunge and leave the body alone over a few hours faster if warmed.

if you want it cheap you can get Milk Stone remover this is the stuff the dairy industry uses to clean their stainless fittings

i have no idea if the term milk stone is used in the US but it makes a nice rust removing gell if you mix it with wall paper paste. add some food colouring so you can see where you have smeared it.....

you can also use caustic soda BUT it makes the body turn dark grey and carries some of the risk of HLC in regards to your wellbeing....

and you don't know if its aluminium or just a casting of Pot metal..i.e what alloy is it???
could be just the swarf and scrap from some other process melted down and cast...like most of the trim was....

best bet is a sonic cleaner filled with brake cleaner and run outside at about 50*C
the fumes that come off are massively flamable and not nice.... outside only

if it still has blockages drill/pick out the lead plugs. blow through with air line and replace them with bits of lead shot and a punch, you want the un cut shot not fishing shot that has the cut for the line.

Dave