Cleaning pistons

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Krooser said:
View attachment 1715480542 I bought a $60.00 ultrasonic cleaner on ebay... very good results on valve train parts. I use Purple Power at a 50/50 mix. Turn up the heat and 30 minutes.
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try the parts in a ziplock bag with your liquid in the bag. that way it doesnt screw up the tank water and you can dump the dirty stuff without changing the whole tank. thats what i do and then you use way less chemicals and they can be stronger or weaker depending on what your doing.
 
The last set of pistons I cleaned. I used CRC 5-56, soaked them in a can for a while and carbon and everything wiped off clean with a shop towel.
 
Wire wheel the tops, groove clean them if needed, and see if you can find a shop with a piston shirt knurler if that type.
Pressure wash maybe. They get oily and lightly carbon coated once in a running engine in the end. You mainly just wanna get any grit that could hurt cyl wall/bearings and a clean top as to not change any one cylinders cc/compression or cause preigniton from hot carbon.
I wire wheeled the tops of my KB's, brass toothbrushes the top lands heat grooves and deburred them all. Brake clean/ compressed air.
 
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I kurled the old solid skirt pistons, and the ones with simple grooves for oiling
on modern piston with all the multi axis mechaning i knurl the non thrust side for clearance if necessary
today there's coatings
 
I want to start and thank everyone for their input!!
I've got to tell you, When it comes to helping, knowledge, and just good ole common sense, this group is second to none!!
What I have found is working well, is a combo of using a ring groove cleaner, and soaking in chem-dip. Im slow, but I soak each piston for about 12 hrs. Everything washes clean except the ring grooves and some of the oil holes.... That I get with the ring groove cleaner and using a small drill bit, in my hand to clean out the oil holes.
In a few days, I will post pictures.
Again, thanks to everyone for your help!!
 
chrisf said:
try the parts in a ziplock bag with your liquid in the bag. that way it doesnt screw up the tank water and you can dump the dirty stuff without changing the whole tank. thats what i do and then you use way less chemicals and they can be stronger or weaker depending on what your doing.
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Good idea. Some of these chemicals we use gas off even worse in an ultra sonic and you don't want to be around them. The bag should help with that. I have three tanks of various sizes.
I've found that some firearms bores solvents work very well on carbon build up. They are designed to break down gunpowder residue.
 
I want to thank everyone again for their suggestions. I ended up using the chem-dip. Took awhile, but I am in no hurry.... Also, as suggested, I probed the oil holes for the bottom ring. Some of those were stopped up. Then I used a ring groove cleaner and that was it.
Below is a picture, again thanks to everyone for their suggestions.
20200308_085218.jpeg
 
Wyrmrider said:
Rusty
I always taped over the ring lands when bead blasting and blasted the *** out of the skirts
used walnut hell blast on the ring lands\
When bead blasting use NEW bead or have a separate blaster that has never seen iron or steel
using dirty blast does ruin pistons
Too bad you cant get the chlorinated chem dip any more
you know- the stuff that would take your skin off
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When I was still in high school, I worked for a local mom and pop machine shop that was opened in 1957. The owner opened it upon his return from the Navy. He had a 55 gallon barrel with 35 gallons of carbon-tetra-chloride in it. That stuff would clean the nastiest carburetor you ever saw in an hour. It was some bad stuff.
 
RustyRatRod said:
When I was still in high school, I worked for a local mom and pop machine shop that was opened in 1957. The owner opened it upon his return from the Navy. He had a 55 gallon barrel with 35 gallons of carbon-tetra-chloride in it. That stuff would clean the nastiest carburetor you ever saw in an hour. It was some bad stuff.
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That's not the first time I've heard about carbon tet from a military veteran. Usually it was in regard to how they would clean their weapons from cosmoline packing after transport to theater. They'd stack rifles in a 55 gal barrel of that stuff and it would have them clean in no time. It's not something that you want to be exposed to for a long time though.
 
We used carbon tet when I was a mechanic in the Navy, in the early 60s. Cleaned aircraft parts really good/fast. Never thought of the bad effects at that time.
Dave
 
I've always said when it comes to chemicals, if it won't make you have two headed babies, it ain't worth crap. lol
 
RustyRatRod said:
When I was still in high school, I worked for a local mom and pop machine shop that was opened in 1957. The owner opened it upon his return from the Navy. He had a 55 gallon barrel with 35 gallons of carbon-tetra-chloride in it. That stuff would clean the nastiest carburetor you ever saw in an hour. It was some bad stuff.
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he could sell that 35 gallons today and retire on it. $500/liter nowadays.
 
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