Preventing staining on cast engine covers?

[general_piffle]

Is there anything (except paint etc. I want to keep the finish raw/original) I can apply to the cast aluminium engine covers to help prevent them from staining, crap from the road, etc.? Thanks.

 

[Schurminater]

There could be a number of answers to this question depending on how often you clean your bike, how often you ride it in the rain and do you clean it soon afterwards? and also do you like polishing?

As a serial polisher I don't have an issue with staining as the dirt's never on there long enough to cause a problem! and if on the odd occasion I do get caught out in a thunderstorm it doesn't take too much effort to get her back up to standard.

You could (but I don't) wipe a smear of WD40 over the casings, that might help, as well as a quick wipe over with engine oil might also do the trick, then there is ACF50 which some use but mainly in the winter for protection of the alloy, a host of products out there if you don't want to apply a permanent cover ie Lacquers or powder coating.

For me I just use Mothers Mag for my engine casings and chrome come to think of it,and I have found that a small brass brush to be very effective on rough casings but don't tell everyone!

Could go on for hours with cleaning tips but you may well fall asleep and don't forget Pink muc off spray that's great after a rain storm, agitated with a soft brush to a subtle foam oh boy.....time to polish

 

[Paul Marx]

It's all down to psychology.
Learn to be proud of stained casings because it shows that the bike is ridden.
Paul

 

[Paul Marx]

There could be a number of answers to this question depending on how often you clean your bike, how often you ride it in the rain and do you clean it soon afterwards? and also do you like polishing?

As a serial polisher I don't have an issue with staining as the dirt's never on there long enough to cause a problem! and if on the odd occasion I do get caught out in a thunderstorm it doesn't take too much effort to get her back up to standard.

You could (but I don't) wipe a smear of WD40 over the casings, that might help, as well as a quick wipe over with engine oil might also do the trick, then there is ACF50 which some use but mainly in the winter for protection of the alloy, a host of products out there if you don't want to apply a permanent cover ie Lacquers or powder coating.

For me I just use Mothers Mag for my engine casings and chrome come to think of it,and I have found that a small brass brush to be very effective on rough casings but don't tell everyone!

Could go on for hours with cleaning tips but you may well fall asleep and don't forget Pink muc off spray that's great after a rain storm, agitated with a soft brush to a subtle foam oh boy.....time to polish

One presumes that you're never on the road for several days or weeks.
Paul

 

[Schurminater]

Certainly not up to your standards Paul Work just gets in the way.

 

[Paul Marx]

Certainly not up to your standards Paul Work just gets in the way.

I understand.
I used to work, and have children.
Gets in the way of motorcycling.
And having too many bikes gets in the way of cleaning.
Paul

 

[sfcpiet]

Is there anything (except paint etc. I want to keep the finish raw/original) I can apply to the cast aluminium engine covers to help prevent them from staining, crap from the road, etc.? Thanks.

Don't use the bike.

Heat, water or petrol will wash away anything you coat the cases with, pretty futile actually. Regular and thorough cleaning keeps them respectable for quite a few years, then they'll just start to show their age, much like us.

piet

 

[Vince]

I had my exhaust ceramic-coated with their shiny, almost chrome finish. It looked great for about 3 years, but even with annual Autosol polishing, it gradually turned a dull grey. Just like me. The same thing happened to my fully rebuilt Aloy Borani wheels, beautifully polished at that time and again with Annual Autosol rubs, they gradually dulled off. I guess it's all the time when the bike is out of its glass box, actually being ridden. We're having a bit of a display day on Sunday, maybe I might wash it.

 

[Andy]

If you spend the time to get a really good shine then less sticks to it, and just needs a little regular upkeep. Carnuba wax helps for a bit, but really you just need to keep bashing away at it.
I made a decision to keep a couple of the obvious and easy bits shiny and leave the rest of the aluminium to oxidise naturally. To me, it looks pretty presentable without excessive upkeep.
Like Paul, I’m more concerned with keeping the oil clean and regularly heated

 

[general_piffle]

Sorry, should have been clearer. I'm talking about raw/cast covers, not those that are already polished/painted and I'd like to keep them raw and cast but clean. I'm liking the small brass brush idea, sounds ideal. Also, I have some (a lot) of ACF50 so I'll give that a go.

No doubt the cases will show their age over time; unlike myself - but then I have a portrait in the attic...

 

[Haggis]

ACF50 is great - but it's very sticky and will attract dust and road stuff (type particles etc) like glue - your cases will remain clean underneath, but after a decent trip will be as black as coal on the surface. HTH.

 

[CLEMTOG]

I clean the castings with houshold oven cleaner, err well sometimes!
CLEM

 

[The Sock]

I've never tried it. Joel, but, back in the '70s, several Owners swore by a paste made with Vim and a little water, left on for 15 minutes and then scrubbed off and thoroughly rinsed brought back the original look on the sandcast bits.

 

[general_piffle]

Thanks all, good ideas! I now have small toothbrush sized brass wire brushes and Vim in my evilBay Watch List...

 

[Andy]

If it works, let me know and I’ll let you do my cases too

 

[motoddrob]

I use to use a mixture of washing powder and dish washing liquid for a through clean of the sand cast ally.
Apply leave for half an hour and pressure wash off. Old tooth brushes and stiff laundry brushes to agitate help as well.

 

[Dellortoman]

If you have an air compressor, get one of these el cheapo sand blasting guns ... UK eBay link here



But don't put sand or grit in it. Buy baking soda by the 1kg bag (available on eBay) and use that as the blasting media. It'll get into crevices where you can't reach with a wire brush and will shift stubborn stains that have been baked on for years. It's not abrasive so is perfectly safe for aluminium alloy (I clean up really dirty carbies with it before dunking them in the ultrasonic bath). Do it outside because the fine powder will go everywhere, but it's water-soluble so you can hose it off afterwards.

 

[piranha-bro2]

I've found that heavy duty degreaser scrubbed in with a toothbrush then pressure wash gets a lot of the ingrained crap out of the cases. Judicious use of open pore mag wheel cleaner used to be the go, but they've removed the part that works (phosphoric acid, I think) from it for OHS reasons. At the end of the day, the open pore castings will eventually grubby up - clean them once every 20 years when doing rebuilds

 

[TeddyG]

For the porous sand cast engine parts I use silicone spray that seems to seal the surface and help keep it clean. For the smooth/raw alloy I use Happich semichrome paste.

 

[RGS1000RGS]

I clean the castings with houshold oven cleaner, err well sometimes!
CLEM

Hopefully not caustic.