Cleaning up and prepping 4A084

[ToddK]

Hi All,
I picked up a 4A084. I am building it for aircraft use, so weight is an issue. I plan on hand proping so no starter, I am interested in some kind of generator or alternator. ADS-B is coming quickly, so I would really like to have power for of a transmitter, otherwise I will have to stay out of some of my local airspace. Not tragic, but not deal breaker. A battery is another option, but then there is that weight problem. I have a prop, and a hub (from arrow). They guy I purchased the motor from (has been very nice and helpfull) got two of them from the same person, and converted one for aircraft use and ended up not needing the second. I plan on following his example with a 28mm mikuni slide carb (unless you all have a better recommendation). He said the fuel pump was two powerful for it, so he went with a gravity feed fuel system, where he used the fuel pump to pump fuel into a 2 gallon header tank, and then let gravity do the rest, if anyone has a simpler more elegant solution, I would certainly like to hear it.

The engine is pretty nasty from sitting, with a bit of what looks like oxidation or corrosion on the cylinder fins. I would like to clean it up and paint it as many on this forum have done. The seller did not do this to his engine. It seems to fly fine dirty! How have you all cleaned and prepped the engine for paint?
Thanks,
Todd K.

[Corky]

Hi Toddk... Nice engine !!...I was lucky mine wasn't corroded too bad and my green paint wasn't sticking to the engine very well...I used a rubber tipped air blow gun and most of the paint came right off...It appears yours might be on there better than mine was...If it's adhering well all you need to do is scuff it and shoot the color over it...As for the corroding,bare components you'll need to use a combination of goodies like some scotchbrite pads,wire brushes, And even a plain old scrub brush...

If it's dusty I'd start with some soap and water...Scrub it well followed by blowing it off to dry it quickly...If you don't have an air compressor you could use a leaf blower to move the excess water and dry it{I do that with some of my vehicles }then on to the real work...
First I'd try to clean the engine with the wire/brass brushes and a cleaner like "purple power" and see how it looks...You may need some long brissles to get in between the cooling fins

And as a last resort..Some etching cleaners....The trouble with some of the corroding components are the different metals...Aluminum and cast iron for the most part...Each needs it's own cleaner to get the corrosion off...For ferrous metals{steel and cast iron} I like to use a product called Evaporust{non toxic}...You brush it on,keeping it wet and it will disolve the rust and corrosion followed by a rinse with acetone or lacquer thinner to prevent flash rust...You could also use muratic acid but that's some nasty stuff and caution needs to be taken as with any acid..
The easy way out on the aluminum components would be to get a spray bottle of "mag wheel cleaner" from the auto parts store and spray the engine block,etc... down with that ...That's usually a phosphoric acid based mix for cast aluminum...
In any case you're in for some cleaning ,scrubbing and wire brushing no matter which route you take...