{"id":696,"date":"2025-11-20T23:34:45","date_gmt":"2025-11-21T04:34:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.brainwalkers.ca\/?p=696"},"modified":"2025-11-20T23:34:45","modified_gmt":"2025-11-21T04:34:45","slug":"engine-top-end-cleaning","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.brainwalkers.ca\/index.php\/2025\/11\/20\/engine-top-end-cleaning\/","title":{"rendered":"Engine Top-End Cleaning"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Wanted to get the engine\u2019s top end cleaned up before putting the whole puzzle back together again. The Barrel will be getting a fresh coat of VHT high-temp paint\u2014because nothing says \u201cI tried\u201d like paint that can actually survive a warm day.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

I did consider cleaning everything myself, but with all those fins on the Barrel and the Head, it was like trying to scrub between a porcupine\u2019s toes. As you saw in my last post, there was enough dirt packed between the fins to start its own postcode, plus 55-year-old paint hanging on for dear life. Without sand blasting or vapour blasting, the whole job looked about as appealing as hand-polishing a hedgehog\u2014so aye, not happening.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

John Johnson from the CVMG pointed me toward a company called Monarch Rebuilding, so I gave them a shout. They kindly offered me the \u201cfriend of John\u201d pricing\u2014which, knowing my luck, probably means a wee extra<\/em> added on for the privilege.<\/p>\n\n\n

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My other option was the old DIY route, and I even looked at a couple of the \u201crecommended\u201d hand-held blasters from Crappy Tire and Princess Auto. Aye, proper high-end equipment\u2026 if you\u2019re restoring a toaster. My garage compressor is only an 8-gallon wee beastie, puffing away like a pensioner on a hill climb, so it\u2019s well below spec for any serious blasting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sure, with enough stopping and starting I might<\/em> manage it, but that sounds like the sort of trial best left for spring\u2014when the weather\u2019s warm enough that my fingers don\u2019t freeze to the tools. I could try to reclaim the blasting media to save a few quid, but out in the winter or late-fall cold? Aye right. That\u2019s just adding another layer of misery to the job.<\/p>\n\n\n

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So I packed the parts up today, stuffed a bit of pool noodle in there for padding\u2014very high-tech, NASA-approved packaging\u2014and sent Holly off to St. Thomas with the box. She dropped it off on her way back from her program, probably wondering why she\u2019s now part of a BSA logistics operation<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Apparently it\u2019ll be ready for pickup Monday or Tuesday, so once it\u2019s back in my hands I\u2019ll post the next thrilling chapter. Fingers crossed no surfaces are damaged\u2014because after all the emails, assurances, and \u201coh aye, we know exactly what we\u2019re doing,\u201d I\u2019m expecting nothing short of perfection. Full confidence\u2026 or at least enough to pretend I\u2019m not sweating over it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let the dice roll. The box is away, the die is cast, and my stress level is now officially in the red.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Wanted to get the engine\u2019s top end cleaned up before putting the whole puzzle back together again. The Barrel will be getting a fresh coat of VHT high-temp paint\u2014because nothing says \u201cI tried\u201d like paint that can actually survive a … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_s2mail":"yes","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-696","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.brainwalkers.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/696","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.brainwalkers.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.brainwalkers.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.brainwalkers.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.brainwalkers.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=696"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/blog.brainwalkers.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/696\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":704,"href":"https:\/\/blog.brainwalkers.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/696\/revisions\/704"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.brainwalkers.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=696"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.brainwalkers.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=696"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.brainwalkers.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=696"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}