Degreaser

jsmith1107 · Post by **jsmith1107** » Thu Mar 07, 2013 11:05 am

Hey everyone,
Yesterday I cleaned my upper and lower engine cases with degreaser because they were nasty. However, when I did that the cases turned like a dark aluminum color---I want them to be a light aluminum color. How do I get them back to the nice aluminum color? Has anyone used the Duro brand Aluminum Jelly? I do not have a bead blaster or soda blaster so would rather find another way to do it because then I have to find someone for that.

Thanks

G-Man · Post by **G-Man** » Thu Mar 07, 2013 1:02 pm

Aluminium jelly usually leaves a light color. Try a small sample in an out of the way place as an experiment.

G

Bob750 · Post by **Bob750** » Thu Mar 07, 2013 2:59 pm

Just curious: are your cases apart or in the bike?

A lot of people have tried Purple Power on lots of stuff with great success, but the label recommends against using it on aluminum. So I learned my lesson. Did you happen to use that or a similar product? It may have cleaned but discolored your aluminum. (409 also can be corrosive to aluminum and I think magnesium.)

For degreasing, I've found DuPont's Degreaser for O-ring Chains to be very awesome. Even smells citrus-y. Aside from that I use Odorless Mineral Spirits. And I have a little MEK for weird stuff that won't listen. "Oh, don't make me open up a can of Ketone!!"

I've used Nevr-Dull and Mothers Aluminum Polish to great effect on smooth sections, but I imagine the finned areas would be a pain to do with those. I haven't heard of the Duro product mentioned, but the very next thing I'm going to do is Google it!

cknight · Post by **cknight** » Thu Mar 07, 2013 3:16 pm

Simple Green will also etch aluminum. It will really kill a polished surface. You may want to try buffing with a white Scotch-Brite pad and WD-40 to bring the surface back close to stock. An excellent degreaser that will not affect aluminum is De-Solv-It. Not easy to find in retail, but can be purchased online. A gallon will last a real long time. It's probably the best tool cleaner, too. Regards, Chase

bbap · Post by **bbap** » Thu Mar 07, 2013 7:03 pm

I've used with great success, "LA's Totally Awsome". It works great on most anything including washing your hands. Also works great on break dust, dead insects smashed on cars and road tar. It's a whopping $1.00 at your local dollar store. I used it on my dream with a green scrub pad and tooth brush and it worked well. I'm sure it must be carcinogenic based on it's cleaning abilities... Steve

cadman · Post by **cadman** » Fri Mar 08, 2013 6:44 pm

You lightly etched the aluminum with the cleaner. I have never found a way to easily solve this. Try some #000 steel wool and see how hard it is to get to the light color. There are a number of aluminum polishes on the market but I doubt any will easily solve the problem. If you can find SimiChrome aluminum polish and use it with steel wool that might be the easiest.