KDXRIDER.NET

I will soon be painting my motor for my KX-DX hybrid project, and I'm wondering the best way to prep the cases, covers, etc. Despite 45 minutes of Simple Green and a pressure washer, there is still a lot of baked-on mud residue that I can't really scrape or scrub off.

I thought about plugging up all the holes and getting a little gravity-fed sand blaster to hook up to my air compressor and just blasting the motor in the yard, but someone knowledgeable in the gearhead ways tried to dissuade me from that, saying no matter how careful you are, you're going to get blaster media in the seals and gaskets. I am hoping to avoid a bottom-end rebuild with this project, so I defnintely don't want to have to split cases to clean out sand from the sandblaster.

Anyone have any experience with this? Would using a softer media, like crushed walnut shells, be less likely to get in the seals? Is it really even an issue?

I was going to suggest the Sandblaster, but have you tried a Wire Brush on a Drill or Engine Degreaser & a Hand Held Wire Brush.

Why do you want to paint it?

I used Krud Kutter, wire brushes, wire wheels, carb cleaner, you name it on my motor this winter

Wish I'd taken a before pic, the motor was stained kinda tannish orange with the red clay I ride on

For painting, you should create a "toothed" surface by grit blasting with alum oxide or similar. You could do it on an assembled motor with the sufficient prep.

Even without the blasting, lots of guys on the CBX forum paint them as assembled. Usually cleaned, but not blasted.

For cleaning, try soda blast:

http://www.aircooledtech.com/tools-on-t ... a_blaster/

thats cool

I am totally trying the soda blaster. Great link!!

Also, good idea with the wire wheel.

I think combining both will work great. I won't be leaving bare metal, though. Definitely painting.

...and you need to post some before, after, and during pictures.
And we don't go for none of that blurry, cell-phone-cam $#!t, either. Just ask Wib.

Fugginay

I sandblasted mine and top coated clear.I know powdercoating reacts to soda blasting by peeling if not cleaned properly,so be carefull if taking that route.[/img]

Hmmm...that homemade blaster was cool. Do if you blasted your engine or hubs, would you need to pud a protective coat on them afterwards? By blasting are you blasting away a factory protective coat?

I tired the homemade soda blaster in that link on a rear hub and it cleaned it very well.

It wasn't a big deal, but the baking soda didn't feed through the tube at a consistent rate. I'd have a second or two of soda coming out, followed by a second of air, then a second or two of soda, etc.

The rain then cleaned off the driveway and you couldn't tell anything was done on the driveway.

Tedh98 wrote:I tired the homemade soda blaster in that link on a rear hub and it cleaned it very well.

It wasn't a big deal, but the baking soda didn't feed through the tube at a consistent rate. I'd have a second or two of soda coming out, followed by a second of air, then a second or two of soda, etc.

The rain then cleaned off the driveway and you couldn't tell anything was done on the driveway.

Did you use the recommended giant air compressor. I only have a little pot belly model and I'm sure it wouldn't produced the required volume.

I used a 25 gallon compressor. I think I had the PSI set to around 80. The motor on the compressor didn't rest for very long before cycling.

check eastwood's website as they have some blasting specific soda that works 10 times better then normal baking soda for blasting.The down side is I recall it only comes in 50lb bags.

I blast all of my aluminum with crushed walnut hulls. Works great, biodegradeable, and the end result is nice, bare aluminum.

Slick_Nick wrote:I blast all of my aluminum with crushed walnut hulls. Works great, biodegradeable, and the end result is nice, bare aluminum.

Where do you get the walnut hulls from?

Uhh they grow in walnut trees...

Ya just gotta eat a ton of em first

canuckhybrid125 wrote:

Slick_Nick wrote:I blast all of my aluminum with crushed walnut hulls. Works great, biodegradeable, and the end result is nice, bare aluminum.

Where do you get the walnut hulls from?

Haha I buy all my media from princess auto.

I should clarify, I don't use the walnut hulls to prep for paint. I use crushed quartz for that. The walnut hulls are great to bring aluminum back to its original lustre though.

princess ??

No surprise there

Slick_Nick wrote:

canuckhybrid125 wrote:

Slick_Nick wrote:I blast all of my aluminum with crushed walnut hulls. Works great, biodegradeable, and the end result is nice, bare aluminum.

Where do you get the walnut hulls from?

Haha I buy all my media from princess auto.

I should clarify, I don't use the walnut hulls to prep for paint. I use crushed quartz for that. The walnut hulls are great to bring aluminum back to its original lustre though.

I have just seen silica sand at our princess auto,ill have to take a closer look.Thanks Nick