De-Rusting Water Jackets?

[Flexicoker]

I've got this freshly machined 390 in my garage just SCREAMING to be put back together today... but after looking at it there seems to be alot of chunky rust down in the water jackets. Anyone have a good way of quickly getting rid of this so I can start assembly today? I'm worried about using anything caustic and getting some on my fresh .030 over cylinder walls. I was thinking tilting the engine over so one bank is pointed up... then blocking off the water pump holes and filling the whole thing up with water... let it sit for a bit... then stick something down in there and start scrapeing... followed by flushing with lots of water. Any other ideas? Thanks.

[Deuce Rails]

I've been tempted to try CLR (the calcium, lime, rust dissolver) but I haven't.

You could also try a coat hanger and see how much junk you can fish out. Even new from the factory, there was always casting sand and core wire lurking around in those passages. Who knows what else accumulates over a couple of decades?

--Matt

[Bruce Lancaster]

A guy on the Ahooga board a couple of years ago posted before and after pics of a Model A with a together-and- running engine that had very rusty passages. He filled it up with this miracle fluid and let it go to town. Unlike CLR, this stuff isn't acidic and probably wont cause further trouble. It looks to like you could use this process in a running engine for a while to really cleanitup. I have obtained enough to fill a garbage can to dip blocks, buthaven't tried it yet.
I think this was the stuff:

http://www.cleanrust.com/rustsolve.htm

Ahooga links:
http://www.ahooga.com/wwwboard/messages/145892.shtml

http://www.ahooga.com/archive/messages7/39137.shtml

[Flatdog]

Flex, take about a 2 ft section of inner E brake cable and chuck it in a drill.The end will frazzel up a little when you run in the water jackets and cleans well.Use this medthode on all my flatheads,but all so follow with a inner speedow cable in small passage in flahead block.

[FORDY 6]

A friend of mine that rebuilds Model T's, uses a product called "phix". I've seen the parts he's soaked in the solution...looks like new.

[Deuce Rails]

[ QUOTE ]
Unlike CLR, this stuff isn't acidic and probably wont cause further trouble.

[/ QUOTE ]

Good point, Bruce. That's why I haven't actually used CLR. I spilled CLR on concrete, and it ate the stuff away pretty quickly. (I suppose it dissolved the lime as advertisied!)

[Flexicoker]

I ended up just taking a wire bottle brush, about an inch in diameter, and sticking it down in there and rubbing vigorously until I got most of the chunks off. Then lots of rinsing. I would have tried the e-brake cable thing but I read that tip too late in the day. Thanks

[alteredpilot]

when in doubt, burn it out. a good run thru an acid tank will get it all out and wont mess with your machining. just labor intensive if you've already got a runner. but we ALL take our motors apart first, RIGHT....