Rattle Can Attack on Engine_ is it reversible?

[JayR]

Hey folks - as a brief introduction I've been getting up to speed on the xs650 and learning about the bike and its pros and cons for a couple of months now.

Well, if anything I'm only more convinced now that i need to try my hand at a first build, and I have a reasonably informed understanding of what I may be getting into (I can hear your laughter now).

Been combing the classifieds and weighing the pros and cons of which model, and condition, bike I should go for. I think I found about what I want (if I can get the price down) but I am concerned about one thing:

The engine was spray painted pretty thickly with black spray paint all over. Everyone has their own preferences, and this may have been exactly the aesthetic the current owner was going for, but I'd need to strip the spray paint off to get to the original finish to make it work for what I am envisioning.

Does anyone know if it's possible, or reasonable I guess, to get spray paint off a good running engine? Ideally, the engine is running fine so a tear down isn't preferred - but perhaps that is the only option?

I appreciate any experiences or advice you can provide.

 

[AtoXS]

The safest, least aggressive way to remove it would be soda blasting which you can just wash off after. In theory I guess it could be done with the engine in the frame as long as your removed everything in the way and did a really good masking and sealing job.

 

[nj1639]

The Heritage Specials came from the factory with what appears to be an epoxy type black paint for the engine block. The jugs and head were black also. '82 came with the lower forks, fenders and gauge buckets painted black. '83 came out with those chromed. Neither year or any year that I'm aware of had the engine sidecovers black from factory. Looking at yer pic I'm thinking you have an '82.

 

[nj1639]

Yeah, that's bombed above and beyond.
Find a pic of a stock Heritage Special for reference......

 

[CraigKrage]

You could try oven cleaner.

 

[JayR]

Thanks for the suggestion on soda blasting AtoSX. I searched the forum and it seems like that's something that can be done in the garage with the right home made set up. I thought it was a lot more complicated.

 

[gggGary]

The Heritage Specials came from the factory with what appears to be an epoxy type black paint for the engine block. The jugs and head were black also. '82 came with the lower forks, fenders and gauge buckets painted black. '83 came out with those chromed. Neither year or any year that I'm aware of had the engine sidecovers black from factory. Looking at yer pic I'm thinking you have an '82.

82-83 Carbs were black too but the carb caps were chrome.

Some chrome and aluminum with the black can look pretty sharp.

 

[rebel542]

Don't use oven cleaner as most contain lye. It's very corrosive, especially to aluminum. The soda blaster is probably your best bet.

 

[JayR]

The Heritage Specials came from the factory with what appears to be an epoxy type black paint for the engine block. The jugs and head were black also. '82 came with the lower forks, fenders and gauge buckets painted black. '83 came out with those chromed. Neither year or any year that I'm aware of had the engine sidecovers black from factory. Looking at yer pic I'm thinking you have an '82.

Nj1639 thanks for,the sharp eye and knowledge. I went back to the CO's listing and it is indeed a 1983. Then I went to Skull650's excellent Model ID Album and there it was, the 1983 in all it's black and chrome glory, like gggGary's awesome picture.

The CO references his liberal use of flat black spray paint on the tank, so an all black vibe was probably going on. Here's the current state, again it may work at the right price but....

 

[JayR]

Don't use oven cleaner as most contain lye. It's very corrosive, especially to aluminum. The soda blaster is probably your best bet.

Thanks for the tip rebel, I didn't know oven cleaner contained lye.

But I'll pass the oven cleaner tip on to my wife, she'll appreciate that!

 

[CraigKrage]

I've used it as a paint stripper in the past.
Good catch on not using it in this case.

 

[aldo5468]

If you do go with that bike, it's probably best to plan on removing the engine from the frame to get that black paint completely stripped.

 

[hard_y_rd]

If I had a running motor, I wouldn't tear it down to blast it. Just run it till you need to do a top end at least or at the end of the riding season.
I HAD to tear mine down cause the pistons were seized in the jugs. Here's a before and after shot. It takes alot of time and patience to get from point A to point B. It's not a show stopper, but I think it's a hell of a lot better then it was.
Wanted to do a side by side.Anyway you get the idea.

 

[hard_y_rd]

2nd pic was upright.

 

[TwoJugs]

Aircraft paint stripper was designed to be used around aluminum. It works fast and great. You will need to be careful where it is placed and prep the motor for a good water wash when ready to remove the stripper. To do this half right the motor will need to be removed from the frame. It is nasty stuff if not treated with caution though.

 

[maynard911]

You can remove rattle can paint with a soda blaster but the factory black engine paint is very tough stuff. You will have to pull the engine to bead blast. Even the glass beads have a hard time on that paint, I ended up blasting first with crushed, sharp edge glass and then reblasting with fine beads to get the satin finish that I wanted.