After reading everything I could find (which, to my surprise was not that much), I'm still somewhat in the dark as to how to remove the carbon from the valves, combustion chamber, piston domes, etc. I gave the pistons a soak in a 50/50 of kerosene and brake fluid, then scrubbed with bronze wool and a bronze brush. They came out clean-er-ish. When I did the same with the valves, the solution barely touched them.
(I didn't even try doing anything with the combustion chambers) Could this be the difference between the aluminum in the pistons, and the valves being steel? Should I just say " " and spring for new, stainless steel valves? I've also heard of using oven cleaner and ammonia (not at the same time! ). So, keeping it simple, cheap (important, 'cause that's me!), and efficient, how do I get that damned carbon out of there?! And how clean does everything have to be (during a top-end rebuild) for me to get the most out of my efforts? I understand where I'm at now is going to be better than where it was the last time it ran (20+ years ago! ), but does anyone have any other ideas/techniques? Am I just being impatient? Do I need to leave the valves in "the dip" for days/weeks for the carbon to soften enough to remove? Thanks in advance for your help...
(I didn't even try doing anything with the combustion chambers) Could this be the difference between the aluminum in the pistons, and the valves being steel? Should I just say " " and spring for new, stainless steel valves? I've also heard of using oven cleaner and ammonia (not at the same time! ). So, keeping it simple, cheap (important, 'cause that's me!), and efficient, how do I get that damned carbon out of there?! And how clean does everything have to be (during a top-end rebuild) for me to get the most out of my efforts? I understand where I'm at now is going to be better than where it was the last time it ran (20+ years ago! ), but does anyone have any other ideas/techniques? Am I just being impatient? Do I need to leave the valves in "the dip" for days/weeks for the carbon to soften enough to remove? Thanks in advance for your help...