SteveBorland
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Interesting... What media do you use in the ultrasonic cleaner to get these results?
vibratory tumblers
- Thread starter seattle##gs
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It varies with the material to be cleaned, base is plain water with detergent for a wetting agent but it helps cleaning too. So for steel and cast iron I add phosphoric acid, for aluminium alloy I add citric acid. Amal carbs are a mine field as they changed the material so often and some react to acids by going black so I use only detergent plus sometimes some meths.
Phosphoric does work initially on aluminium alloy but it removes the aluminium oxide layer and then attacks the alloy to make aluminium phosphate which is very dark and discolours the casting. If you catch it in time its ok, if the phosphate layer has only just started to form then changing the fluid to citric acid based will restore the as cast finish. If you go to far then you have a lot of work ahead, hence I only use citric or oxalic as an alternative. Being not as aggressive it's only extra time.
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There is a guy in Melbourne Australia who calls himself Vacublast. He uses aluminium oxide as the blast media. There is virtually zero loss of dimension on aluminium parts. The normal strip which is used to remove the oxide coating on aluminium is a mixture of phosphoric and chromic acid. Any plating shop which does anodising will have it. Bare aluminiun regains an oxide coating within minutes after being stripped. When the surface of exposed coating hardens, it locks in organics which can cause porosity if subsequent welding is done. So if you are going to weld castings, don't handle the parts with greasy hands, after stripping - dry them in an oven and use a clean scratch brush prior to welding.
I would not tumble aluminium engine parts.
I would not tumble aluminium engine parts.
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Tumble polishing is a slippery slope. I have a harbor freight and a larger one. I elect to send most engine/transmission internals out now as getting the finish right can be a a challenge. Also be extra careful doing an agressive polish only thing nitrided.
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Do you brake with your drum front brake while you are on a lean ? How many laps of a race circuit does it take before the linings heat-up and either fade or become sticky. If you enter a corner faster than other bikes, you either find a way through or you brake - survival can be a matter of luck. That is not the way to race. If I race, my death is never going to happen, however I know the reality. Some people ride road bikes and their knowledge of racing is supposition and speculation. Riding on public roads is very different from racing. Incidentally, a single disc front brake is not enough for a bike as heavy as a Commando, if you really get it going.
robs ss
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And Gary rarely used it
Then again, he used to lean the bike in corners, not "keep it upright" like the armchair racers
Steve Highfield
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Blu tac works better than plasticine for protecting holes, it pulls out in one piece and has some bounce to it so it stands up to the media more effectively. Does not negate the need to wash the part after media blasting as media can still get caught in area's.
I ultrasonically clean instead.
TLS brakeplate ultrasonically cleaned and then assembled.
and a crankcase only partially inserted and ultrasonically cleaned for 15 mins as a test.
I use my ultrasonic cleaner religiously.. I jump around bit in cleaning additives. Most I have to wash in fresh water as I find them corrosive.
What are you using for a cleaner in your ultrasonic Machine?
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It varies with the material to be cleaned, base is plain water with detergent for a wetting agent but it helps cleaning too. So for steel and cast iron I add phosphoric acid, for aluminium alloy I add citric acid. Amal carbs are a mine field as they changed the material so often and some react to acids by going black so I use only detergent plus sometimes some meths.
Phosphoric does work initially on aluminium alloy but it removes the aluminium oxide layer and then attacks the alloy to make aluminium phosphate which is very dark and discolours the casting. If you catch it in time its ok, if the phosphate layer has only just started to form then changing the fluid to citric acid based will restore the as cast finish. If you go to far then you have a lot of work ahead, hence I only use citric or oxalic as an alternative. Being not as aggressive it's only extra time.
I had a BMW bare shell media blasted and was shocked at how much residue was left throughout the entire car and spent a full day cleaning it out despite the shop who did the job assuring me when I picked it up it was clean. My goal was to lighten the car up and prep it for a cage installation. I then had the entire interior powder coated by the same shop that did the media blasting.
Years ago, the NASCAR guys started REM polishing all gearbox and diff parts and saw increased rwhp on the chassis dyno. The guy that builds all of my gearboxes and diffs started doing this and I saw the same results. Also, the gearboxes shifted noticeably smoother. I spoke with Matt about doing this on our Norton gearboxes and he didn't seem to think we would see the same dramatic results. After the polishing, the parts look very similar to the pics of the tumbled parts shown here.
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IRT ultrasonic cleaner solution, Master Fluid Solutions Master Stages Clean 2020 is the bees knees
