Ultrasonic parts cleaner

[twangin4u]

How well do these cleaners work on carbs? I'm thinking about getting a cheapy for the hell of it

[FJmonkey]

How well do these cleaners work on carbs? I'm thinking about getting a cheapy for the hell of it

They work really well, the best way to clean your carbs.

[aviationfred]

They work great on carbs and other things that would be tedious and time consuming to clean. The Larger cleaner from Harbor Freight works great. An added feature is that there is a heat button.

Here is a shot of my oil cooler lines. One is clean the other has 10,000 miles or so of road grime embedded in the stainless steel braids. I did not touch it with a brush or a rag.

Fred

[twangin4u]

They work great on carbs and other things that would be tedious and time consuming to clean. The Larger cleaner from Harbor Freight works great. An added feature is that there is a heat button.

Here is a shot of my oil cooler lines. One is clean the other has 10,000 miles or so of road grime embedded in the stainless steel braids. I did not touch it with a brush or a rag.

Fred

That's where I was think of getting one at. I saw one for $35 I think. Is there a larger one too? I didn't see that one

[aviationfred]

Here is the larger cleaner that I have.

http://www.harborfreight.com/25-liter-ultrasonic-cleaner-95563.html

Fred

[Pat Conlon]

Fred, can you get the full rack in there or do you have to separate the carb bodies?
(yes, know about disassembly of carb internals)

[aviationfred]

Pat,

I never did the carbs. I sent my carb bank to RPM for a rebuild, they were in such bad shape, I ended up buying a whole new set of 4.

I would imagine that you could split the bank and put in 2 at a time.

Fred

[a.graham52]

I have the 2.5l cleaner. Works good but I always separate the carbs into singles. You will have to run the cleaner for a while and then flip over the carbs to get the unsubmerged side. Also, any carb iv ever put in there has come out good with degreaser. However give then a few moths and the carbs start to oxidize and look horrible on the outside. I haven't yet looked into that issue.

[Steve_in_Florida]

...However give then a few moths and the carbs start to oxidize and look horrible on the outside. I haven't yet looked into that issue.

Moth balls, maybe?

Seriously, I've been working with corrosion on bike stuff for a while. Any of these hard-core cleaning methods leaves the base metal ripe for chemical reaction with the atmosphere.

On steel, I've been using a product called Os-Pho (phosphoric acid), which reduces the rust to a more stable, less active compound, and prevents freshly sandblasted steel from rusting quite so readily.

I wonder if freshly ultrasonically-cleaned parts could use a dousing in a light oil, or a coat of clear paint to protect against further oxidation?

My thoughts, at the moment.

Steve

[ribbert]

........However give them a few moths and the carbs start to oxidize and look horrible on the outside.  

....and the inside!

I had this discussion with the owner of the largest chain of carby and FI shops in the country on this subject and it is the very reason they won't do bike carbys. They are working on it though.

He is a metallurgist at explained it at a speed and in terms that left my head spinning. It's to do with the metal composition and is somewhat unique to bike carbys.

They had been sent a whole swag of potions from the US to formally test and the nearest to date was "Simple Green" but they were not entirely happy with that either.

As it stands at the moment, you can't get bike carbys ultrasonically cleaned here by a reputable specialist, they won't touch them.

Ask Randy what he uses. I assume his don't react over time.

Steve, I don't think oiling the surface is the answer, the petrol would wash it off and as I recall it was something to do with a component of that type of alloy rising to the top during the manufacturing process and once stripped, the metal underneath oxidises (or whatever it does)

Like I said, my head was left spinning with terminology but it made sense at the time and I'm sure there's plenty on the net about it.

Noel

[jscgdunn]

I have one and use it on all carbs.  Only use water and dish soap (ie Sunlight) or Fantastic.  Works great, no issues.

[racerrad8]

Ask Randy what he uses. I assume his don't react over time.

Noel

I use Crest Ultrasonic Cleaners; Chem-Crest 235

Really expensive, but it is designed for the job and requires a heated cleaner.

Randy - RPM

[Pat Conlon]

Wow

$90 a gallon: http://www.sonicsystemsales.com/store/p6/Chem-Crest_235.html

[racerrad8]

Wow

$90 a gallon: http://www.sonicsystemsales.com/store/p6/Chem-Crest_235.html

That's the right tool for the job, cost is not a concern at that point.

Randy - RPM

[FJools]

How long in the cleaner and at what temperature for carbs?

Thats something that I found little info on.............