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Painting the valve cover.

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AUSMHLY

AUSMHLY

Yoda
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Hello all,

I brought my valve cover to the local blasting place to have the paint blasted off. It seems they used sand to do it. OK it's paintfree now, but sure feels rough. The question is where do I go from here.

Do I sand it smooth then paint it with MOSS' engine paint or do I prime it first with heat resistant primer. If I go the primer route, do I sand the primer then paint it? Someone told me (local body shop) that I should not wait let the primer cure too long for the paint will not bond as well. Paint it with in a couple hours.
Somehow this simple project of painting my valve cover has raised questions of the proper way to paint a valve cover.

Any advise here?
Roger
 
I also sandblasted my cover. I then used a primer surfacer and sanded that, after spraying enough coats to get a good fill. After sanding it was quite smooth. I then painted it using an epoxy paint. To my knowledge it is only crucial to apply the topcoat within a couple of hours if you are covering with a clearcoat.

Robert
 
Rodger, I think a nice polished aluminum saying Austin Healey in red script would look great with your carbs. They are available. And your Healey deserves a nice Xmas present for all the joy she brings you.
 
Hi Roger,

First a warning. Sand blasting engine parts carries a big risk if you do not remove every last bit of sand and this can be hard to do depending on the part. For this reason I prefer to use chemical strippers or soda blasting on engine parts. The AH valve cover has some internal strips/baffles which I think are there for sound dampening/stiffening and you should carefully rinse these areas with brake or carb cleaner (perhaps use the nozzle). You could also put the cover in Lacquer thinner or mineral spirits and use air pressure to try to remove every last grain of sand. Same for the oil filler cap if you had it sand blasted.

For the rough finish, I prefer to sand first instead of fill with primer. Use an orbital sander if you have one since it makes the job easier. 220 paper would be good to get a smooth enough finish for primer. This is the time to look for any dimples or high spots and use a hammer/dolly to work them out of the metal. Then, I prefer a coat of self-etch primer. Duplicolor has it in spray can that seems to work good. The idea is to get an initial layer that sticks well, not necessarily fills. Then I switch over to a primer with more body to give some thickness to fill and allow sanding. If any primer has set for more than a half day I scuff it lightly with a fine scuff pad (auto paint stores have light 'scotch bright' type pads that work great on contoured surfaces like the valve cover). After several medium coats of sanding primer, let it dry thoroughly and sand with approx. 400 grit to get a smooth finish. Wipe down the surface and spray with engine enamel of your choice. I use Hearsch paint thinned down a bit for a smooth finish on the metal covers but if you have used Moss cans for the rest of the engine, stay with that as the color is different. After painting if you get orange peel or see some defects you can't live with then after the paint has cured, lightly sand it down and paint again. I often will repaint parts several times until I'm happy with it as it doesn't take much extra time to get it right.

Yes, the oil filler cap has a gasket. It appears to be an oil resistant fiber gasket.

Cheers,
John
 
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