KTM200-280zxt

Right now I am in the middle of putting in a new head gasket along with a bunch of other stuff. SO theres not much left in my engine compartment other then the block and a few other things here and there.

I half *** prepped my engine compartment then sprayed it with Rustoleum high gloss black paint. I must say it looks.... terrible. First off... the gloss black shows every little imperfection and plus im more of a flat/satin black person.

Just wanted to some advice on painting my engine bay. I was told to use POR 15, which seems like something many others have used but I dont have any real bad rust in my engine bay.

Im prolly going to end up pulling my entire motor anyways to clean that up. So I was going to sand it down real good, then prime and use some satin black paint over that. Does this make any sense?? And since I have gone with megasquirt i dont need most of the stuff in my engine bay so now theres about 100 tiny little holes from the zip-ties for the wirng harness.

I know nothing about body work(had most of mine done proffesionally) so how would I go about filling some of these?

And my last question... I used scotch brite on the block and painted it with 1200degree black paint. Once again didnt come out too good. So what paint do you suggest? And what steps should be taken to make sure it comes out good? Im sandblasting and painting that front timing cover but theres no way I want to sand blast my block. And I wire wheeled by head which looks good.

Any suggestions would be apreciated very much. ANd I apologize for the long winded post.

thanks
Rob

thxone

Well if you do get the block out to clean it...(would be easier to paint also) I don't see why you couldn't use a chemical paint stripper to remove the factory paint as long as you're carefull. After all the paint is scrapped off some acetone or brake cleen to remove all the residue of the paint remover. Some Brake Caliper paint or Grill paint (Thats Cooking Grill) should work well on the block. You may be able to scuff the block with some 150-300 grit sandpaper or the wire wheel, clean it again, let it dry then paint it...should come out nice.

nismo619

hmm... im able to clean the block off pretty nice with " throttle body spray. " its cheap 2.99 a bottle and it only take me one can for each side and it lasts about 6 to 8 months even in rainy weather. as far as painting the block i used 500 degree jet hot paint u get at like Advance auto parts it holds up super strong to all the elements. i even used it to paint my gas cap clear black gloss.. and i must say " small little coats are better than one heavy coat. "

KTM200-280zxt

Thanks for the help, I happen to have a full can of 1200degree Grill paint, I guess Ill use that. BUt other then that there is no other coats I should put on to help make it last?

Thanks
Rob

And does anyone have any advice on painting the engine bay? Like I said I dont know a lot about body work and painting.

NismoPick

When I did my engine swap:

#1: Degrease the whole engine bay.
#2: Grind off any major rust (frame rails had the most).
#3: Hand sand (scuff) all areas I wanted to paint w/ 400 grit paper.
#4: Wash engine bay & apply metal treatment (if there are hard to reach areas, or rust pits, use a toothbrush or scotchbrite pad).
#5: Lightly wash off treatment, do no scrub while washing off.
#6: Blow dry w/ compressed air
#7: Paint. Several coats of high temp paint works best.

SHADY280

i would use the por 15 in the engine bay, that stuff is tough. you may have no rust and it doesnt need it? well yes it does, its preventative maintenance. the holes for the wires need to be welded shut, its the only proper way. as for the engine block, while its out, pop the crank out and take it to the machine shop, its like 50 bucks to have it cleaned, it will make the oil passages clean, it will get rid of old coolant, plus the outside will be super clean, best 50 bucks youll ever spend. you just pop out the pistons, keep them in order, then pop out the crank, keeping the caps and bearings in order. as for painting the block, use epoxy primer, 3 coats, then use single stage body paint, like ppg "concept". you can get it in any color, its durable, and cheap. we use that on hotrod engines. if your going this far, take a few hours and go the extra mile, youll be soooo happy you did.

KTM200-280zxt

Shady... In a year or two I plan to pull the motor and have the entire thing rebuilt proffesionally and Ill probably end up powdercoating the block. And my motor is in great shape, it still has the machining marks going up the cylinder(I think its called chross hatching??) But I guess Ill call some local machine shops and see what they would charge, after all its already out like you said.

And for painting the engine, average car paint like the PPG will hold up fine with the the all the heat?

Thanks for all the help.
Rob

NismoPick

prolly not....

SHADY280

thats what we use on big block chevs in hot rods, seems to work, the main diff. is those 3 coats of epoxy primer, that stuff sticks.

skittle

yeah run a few coats of primer on the last one wet sand as much as you can to get a nice smooth surface. then use a few coats of high temp paint autozone has some nice colored paint. let that dry and then do a few coats of high temp clear. your engine will be gleaming after your done.