Re: Restoring an intake
 

...I had my 70 LT-1 manifold STEEL shot blasted(just like when they were mfg at the foundry) at a place that rebuilds Aluminum mostly japanese cylinder heads......not positive but a "Wheelabrator" brand or similar type of machine that they used to run heads thru on a conveyor belt like idea was used....They steel shot is only used on aluminum parts and wasnt contaminated with ferous metal or grease to get into or on intake or my Muncie case.....I'll attach several pics to show you examples of my intake, muncie case, AND muncie DIE-CAST PIECES which I had vibratory/tumbled in ceramic stones with a detergent/chemical cleaner

Chuck Sharin Seattle

THE FOLLOWING IS A STATEMENT FROM JEFF BETZ WHO CURRENTLY IS AN ENGINEER WITH DAIMLER-CHRYSLER.....previously with G.M. Jeff supervises in the plant where engines are built.

"Guys, I'm a design engineer that has worked with many cast iron and aluminum parts, and sand cast parts DO NOT have any type of skin on them from the foundry. Chuck is exactly correct when he states a "Wheelabrator" brand cleaning process (or similar version) is used to clean the sand off of a cast aluminum part when it goes thru "shakeout" which is the process of removing the core sand and green sand from the casting process. The type of media used may vary among foundrys, but they are all cleaned using an abrasive. To duplicate the "as cast" aluminum intakes may be a trick, because we need to correctly match that intake as it came out of the shakeout line of the foundry. It's anybody's guess today as to what media was used, and I'm sure that varied from month to month and foundry to foundry.
DIE CAST aluminum parts are a different story. A die cast aluminum part gets it strength from the outer skin that forms against a permanent cooled mold, very different from the sand used in a sand casting that is recycled/trashed after each part. Transmission tail shafts and distributor housings are typical die cast parts. Today, some parts are a mix of a permanent external mold with internal sand cast cores."

Re: Restoring an intake
 

Muncie Case............(see attached)

Re: Restoring an intake
 

DIE CAST Side Cover

Re: Restoring an intake
 

Side Cover Again..........

Re: Restoring an intake
 

Muncie Tailshaft....DIECAST

Re: Restoring an intake
 

Picture of shifter mounting bracket after MANGANESE Phosphating myself.............

Re: Restoring an intake
 

I sent my Judge's Ram Air IV Winters aluminum intake to Jerry MacNeish of Camaro Hi Performance. After seeing many pictures of his work and speaking with him I felt very confident that the work would get done properly. It may be a similar process as described above. His prices are reasonable and the end result looks NOS. https://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/imag...lins/beers.gif

Re: Restoring an intake
 

[ QUOTE ]
I sent my Judge's Ram Air IV Winters aluminum intake to Jerry MacNeish of Camaro Hi Performance. After seeing many pictures of his work and speaking with him I felt very confident that the work would get done properly. It may be a similar process as described above. His prices are reasonable and the end result looks NOS.

[/ QUOTE ]

I agree. Jerry has done several aluminum parts for me and I have always been pleased with the results. He is knowledgeable on Camaro, Chevelle and Vette. He is a reputable guy to deal with and is good for our hobby.

Re: Restoring an intake
 

I think Chuck is on track with that type of process...I have had a manifold shot "tumbled" and that worked out real nice...

Re: Restoring an intake
 

Well I have to confess.
The wife was out & I was all alone so guess what went into the dishwasher https://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/imag...s/rolleyes.gif?
It came out alot better than when it went in, that's for sure, although I didn't pressure wash it first.
I'll definately try the wheelabrator type machine at a local cyl head rebuilder.
I've seen the aluminum heads rebuilt & they usually look new.
Thanks for the tip Chuck. https://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/imag...iggthumpup.gif