Restore engine shine?

[shark]

Hello my name is Jeff and new here. This last Fall I found a '79 Gl1000, with all the goodies, on a farm. It has about 20k miles. I thought I was getting a steal because I paid $400 for the bike. So, far I've dumped a $1000 in it. Anyway, the engine has lost it's "alloy shine", from sitting for years I'm sure, any ideas for a painless process to try and restore the original luster?

[littlebeaver]

I think some guy's repaint the engine, check out some of the restoring the bike threads on this site and others..there's a guy called Santo's that did a great job on his engine here on this site..

[WingAdmin]

Yup, you pull the engine, take the carbs and valve covers off, cover up anything that shouldn't be painted, scrub the filth and grease off, scuff it up with sandpaper and/or scotchbrite, then use high-temperature aluminum paint.

[shark]

ok, that sounds painful...

[WingAdmin]

It looks great, but it is a fair amount of work.

My engine is not all that great looking for that exact reason. I'd rather go out riding.

[shark]

That's cool. I wasn't planning on putting that kind of money in it, so I thought maybe it wasn't that big a deal to make it look nicer.

I'm kind of excited to ride it. I havn't had a chance to yet. By the time I got it running there was snow on the ground.
While we are on the subject, I noticed the valve cover bolts drip a little since I started it. Any tricks to re-sealing them?
thanks...

[WingAdmin]

The gaskets on those covers do wear out after a while. They're not expensive, and replacing them is dead simple. While you have the covers off, you might as well adjust your valve clearances, which is also simple to do, and a regular maintenance item:

How to adjust your valve clearances

[shark]

Great.... Thanks!

[portugeezer]

Find some chrome engine covers on Ebay and call it a day brother!

[imfree]

For your oil leak,Go to ebay,In the search window put in this number 180628451136 if oil is leaking from your bolts this is what you need.You should also replace the gaskets and adjust the valves,since you are in there anyway.Joe

[shark]

Thanks for the info! I just slapped the battery in it this weekend and ran like a champ. Man I can't wait to take it out!

[timwingard]

Hi, I kind of sprayed brake cleaner on my engine and need to do some painting. Do you know where to get the paint and what color? Yes, not too smart but I am getting smarter all the time. Thanks, Tim

[WingAdmin]

Hi, I kind of sprayed brake cleaner on my engine and need to do some painting. Do you know where to get the paint and what color? Yes, not too smart but I am getting smarter all the time. Thanks, Tim

Just do a search for "high temperature engine paint" and you'll find what you need. It comes in pretty well any color you could ever want - make your engine fire-engine red if you like!

The original is a flat aluminum metallic color, so that's probably what you want to look for.