Cleaning up my GX-15

[EvhCo]

Good morning!
Just kidding, it's 3 PM. I'm soon gonna buy an off-road chassis with everything but the engine mounted. I currently have a 1/5 scale F2004 formula 1 racer, but circuit racing isn't for me, I'm more of a mud'n'sand guy, so I'm gonna turn that buggy into a monster truck that'll teach mother nature a lesson. So, today I ran the last few tens of milliliters of 16% fuel until the Arduino's battery died, and then I safely placed the F1 for further missions and unmounted the engine.

https://imgur.com/a/Njy4n

It's the first time I see an engine in its true form and, I must say, she's simply a beauty even with all that oil and grime on it. I unscrewed the glow plug and sprayed a couple of WD-40 bursts into the piston, and a few more into the carb, and then pulled the pullstart a bit. I let it rest upside down for the excess WD-40 to get out, and now I'll start cleaning everything (including the glowplug) with some towels, to make it sparkling clean. I don't intend to disassemble or rebuild the engine since it's working as perfect as a combustion engine can run (starts from the 1st pull, idles generally as it should etc.), but I'm wondering what other sprays I can treat this beaut with to make her ready to burn? WD-40 is a saint in my after-run book, but what'd happen if I'd spray some engine oil down there? What about anti-rust sprays (just for case)? Anything is appreciated.

 

[DXtreme1]

I don't use WD40 to clean the inside of my motor and carb. I use nitro fuel then I flip the motor or whole rig upside down and crank the motor without the glowplug to remove al excess fuel. Once I'm satisfied that I got al the excess fuel out i then put a few drops of After Run oil on both the inside crankcase and carb after every run and rotate the flywheel until the piston is at the bottom of the rotation. I also use denatured alcohol and a small paintbrush partnered with my air compressor to get as much dirt and grime from the engine crankcase. I also make sure it's dry before storing it. Since you have the engine out. I would clean the clutchbell. I use a wire brush attachment on my Dremel rotary tool to remove the contaminants and spent Clutch material from the inside of the clutchbell for optimum performance. I would also check if the Clutch shoes and spring need to be changed at this point and if needed change it.clean all the bearings or replace them if needed. If they're still good just soak the bearings overnight in WD40 then with an air compressor clean out the excess WD40. I personally actually remove the seals and soak them in denatured alcohol for a few minutes then use my air compressor to clean it out. I repeat this step until I'm satisfied that they are clean. Once done I apply one end of the bearing seal(make sure it's clean)then I'll add a few drops of bearing oil then seal the other end.

 

[cbaker65]

I don't start cleaning the inside first , I make sure I get the outside first before I pull the plug an air filter!
I make sure all loose dirt & debris is off so it don't contaminate the inside!....

 

[EvhCo]

I don't start cleaning the inside first , I make sure I get the outside first before I pull the plug an air filter!
I make sure all loose dirt & debris is off so it don't contaminate the inside!....

Haha, well I've kinda done the opposite, but I cleaned up the inside of the cooling head before unscrewing the plug so nothing would fall down to the piston, but the outside is now sparkling clean, too .

Since you have the engine out. I would clean the clutchbell. I use a wire brush attachment on my Dremel rotary tool to remove the contaminants and spent Clutch material from the inside of the clutchbell for optimum performance. I would also check if the Clutch shoes and spring need to be changed at this point and if needed change it.clean all the bearings or replace them if needed. If they're still good just soak the bearings overnight in WD40 then with an air compressor clean out the excess WD40.

Don't think I'll need to worry about the clutch assembly, since I bought it two days ago haha. I used the air compressor too, but other than thatI mostly relied on WD-40 and some other anti-rust spray I used to clean the Golf (I mean the full-scale one ), and after all the moisture, grease and the other...fluids(?) surfaced, I put it under the sink with the carb covered and the plug screwed in, then I wiped it all dry with dozens of towels and cotton swabs until it was factory-new-looking. Then I sprayed a tiny quarter-a-second burst of WD40 down the piston, pulled the pullstart and let it rest upside down for the night.

Thanks for the tips, guys! I can't wait for the new chassis to arrive.

 

[DXtreme1]

Show us some pics of your build. It's always interesting to see builds as they progress

 

[EvhCo]

Sure thing, I'll post them pics here once the chassis arrives.
Until then, see for yourself:

https://imgur.com/a/Dkfay

 

[DXtreme1]

Great job. Looks brand spanking new.

 

[cbaker65]

Haha, well I've kinda done the opposite, but I cleaned up the inside of the cooling head before unscrewing the plug so nothing would fall down to the piston, but the outside is now sparkling clean, too .



Don't think I'll need to worry about the clutch assembly, since I bought it two days ago haha. I used the air compressor too, but other than thatI mostly relied on WD-40 and some other anti-rust spray I used to clean the Golf (I mean the full-scale one ), and after all the moisture, grease and the other...fluids(?) surfaced, I put it under the sink with the carb covered and the plug screwed in, then I wiped it all dry with dozens of towels and cotton swabs until it was factory-new-looking. Then I sprayed a tiny quarter-a-second burst of WD40 down the piston, pulled the pullstart and let it rest upside down for the night.

Thanks for the tips, guys! I can't wait for the new chassis to arrive.

No prob.s ,just as long as your careful when cleaning!...