A rider ...

[pd]

 Rick ,

'New' fins would be the best .

The heat sink would be a test as to whether or not any cooling would prove effective enough to help avoid overheating .

Pete .

[Ricks]

I can't remember if I asked, but what was your head temperature?

[pd]

Depends on if I've drank enough water and am in the sun or ... Oh , you mean the bikes head temp .

I really don't know , other than I won't touch it after it's run for a minute or so . It does seem to be too hot . That from my years of tinkering with small motors . I should pick up an infrared laser thermometer .
What is the 'average' head temp of these motors ?

Pete .

[Ricks]

I don't know what average is, but I have seen anywhere from 280-350 on my motors.  I remember Jim Lokai was checking some at Portland one year, and some were up around 400, if I remember correctly.

[pd]

Hmm , mine is likely somewhere in the upper reaches .

It seems to me that a cooler running motor should last longer , but I suppose that has to do with design .
Was it the usual hot in Portland when the 400° temps were read?

When I get back up north , I'll have to test the heat sink idea and find out what , if any , difference .

Pete .

[pd]

I haven't taken any heat readings yet , as I still don't have a laser thermometer .

There was not a cpu heat sink to be found in town , so , I had a few fins left from a heat sink project last Summer .
A bit of reshaping and a few holes drilled and I have a goofy looking spark plug heat sink :



That should be good enough to test for heat variance .

On another note , I went to clean my sediment bowl and found the gasket I bought from Wayne , a couple years ago , had fallen apart . I mean it was nothing but globs of goo . I should have taken a picture , but , really there wasn't much left of the gasket .

I replaced that^ gasket with a 1 1/2" O.D. union joint gasket I found at Ace hardware ( 49 cents and a perfect fit ) .  I think is neoprene , but not sure . So far , not a leak to be found .

Just speculating , maybe the ethanol fuel had something to do with disintegrating Wayne's gasket

And , if you hadn't noticed , take a look at the effects of Rockport , Texas salt air . That spark plug was installed new last fall and check all the aluminum surfaces . There wasn't any corrosion on that motor before . I'm thinking about treating the motor with some kind of corrosion inhibitor . Anyone have experience with that stuff ?

Pete .

[kartjockey]

Back when I was at NAPA (N0AutoPartsAvailible) I really liked this stuff.  Wasn't much for degreasing but it did do what it is called.  Not sure about the corrosion you have going on in relationship to this product but I had good luck with it.  Sometimes I didn't always want to sandblast an item because it tended to open up the pores of the metal and invite further corrosion.  Thus making one want to paint it with a sealer of some kind.  Haven't tried this product again in years and could only assume it works the same as I just found it again and want to try it for myself.

https://www.napaonline.com/en/search?text=aluminum+brightener

[kartjockey]

Just remembered using it on aluminum fins like a radiator or A/C unit.  Worked fabulous and suppose it helped to get the most efficiency for cooling.

[pd]

Thanks for that^ , Tom .

I'll pick some up and give it a shot . Hopefully it'll WOW me .

Pete .

[Eitek1]

I'm picking up on the back end of the thread so I may not have all the details but have you thought about electrolysis for rust removal? You'd have to take your engine apart to do it but you could follow up with a zinc plating and I'm betting it would look new. Also you wouldn't have to worry about some weird heat retention effect from the coating.

You can do this all in your garage with a little experimenting to make sure your settings and solutions are correct.

http://www.instructables.com/id/Electrolytic-Rust-Removal-aka-Magic/

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=gxq4rmzfxac

[pd]

I'm picking up on the back end of the thread so I may not have all the details but have you thought about electrolysis for rust removal? You'd have to take your engine apart to do it but you could follow up with a zinc plating and I'm betting it would look new. Also you wouldn't have to worry about some weird heat retention effect from the coating.

You can do this all in your garage with a little experimenting to make sure your settings and solutions are correct.

http://www.instructables.com/id/Electrolytic-Rust-Removal-aka-Magic/

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=gxq4rmzfxac

Thanks for the suggestion . Yes , I have thought about electrolysis for treating rust . But , I like wood bleach ( Oxalic Acid ) better . I'd link to an excerpt , but because I used photobucket , the pics do not show .

I hadn't thought of plating . It seems simple enough .
I think a zinc coat could be a good idea . I'll have to play around with that .
 A possible problem might be sealing the milled surfaces that should be kept the same .

Pete .

[carryall]

You can use hot galv sticks too.  You heat up the material with a torch, rub the galvanized stick on it and then use a wire welding brush to spread it around.  It only adds approx. .001mil to the surface. 

[pd]

You can use hot galv sticks too.  You heat up the material with a torch, rub the galvanized stick on it and then use a wire welding brush to spread it around.  It only adds approx. .001mil to the surface. 

Paul ,

That sounds too much like work .

I like the electroplate idea better . At least , it sounds easier . Not sure which is more durable .
And , it just so happens that I already have what's needed for plating on hand .

Pete .

[Eitek1]

I intend on plating all the bits and parts with zinc when the time comes. They should effectively look new after they are done. Assuming I don't screw it up.

As far as not plating the milled surfaces I imagine a rubber ball and some corks would keep water out of the head. On the flat surfaces I wonder if tape would keep it from plating? I honestly don't know.

[pd]

I'm sure there are ways ...
That's why I said I'll have to play around ( experiment ) .

Depending on the clearances , a coating of zinc might not hurt the cylinder . If I'm not mistaken , gasoline use to contain zinc . And , smoothing the transfer port walls probably wouldn't hurt much , either .

Pete .