Got my used replacment head in today. Clean for the most part but want to clean it up before I put it back together. What's the best way to clean the carbon buildup on the underside?

 

i used oven cleaner and it all came off without harsh scrub..

 

Carb choke cleaner or brake parts cleaner.

 

Thanks I will try that.

 

Be careful on the oven cleaner. Many/most of them are caustic enough to actually pit aluminum at the microscopic level, thereby making the surface much more likely to hold more carbon after the cleaning. Cast iron engine blocks and such that are being stripped down to bare metal for painting can be cleaned with oven cleaner, but even then I see most experts say not to get the cleaner on gasket surfaces, bearing and bearing retaining surfaces, and other critical parts of the motor...just for the exterior surfaces that will be painted on cast iron components. Oven cleaner will clean and dissolve just about anything, but most of them can pit exposed metal at a microscopic level depending on the component. Ovens have a super hard application of high temp enamel and other elements to resist damage. Most engine components do not. I'm not saying that "all" oven cleaners will do this, but do a Google search will show some real applications and results about the product. I have seen where oven cleaner was used to clean exterior aluminum components, or just dribbled onto those exterior surfaces, and the parts looks awful. Just be careful.

 

good information..i had no idea...i tried some engine cleaners and degreasers and it wasn't working well...and, i didn't want to scrub too hard and damage something....without any research, i just sprayed a little oven cleaner and the black just came off clean....

i just did some search..it seems like you don't want to use the oven cleaners with sodium hydroxide...it says to use "fume free" cleaners which does not contain sodium hydroxide or lye...

 

Would kerosene work? Just curious.

 

Hmm, 3 minutes of scraping with a rounded-off screwdriver should do the trick

 

Gotta be as good as a homemade DIY porting job, right?

 

I have a spray can of Seafoam brand 'Deep Creep'. Works pretty well.