Shout-out to Parts Reborn Vapor Honing in Orange, California! I was referred to them by HB Chris, and I can highly recommend them. Now to reassemble my M30 B35 in the 1973 3.0 CS since we have already reinstalled the rebuilt head!
Great experience with Parts Reborn Vapor Honing in Orange, California
- Thread starter KF6TRG
- Start date
I also had Parts Reborn clean up the air cleaner housing for painting - what are your recommendations for a gray spray paint that closely matches the factory color for the part?
Powder coat it. RAL 7043 https://e9coupe.com/forum/threads/csi-csl-air-box-color.50429/#post-443730
My guy in Costa Mesa can do it
My guy in Costa Mesa can do it
Thank you, Chris!
Those do look great, and I can see the difference in the finish vs parts which I have sandblasted with glass beads. What's your plan for these parts at this point though? Powder coat vs paint vs cerakote vs zinc plating? Likely not one answer for all! The exhaust manifolds you may want to cerakote for heat shielding and longevity, the brackets can be zinc plated or powder coated, but don't powder coat the oil filter top - I made that mistake not realizing that there's a gasket in there with a spring which didn't survive the heat of the powder coat oven. I suppose it's removable but that seemed a bit difficult. The filter housing can be painted or powder coated, and I have seen either red or silver as options presented.
I plan to leave the aluminum parts untreated and paint (maybe clearcoat) the steel parts. Will paint the air box with an appropriate gray.
I would suggest at least clear coat the aluminum to protect and maintain the nice finish you have there. The vapor honing is a surface preparation but not preservation step as I understand it.
I had the same thought and asked Steve at Parts Reborn Vapor Honing to put any kind of coating on the bare aluminum. He said if you get any fingerprints on them, just wipe them off with the solvent. This car will be kept in a garage far away from the coast, so I think the risk is lower. I did think why not to get some high temperature clear and give the parts to spray. I’ve done that with bolts that I’ve cleaned carefully on other restorations given them a spray and they hold up pretty well.
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Agree about wiping off with solvent, but if you have clear coat you don't even need to do that step 
I'm also thinking about just general oil, dust, dirt, etc. Right now is the absolute easiest time to do it and some satin clear coat will look as good and be much more protective. Just make sure you get something that is fine with the engine heat.
I'm also thinking about just general oil, dust, dirt, etc. Right now is the absolute easiest time to do it and some satin clear coat will look as good and be much more protective. Just make sure you get something that is fine with the engine heat.
You can also buy clear paint from ceracoat in spray cans though not sure if that will hold up to engine temps.
FYI - My neighbor down the street from me vapor hones out of his garage and has good prices. Happy to share his info with you.
BMW stuff:
House stuff (brass):
Love that cooktop!! We put in a Wolf a couple of years ago during our remodel, I'll keep this in mind if the brass part get a bit dingy.
Thanks! It is actually 30 years old. Purchased for my remodel and I hunted around for an ”analog” range. It belonged to an elderly woman who rarely used it over the years. Her adult children didn’t want her to accidentally leave it on. The burners were originally black enamel but I mod everything.
+1 on cerakoting aluminum parts. I bead blasted my entire intake and valve cover on my 635 when I restored it 20 years ago. 20 years later, after years in garages and a few years under a cover outside, they all look like crap again. We live on a water planet, and even if it is not raining, there is water vapor in the air, and it will corrode metal...
Seeing these pics though, I am going to convert my bead blaster to a vapor setup ASAP!! Beautiful!
Also great to see that the steel parts that get zinc coated come out still fairly shiny, so when they get re-zinced in my Caswell setup (thanks @boonies !), they will look new!
Seeing these pics though, I am going to convert my bead blaster to a vapor setup ASAP!! Beautiful!
Also great to see that the steel parts that get zinc coated come out still fairly shiny, so when they get re-zinced in my Caswell setup (thanks @boonies !), they will look new!
Alex, matte clear CeraKote is your friend