rocco wrote: ↑Mon Jan 29, 2024 1:13 pm
Thank you chaps, much appreciated. My neighbour has confirmed that he has a rivet gun so I'll buy some sealed, blind, closed end, short rivets as soon as I find them on eBay. Love this forum!
* Found some which look right but they have what looks like a thread on them, as if there isn't enough variations to figure out!
I would guess they are just ridged to get a better grip in the tool. Edelstahl is Stainless Steel, which would explain the extra grip to 'work' the rivet to snap the mandrel off. You could find your neighbour's tool might not be up to working Stainless Steel rivets.
I'd have thought an aluminium rivet would be better, I'm pretty sure that's what mine has...
That is not a thread but serrations for the jaws of the rivet gun to grip against.
Even some non stainless rivets have them.
The sealed end rivet in the link I posted above was just given as an example of a sealed rivet.
I ended up buying 50 rivets that are 3.2mm and I think they are too small. I thought I had all the details I needed but crucially I don't have the size of the hole in the rocker cover. I am about to buy 4mm rivets (the next size up) but to save wasting a more pennies, if anyone would be kind enough to share the actual size please, it would be handy.
I bought some 4mm rivets but they are too big so 3.2mm is the best fit.
What is the general consensus about painting the inside of a rocker cover? It seems like a better idea not to do it but then all the rust will contaminate the oil.
I took my oil sump off last week and it has been painted. There are scratches on it too, no idea how they would have gotten there but if painting inside the sump is acceptable, why not the rocker cover? There is also a chance that the sump was not painted from new and done by a previous owner. I know it won't matter too much because it won't be seen but while it's off I'd like to do what I can to make it right.
I have restored several rocker covers and would advise not to the paint the inside. If the paint should flake off either due to the heat or poor adhesion it will end up in the oil and could block the circulation of oil around the engine. Paint the outside (I use VHT primer and then ESM MOWOG/BMC green engine enamel from rattle cans) and when the paint is completely dry and hardened (takes about a week or more) spray some general purpose oil e.g Ballistol onto the inside of the rocker cover. This will stop it rusting in storage. It should not rust on an engine as it is constantly being splashed with oil. if it does rust in use on the engine then your engine breathing is not working properly leading to water vapour hanging around in the rocker cover (this also has the Mayonnaise symptom). If you insist on painting the inside, you must meticulously de-grease or the paint will not stick well. Then rough up the surface with abrasive and choose a primer that is resistant to oil and heat.
Stephen
1969 1098cc Convertible “Xavier” which I have owned since 1989.
Thanks Stephen. I do agree that it's preferable not to paint inside the cover and I definitely wouldn't do so if it was new. I guess that because this engine was idle for 20-years, moisture has gotten in and rusted it. The engine is in the process of being rebuilt now and I have already painted the inside, I'm regretting now though.
The outside is in primer at the moment but it'll get some high temp (up to 600 degrees) gold paint once it's delivered and if the colour is close to what it had before.
rocco wrote: ↑Sun Feb 18, 2024 5:25 pm
Thanks Stephen. I do agree that it's preferable not to paint inside the cover and I definitely wouldn't do so if it was new. I guess that because this engine was idle for 20-years, moisture has gotten in and rusted it. The engine is in the process of being rebuilt now and I have already painted the inside, I'm regretting now though.
The outside is in primer at the moment but it'll get some high temp (up to 600 degrees) gold paint once it's delivered and if the colour is close to what it had before.
If you're concerned you could just strip it off with paint stripper. Rocker covers are easy to get hold of and pretty cheap. Well at least in the UK they are. I chemically de-rust parts in Evaporust. It works well but is slow and quite expensive. Citric acid solution works well too and is cheap.
1969 1098cc Convertible “Xavier” which I have owned since 1989.
I'll do that then. I did check earlier and prices for used covers on eBay are between 25-40 and they are for the dirty one that sellers haven't even washed! I do have a breather pipe on mine so not all of them are suitable. I wanted to get some vinegar and citric acid for the water galleries on the head and block anyway. I just expected that someone would have designed some kind of material/product by now for coating the cover to prolong its' life and keep the rust partials out of the oil when/if they develop.
Last edited by rocco on Mon Feb 19, 2024 12:40 pm, edited 1 time in total.
