Carbon Buildup and cleaning

[drjekl]

Originally Posted by dj.tonto

wonder if theres anywhere in Sydney that do it cheap. I'll have a chat to my mechanic in Manlyvale, rather than taking it to a stealer.

I think it's going to be difficult to get this done by a mechanic for a low sum, as there is ~ 4-6 hrs work involved according to most guys.

I was quoted $650 by Advan to do an intake clean, and Pete mentioned that at that stage he didn't have a walnut blaster so he would have to do it all by hand (he mentioned once he had a walnut blaster this would cut the time down and thus costs also)

Since I reside 2 hrs away from advan its a hassle for me as i have to drive down then catch a 3.5 hr train ride home, then catch the train back down and drive home. So an intake clean is going to take me 1-2 days in travelling and cost at least $700 with transport costs included, so that's why I'm thinking perhaps I'm best to attempt a DIY walnut blast and use 2 days of a weekend to do it (along with a valve cover gasket change)

[froop]

Originally Posted by drjekl

I think it's going to be difficult to get this done by a mechanic for a low sum, as there is ~ 4-6 hrs work involved according to most guys.

I was quoted $650 by Advan to do an intake clean, and Pete mentioned that at that stage he didn't have a walnut blaster so he would have to do it all by hand (he mentioned once he had a walnut blaster this would cut the time down and thus costs also)

Since I reside 2 hrs away from advan its a hassle for me as i have to drive down then catch a 3.5 hr train ride home, then catch the train back down and drive home. So an intake clean is going to take me 1-2 days in travelling and cost at least $700 with transport costs included, so that's why I'm thinking perhaps I'm best to attempt a DIY walnut blast and use 2 days of a weekend to do it (along with a valve cover gasket change)

I'd probably be willing to chip in but I'd rather drive up to Newcastle and ask you to help me with it (or do it at the same time) as I'd have no idea what to do .

I probably need to replace my HPFP which will involve removing the entire intake manifold anyway, so I whilst I'm in there I may as well have a look at cleaning it. Though I only have 36,000kms with an OCC and meth...

[drjekl]

Originally Posted by froop

I'd probably be willing to chip in but I'd rather drive up to Newcastle and ask you to help me with it (or do it at the same time) as I'd have no idea what to do .

I probably need to replace my HPFP which will involve removing the entire intake manifold anyway, so I whilst I'm in there I may as well have a look at cleaning it. Though I only have 36,000kms with an OCC and meth...

I would be more then willing to help you out mate, although it would be a huge weekend to do both of our cars at the same time!

If I was working on someone else's machine I would prefer to do all the trial and error myself on my car, then once I have nutted out the best method then I would be willing to help others out

Hmm I'm not 100% sold on the idea the OCC drastically reduces carbon buildup, but as the old adage goes prevention is better then cure!

[Jeef Beef]

Due to my car hitting 60,000kms I need to seriously start looking into this

[froop]

Using a walnut blaster, how long would it take to clean a set of valves? Can't be too long right? We could get a few people and make a day of it. Each person removes their own intake manifold and then just blast blast blast one after the other.

[MO3]

I'm in.

[drjekl]

Originally Posted by froop

Using a walnut blaster, how long would it take to clean a set of valves? Can't be too long right? We could get a few people and make a day of it. Each person removes their own intake manifold and then just blast blast blast one after the other.

Yup once you know what you're doing, it shouldn't take too long but I would hate to have 4 cars in my garage/carport with the intakes taken off and my compressor takes a shit, or the nozzle needs modifying etc. I would prefer to iron out all the bugs and have the procedure down to a fine art so to speak.

This walnut blasting is going to cost a bit to setup.

A media blaster supplier I was talking to yesterday recommended going with:

10 amp 50 L RP14 Arbac compressor that is 14 cfm (12 minimum) $775,

Media blaster is $175 (which will require nozzle modification and machining a few brass nozzles in a lathe and a manifold plate to be fabbed up) otherwise purchase the bmw nozzles and modify these to fit.

And his price of 25kg of shells is $100....

I need to get some feedback on some DIY'ers who have done this and see if a 5 cfm or an 8 cfm compressor would do the job adequately and source some cheaper shells.

Also doing some further research ideally the intake gaskets should be changed (bmw # 11 61 7 547 242) which is around $50 odd bucks.

The more I research this also, the more I'm convinced that carbon buildup is the root cause of teh stumbling type issue i have on light throttle around town in higher gears as a lot of guys have stated they had this issue and it dissapeared after walnut blasting.

Mr 5 also apparently dynoed his car after blasting and it made an extra 10HP extra (I haven't witnessed the chart, as for those who have read any of his work will testify he is extremely meticulous and his work is based upon hard facts)

[froop]

Originally Posted by drjekl

Yup once you know what you're doing, it shouldn't take too long but I would hate to have 4 cars in my garage/carport with the intakes taken off and my compressor takes a shit, or the nozzle needs modifying etc. I would prefer to iron out all the bugs and have the procedure down to a fine art so to speak.

This walnut blasting is going to cost a bit to setup.

A media blaster supplier I was talking to yesterday recommended going with:

10 amp 50 L RP14 Arbac compressor that is 14 cfm (12 minimum) $775,

Media blaster is $175 (which will require nozzle modification and machining a few brass nozzles in a lathe and a manifold plate to be fabbed up) otherwise purchase the bmw nozzles and modify these to fit.

And his price of 25kg of shells is $100....

I need to get some feedback on some DIY'ers who have done this and see if a 5 cfm or an 8 cfm compressor would do the job adequately and source some cheaper shells.

Also doing some further research ideally the intake gaskets should be changed (bmw # 11 61 7 547 242) which is around $50 odd bucks.

The more I research this also, the more I'm convinced that carbon buildup is the root cause of teh stumbling type issue i have on light throttle around town in higher gears as a lot of guys have stated they had this issue and it dissapeared after walnut blasting.

Mr 5 also apparently dynoed his car after blasting and it made an extra 10HP extra (I haven't witnessed the chart, as for those who have read any of his work will testify he is extremely meticulous and his work is based upon hard facts)

That's definitely not that cheap...

Wonder why there aren't any shops in Australia that seem to do it (that I know of). People in the states are getting their valves walnut blasted for like $400-500 which is reasonable. With the right tools and the know how it probably wouldn't take much longer than 3, maybe 4 hours to do. It's an expensive investment for an enthusiast but for a shop, which probably already has an air compressor, it'd be an easy way to make money from a really cheap outlay.

[kaitan]

Originally Posted by drjekl

Yup once you know what you're doing, it shouldn't take too long but I would hate to have 4 cars in my garage/carport with the intakes taken off and my compressor takes a shit, or the nozzle needs modifying etc. I would prefer to iron out all the bugs and have the procedure down to a fine art so to speak.

This walnut blasting is going to cost a bit to setup.

A media blaster supplier I was talking to yesterday recommended going with:

10 amp 50 L RP14 Arbac compressor that is 14 cfm (12 minimum) $775,

Media blaster is $175 (which will require nozzle modification and machining a few brass nozzles in a lathe and a manifold plate to be fabbed up) otherwise purchase the bmw nozzles and modify these to fit.

And his price of 25kg of shells is $100....

I need to get some feedback on some DIY'ers who have done this and see if a 5 cfm or an 8 cfm compressor would do the job adequately and source some cheaper shells.

Also doing some further research ideally the intake gaskets should be changed (bmw # 11 61 7 547 242) which is around $50 odd bucks.

The more I research this also, the more I'm convinced that carbon buildup is the root cause of teh stumbling type issue i have on light throttle around town in higher gears as a lot of guys have stated they had this issue and it dissapeared after walnut blasting.

Mr 5 also apparently dynoed his car after blasting and it made an extra 10HP extra (I haven't witnessed the chart, as for those who have read any of his work will testify he is extremely meticulous and his work is based upon hard facts)

Hey Shane ,

Have you done this yet??

[drjekl]

Originally Posted by kaitan

Hey Shane ,

Have you done this yet??

Hey, no mate i havent.

I have purchased the air compressor (and various air wrench tools etc) but i haven't purchased the media blaster or the shells yet due to a lack of time! The 335i hasnt been driven for about 3-4 weeks either which isnt good!

[kaitan]

Originally Posted by drjekl

Hey, no mate i havent.

I have purchased the air compressor (and various air wrench tools etc) but i haven't purchased the media blaster or the shells yet due to a lack of time! The 335i hasnt been driven for about 3-4 weeks either which isnt good!

how come why has it been sitting in the garaged? Hows the m3 subframe coming along? fitted yet?

[DR-JEKL]

Originally Posted by kaitan

how come why has it been sitting in the garaged? Hows the m3 subframe coming along? fitted yet?

Just havent been driving it to work as much lately!

I have 90% of the stuff sitting in my shed awaiting to be fitted but have 3 sets of rego due shortly, doing a stereo build in one of my other cars my bike needs tyres oh and im getting married in the new year

So most likely after i get married i will get it all installed, or maybe i will be told to sell the bmw along with the m3 items haha