Aluminum Intake- paint or leave natural?

[chevybill]

hey guys, I have an edelbrock aluminum intake for my engine, this weekend I painted my engine.

what are your opinions on painting the intake chevy orange or leaving it natural.

could it be clearcoated and remain nice looking? (i mean spray can clearcoating).

never had a aluminum intake before, appearance wise how good do they look down the road?

thaks for your input

[HeavyD]

I like it left natural unless a person wants to try and leave the engine stock looking. Years ago I had one clear coated and it turned yellow on the edges. Maybe the modern clears won't do this??

[cdowns]

they get dirty real fast with use//you did remember to use thread sealant on the bolts to prevent oil leaking?? // i prefer to have my manifolds ceramic coated for long lasring great appearance

[chevybill]

i have not installed it yet, just wanting some opinions from people who have experience with these aluminum intakes.

i think that gas will dissolve the spray can clearcoats.

[70rs/ss]

I ground off all of the clues to it being an after market intake and then bead blasted it and painted it orange. It looks nice. This is personal preference. Now I have a set of aluminum heads NIB so I won't paint those nor will I paint the intake when I use the heads. It is a matter of whether or not you are looking for the stock look or the WOW look!

[MrC1]

Never had a problem with corrosion, but the aluminum will get dirty if you don't keep yuck off of it. The only issues I've had are a couple of small dark areas next to the carb where fuel has leaked several times.

[Jayss109]

Ive had one corrode on me. Be real careful with degreaser/cleaner types of products. I got mine blasted then powder coated! Looks sweet
________
Coach Purses

[mocwon]

Don't use clear on the bare aluminum, either rattle can or out of a spray gun since it will turn yellow and may not stick too well over time. One of the best ways I've found to paint an intake is to prep it like any other body panel (clean it like Hell then, self etching pimer, base coat and clear coat). It seals it very well and keeps the alumnum from getting nasty. Or, you could have it clear powder coated..

[shifty]

powdercoat it with a clear smoke color or something.

[see ten]

I painted both of mine orange. I wanted them to appear stock.

[Billla]

I haven't had a lot of luck either way. Trying to put clear hasn't worked out - I've tried 2-3 brands - including Eastwood - and it just doesn't last. I get yellowing followed by flaking, and before anyone asks - yes, it was very, VERY clean I used PPG alumaprep before using it...and I've tried a number of different cleaners/preps.

Leaving it bare means (like everyone else said) that you have to keep it clean. Also as noted, there are a number of cleaners - including Simple Green - that eat aluminum over time. There's an aircraft version of Simple Green that you can get, and that's what I use now to clean my engine.

Don't know if that was helpful - no easy answers

[muddpile]

I bought mine off a board member who had it either ceramic coated or JET coated or something (can't remember), but it is still an aluminum silver color, but smooth and sorta shiny. I haven't installed it, but I like the look and it looks really easy to keep clean.

[wibilly]

i blasted and cleared my performer rpm on my corvette. it still looks great but only about 2000 miles so far. the clear really changed the color from aluminum to a nice grey as soon as applyed but hasen't changed since and sute is alot easier to clean than bare aluminum

[stepside454]

Ive painted em & left em aluminum, its personal preferance. I like it both ways.
Wow, I better be careful how I say that LOL

[MrC1]

Originally Posted by stepside454

Ive painted em & left em aluminum, its personal preferance. I like it both ways.
Wow, I better be careful how I say that LOL

TMI! :rndll:

[stepside454]

yeah...thats something I usually reserve for other forums LOL

[cdowns]

a pic of ceramic coated intake

[jamis]

I like painted because it stays cleaner

[Tx Firefighter]

I usually paint mine to disguise them as a stocker.

I've found two methods work very well...

1) POR15 engine paint. Bombproof. Don't change colors over time. Nothing can dissolve the stuff.

2) Normal old urethane automotive paint. Never had it do any funny stuff either. I use this when I want the engine to match the vehicle's paint.

[kelsfine69]

I took mine out of the box and laid it on the bench at the body shop and gave it a coat of clear-coat with some white pearl mixed in. That was 15 years ago. I have had antifreeze spill on it from the stat and sit for 4 months in storage. and just wipe it off. There is some yellowing under the carb where the throttle plate rod sicks out on each side from fuel seepage but other than that I am quite happy with it

[68Stepbed]

I used Dupli-Color Cast Coat Aluminum engine paint on mine. It's a ceramic based paint like what's used on calipers. The only way it will discolor is when gas seeps out alot. I'm real happy with the way it looks. I did change my intake last month to a new one and left it bare for now.

Check out the link in my sig.

[chevybill]

thanks for all the replies, kelsfine69, that intake is outstanding.

since i have already painted my long block with Por 15, i will probably do the intake the same.- chevy orange of course.

thanks for the other pictures also.

[pebbleboy]

Originally Posted by Billla

Leaving it bare means (like everyone else said) that you have to keep it clean. Also as noted, there are a number of cleaners - including Simple Green - that eat aluminum over time. There's an aircraft version of Simple Green that you can get, and that's what I use now to clean my engine.

I never heard that before. Should I stop coating the engine in simple green to remove all the oil and road grime?