Intake manifold painting

[bbeep71]

I clear coated my aluminum manifold with aerosol clear spray. Now it is turning yellow. I would like to paint mopar engine red color. How do I prep intake for painting without removing from engine. It was very difficult to install. The intake is edelbrock airgap on 360 in 66 barracuda.
Thanks

 

[Gdub310]

If you are determined to do it without removing it, all you can really do is try to clean it as much as possible, prep the surface properly, mask off anything you don't remove from the manifold, and have at it with a spray can of the new color. Not all clear coats take paint well. At the very least, you are going to want to degrease it with alcohol or something stronger, scuff the surface with a grey scotch-brite pad or finer grade sandpaper, wipe it down with solvent again, and hit it with some compressed air and/or a tack rag before you spray it.

But personally, I would probably just put up with the yellowed clear coat until you are ready to pull the manifold, have it shot blasted, and paint or powdercoat it properly.

 

[Darticon]

If you are absolutely sure you're not willing to take off the intake: Take off everything in the way and then tape/paper/plastic-wrap around the intake. If the clear coat isn't showing signs of delaminating anywhere rough sand it with some 180 grit all over and then 320 to take out any of the big scratches. Clean up the whole surface with some acetone. I would recommend you redo taping and masking so there isn't any clear-coat powder to get blown into your new paint. This time I would go as far as taking off the valve covers and covering them off with cling-wrap so you can spray at a low enough angle... still may be difficult to spray into all the nooks the airgap has. If you remember which brand of clear you used I would try to get the same brand for your color. You will have better chance of not having a bad chemical reaction between them. I would spray a small test spot first and see how it reacts. If it reacts badly you may still have to bite the bullet and remove it for media blasting.

 

[H22A4]

It depends on how good a job you want. I suspect if you don’t remove the intake, in a few months or a year, the red paint will be flaking off and, if it bothers you enough, you’ll then remove it and start over. Given the yellowing of the clear is bothering you, I think the flaking of the red will bother you soon too.

Sometimes one thinks the simple/quick job/effort will be good enough. Almost all of the time, it will look like a good enough type of job/effort.

 

[bbeep71]

Thanks guys for your input. I was hoping clear coat is paint so maybe a cleaning and scuff pad would do the trick. Looks like removal is best way to go.

 

[rustycowll69]

if you are going to remove manifold to paint it, then I would definitely bake the finish painted manifold in your oven. About 250 degrees for 30 min or so. After it cools, the paint will harden and be an even gloss.
Hint: don't let your wife know that you're doing this. No harm, no foul.

 

[CudaChick1968]

if you are going to remove manifold to paint it, then I would definitely bake the finish painted manifold in your oven. About 250 degrees for 30 min or so. After it cools, the paint will harden and be an even gloss.
Hint: don't let your wife know that you're doing this. No harm, no foul.

Really??? That is incredibly bad advice and may kill you (before your wife does). Heating chemicals, carb cleaner and old fuel in your kitchen oven is just asking for disaster and will ensure it will no longer be suitable for cooking food.

To the O.P. ... if you're planning to keep the car and/or hoping to get a decent price on its sale, do it once and do it RIGHT. In six months or less the new paint job will look worse than your yellowing clear coat (red shows up a lot better and defects will be more noticeable) so your plan to effectively put a Band Aid on it will only be temporary. Just my two cents ...

 

[dusted]

The yellowing of the clear is probably from gas and or heat. I would just scuff it, paint it and go for a ride. Nothing like the smell of paint curing during your first drive after an install/paint...etc. Don't overthink it. If it doesn't turn out to your liking u can always pull it later.