drying the bore (taking away that several um's worth of oil film on the cylinder wall surface where the piston ring "rides/glides" on will definitely lead to scouring, period.
I'd rather take on the extra effort of manually dismantling the B&S cylinder head (flat head BTW, applies similarly to OHV types) and manually scrub the deposits clean instead.
That way: I would not cause any further damage to the cylinder wall.
*not to myself: never would I do piston soak in solvents of any kind.....damage done to cylinder walls, rings, etc. far outweigh the benefits of the so-called cleaning the deposits off of the piston crown.
Sadly, too many noobies all over the internet constantly in search of the "so-called" miracles in a can, the ones that purportedly does all the mysterical, mythical cleaning and added lubrication, yadda, yadda, yadda.
They are conditioned to take on the favourable side and discount the ones that tell them no, even with evidence.
That's why those old solvent formula still sells these days, not because of any scientific proofs (that it works); but more like urban legends/greek myths of the modern kind...still lingers on.
It's also reflective of the mentality within the society, you know.
Q.
http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/ubbthreads.php/ubb/showflat/Number/2664444/Searchpage/1/Main/178223/Words/craftsman/Search/true/B&S_675_refresh_(past_#Post2664444