Couple of thread-[censored] ignorant answers, then a serious response. 2:1 Nonsense to contribution ratio. Highly average for BITOG!
Quote:
Anyone else mix up eds red or some other recipe for cleaner/lubricant?
For those not in the know Ed's red is:
1 part kerosene
1 part acetone
1 part mineral spirits
1 part ATF
I have done this in the past, but there is just better stuff available cheap enough that unless you need to restore the deuce and a 1/2 you got from the national guard charity auction, it doesn't pay. I find Mil Pro 7, LPS, etc. work awesome, better, and save time. I know Ed's Red was good for its time, but there are cheap good things better now. The thing I believe messes it up is the wax content in the kero and mineral spirits. Totally 19th century vs. modern alternatives. I use 3 of those 4 all the time. And they work great. But what i think happens with Ed's Red is the more volatile elements float off and the wax stays in the barrel, action, or other places. there's a lot of ugly waxes in the kerosene and mineral spirits.
But I like to experiment, so I don't disregard this as a thought exercise. I have also mixed HB recipes for SeaFoam (70% white gas, then some acetone, mineral oil, etc. - google it). It did not work as well at all. I now by Chemtool B-12 which works better than SeaFoam at 1/2 the price.
A homebrew that did come out gangbusters for me was for Greenland Wax. I got sick of paying too much for wax for my oil cloth garments - a few Barbour Jackets, some Filson tincloth chaps (those save my [censored] when it started snowing in Montana in September on a cross-country vintage motorcycle ride), etc. I ride bikes and horses so this tuff gets used. I googled a home reipe and it was like candle wax, bees wax, an a little mineral oil. (Google it). I made some up for like $5 10 years ago and I'm still using that batch, vs. $50 of Barbour wax of Filson wax. Google "Greenland wax."
I love experimenting with stuff; commercial products are so often just marketing simple combos of everyday chemicals. Some times they hit it right (MMO did), others it is nonsense.
Tomorrow I am laying up my SUV for a lot of fun play. I am going to:
a) flush the system with 1/2 oil and 1/2 kerosene
b) piston soak it with 1/2 atf and acetone, then again with mmo/acetone
c) drill out my AT housing to retro-fit a dip stick, it's a more modern one without one but I figured out how to retrofit it and transtec sent me a gasket to hlep (Transtec are good products/people when you have a transmission issue, fyi). Fit a 2n AT filter inline while down there and the pan dropped.
d) new headlight, windshield
Big refresh while i can work from home and play in the meantime.