The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Engine Shop How to Clean Air Cleaner- Oil Bath type

What is the proper procedure when you buy an old truck that's been sitting for years. I am tempted to clean the metal shavings inside the oil bath with gas until it runs clean. What are the do's and don't's. Do any of you put in new shavings/element and where do you get them. Should I clean with: Simple green? Spay can degreaser? Gas? this would be on a 1959 235 Chevy motor w/orig oil bath air cleaner.

Didn't know there were shavings in the filter(unless you are talking about the copper), in mine there is only a copper element, and it doesn't appear to be accessible. Just wash it out with kerosene or the like, let it dry, and fill it up to level with oil, but I forget the right weight, if there is any.

The books call for the same weight oil as is used in the engine.

Use carb cleaner or better yet, if you have access to one, a parts washer tank. Using gas or kerosene can be very dangerous, never mind the cost. Finding shavings in the housing conserns me, that sounds like the mesh element part is disintigrating. I've seen them do that, especially on one that's been sitting and not kept oiled. They actually rust apart. Had the original rocker cover breather do that on mine. If that's the case, you might look into converting the housing to take a dry element or K&N filter.

Shavings was the wrong word. It's just the real coarse steel wool, wirey looking stuff they used. "the element" . Everyone here knows what it looks like I think. I don't think it is disintegrating. maybe a little "settled" but should "fluf" out after cleanng. I will use gas in the outdoors. It's only $3.88 per gal here now. Drill Drill Drill!!!!!!!

Gas is dangerous, but no one ever told my mother that. She used to was my greasy clothes "white gas. But I think all of us that started twisting wrenches since 50 years ago agree it must have been a miracle that we are still alive. At our shop we now use some some kind of methyl ester that smells like Crisco cooking oil for cleaning parts as well as a lot of Simple Green.

Just cleaned mine out a few months ago. Let it soak in the solvent tank. Got a lot of the dirt and grime out of there. Let air dry for half the day. The manual calls for SAE 50.

thanks Boys.

I cleaned mine then filled it with oil and my engine tended to suck oil and make big smoke clouds so I took it off and bought a nice little paper air filter setup with a small bell/louvered chrome cover. It looks vintage and makes it look a bit nicer. I haven't had any problems since. That's my advice. The paper is far better at filtering then the oil bath in my opinion.

50 weight oil to the fill line (before putting the top on) should not result in much (if any) oil being sucked into the carburetor. An overfilled base and/or lighter oil might allow oil to get get sucked in.

I've used 3 or 4 different sizes of oil bath filters on 216/235/261 one-barrel Rochester carbs over the years with no problems. If water gets inside, you can expect rust-through in the base and maybe deterioration of the filling (you'd also have problems with a paper element if it got wet).

Nonetheless, on the 2-carb (Carter-Weber) set-up that's going on my 261, I'll be using oil-bath cleaners adapted for paper filters (because the base had to be cut to fit the top of the C-W).