The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Engine Shop Cleaning Rocker Arm Assembly

I have my rocker arm assembly apart and am cleaning the sludge out of it. The upper side of the head has a lot of sludge sitting in it and I've been able to mop some of it out with rags but I was wondering if there was something I could spray it with to help loosen it up. I know whatever I use will wind up in the crankcase but I will change the oil. A few weeks ago I ran a 50/50 mixture of oil and automatic transmission fluid through it to clean it but there is still this stuff sitting where the rocker arm assembly goes.

Joe, I've used spray can of brake cleaner and a brass brush with success. It'll take your breath away, so use good ventilation.

Soak them in a bucket of diesel or another cleaner. It will soften up the crud and you'll have to remove the stuff with a brush.

Jeff

I wound up using Gunk to loosen up the sludge. I also soaked the rocker arm assembly in gasoline and cleaned the parts with a wire brush. Messy job and a lot of cleaning up but it looks much better. Here is a picture of the gummed-up rockers:

[IMG]http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y261/bohon/56%20Chevy%20truck/Rockercleaning002.jpg[/IMG]

Here is the engine after cleaning:

[IMG]http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y261/bohon/56%20Chevy%20truck/Rockercleaning010.jpg[/IMG]

i remember doing that on my 228 when it was in my 40. i also did the lifter galley while i had it open with the pan off. the rockers assembly looks good along with the pipe. did you remove the plugs on the end of the pipe and clean that out? lots of gunk and sludge in there. i cleaned like i was cleaning a rifle.

If you mean the hollow rocker shaft, yeah. I have it soaking in gasoline at the moment. It had a lot of crud inside it and I didn't have a wire brush to run through it so I'm letting it soak. Those rifle cleaning kits a very useful for this kind of job.