What is considered to be the best engine paint? I’m not talking about any color yet (except possibly ford engine red), just looking for where I should go after I decide
Best how? Price, ease of application, longevity, shine, color match, able to handle heat, able to handle cleaning? Which combo of attributes are important to you? Cheap spray bombs will cover some but not others. High dollar 2K paints that are matched to sample will cover some but not others.
You know I always bought engine enamel to paint my engines. It was something you could pickup at any parts store. A little more expensive than regular spray cans, but made to stand up to engine heat. Then I was putting together a new short block for the race car and all I had was a spray can of black paint. I thought, what the heck, so I just used it. It held up fine on the race car; didn't blister, didn't peel, didn't fall off. Just my experience.
There are several thorough threads on this topic. The recurring theme is cleanliness prior to spraying color.
I've heard good things about the POR-15 engine paint. You can brush it or thin it and spray it. I plan to try it on my next one. Otherwise I use Dupli-color engine paint. It works okay as long as you prep well, just like anything else.
The best? In my experience it has been actual automotive base/clear. Get the engine very clean and paint it just like you would the rest of the body.
I have used POR 15 Engine Enamel with good results. Rather thick to apply with a brush but levels out nicely. I brushed it but it can be thinned and sprayed. Very tough and chip resistant, retains shine and hasn’t faded due to heat. Rather expensive at $35.00 a pint but was able to do block and heads. Comes in a variety of OEM engine colors plus others. I’d used it again but your milage may vary.
I've done well with catalyzed acrylic enamel automotive paint, and without applying any primer. Clean, clean, clean first. This paint holds up better than spray can enamel, and generally has better gloss, which means you can wipe oil off it easily. Like he said above, there are lots of success stories that usually involve good surface prep.
I've used Eastwoods catalyzed engine aerosol with good results. Easy to apply and very tough. As mentioned, prep is everything regardless of the paint you go with.
^ This. If you can heat the block and heads up before applying the primer or first coat of paint, it will help immensely in my experience. Not only does the heat burn off any residual oil and grease trapped in the nooks and crannies, but the warmed (not hot) surfaces allow the paint to flow more easily once applied.
Bill Hirsch engine paint. This is two coats brushed on. Really flows out well. Not a lot of miles on it yet but so far holding up good.
Does anybody go for heating the block to remove condensation before paint? Seems like it has merit as cast iron does absorb moisture .... Way Tony explains it seems legit.
Ha! I admittedly had never tried the pre-heat method before seeing the UTG video, but it makes sense to me, and once you do it, you can watch as the contaminants are driven out of the cast iron block right before your very eyes...I have to admit it was very convincing. I used propane rather than MAP gas, but, despite a "less hot" burn temp, it seemed to work just fine. The one downfall is you can't (well, probably better phrased as shouldn't) apply masking tape to the pre-heated block before applying paint.
Preheating. Somewhere on the HAMB, there's a picture of an engine hanging from a chain over a small fire. Crazy. Genius.
I am going to catch a lot of flak for this but here goes. The heat from the torch is not releasing water from the cast iron. What is happening is that the water in the gas is condensing on the cold cast iron just like a gl*** of cold water gets droplets on the outside. As soon as the iron gets warm enough the water evaporates again and is gone. That bottled gas gives off a LOT of water when it burns. If you don’t think I know what I’m talking about, try doing the same thing with a heat gun. Warming up the cast iron helps the paint stick for sure but it is not releasing all that water that shows up.
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