Valve covers will be off Thursday. Want to paint while off. Where can I find orginal color quick fast?

 

How difficult is it to paint the runners and plenum? Is it better to have those off as well if I want to paint them too or has anyone painted them while on car? Please chime in.

 

For the valve covers, your best bet if yours aren't stained too badly would be to have a body supply store match the existing color. Either that or just wing it if you're not too picky about having exactly the right look.

The plenum and runners won't look right painted. If you want the stock look, degrease them. If they're really bad, Eagle One makes a etching wheel cleaner for rough cast aluminum wheels. It's basically an acid, so you don't want to get it on anything painted, you don't want to breathe it or get it on your skin. The good news is you can spray it on and hose it off 30 seconds to a minute later (at most) without removing the parts. Just make sure it doesn't get on anything else or it'll discolor paint, erase decals, etc.

 

I thought these things came from the factor painted. I now the valve coves are but thats a diff story altogether. I just want it to look clean and neat. If this route gets me there then good but if I need to paint them then Ill do so.

 

No, cast aluminium runners were NEVER painted. The valve covers on both my Firebirds were satin black, or semigloss black when new. You might check to see if a high temp paint is available, too. Standard auto spray paint may not survive there.

 

Picked paint this morning pulled cleaned and painted. Were reinstalled this afternoon. Wife is asking why aint I at work makin money.

I am having to much fun to even answer!

Here are some before and after pics. Probably wont do much good showing them in the car since most of the valve cover is covered up especially on the passenger side. Ill take one if anybody wants to see them.

Basically used engine paint. The color was called Cast Aluminum. I think it was by Dupli-Color.

 

By the way where can I purchase the gromets in these valve covers. I almost pulled these and something told me to wait until I have new ones in hand first. I listened to something and something saved me a lot of heartache because I visited 4 places while the paint was drying and none of them had my size gromets.

I taped these out. The are dryrotted and the drivers side is leaking a little. The Pass side I can get by with.

 

Mr Gasket sells some valve cover grommets, so does Standard, Airtex/Wells, and Dorman. Any autoparts store should be able to get them for you. Rock Auto lists several under PCV Valve / Crankcase Ventilation Grommet.

 

those mr. gasket ones won't fit. so i went and asked for ones in the back and i got ones by Dorman.

 

The closest color I've found for the valve covers is "Seymour Spruce", the color is "Nickel". Eckler's re-sells this as Corvette valve cover paint. I repainted the valve covers on my Corvette and they look outstanding. This paint will also look good on cast aluminum parts like Corvette runners... but whether or not it would look good on the smooth f-body runners I don't know.

Here's a pic:

 

Hey Slowridr.....They look outstanding!! Did you sand them down to bare metal or just scuff them up with some sandpaper or scotchbrite pads?

Was the paint a hightemp or normal type?
Thanks!!

 

It's been a year, you might try sending him an email or PM if you want to catch his attention.

I had a set of nasty centerbolt valve covers from the bottom of a pile of parts in a chicken coup... I sent them over to the machine shop to be sandblasted, and got them back looking like new, fresh bare steel. They were chipped, rusty, greasy, etc before. It would have taken hours with degreasers, sanding, or paint strippers, etc.