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All Done
So here is a follow up of what I finally ended up doing & not doing.
As I mentioned earlier, I could not get the paint remover/wire brush method to really do the cleaning job in a satisfactory manner. The paint was very tough in places. So I decided to go for the alternative - blasting the cover. I think in hindsight I might have tried polishing the cover instead. I was even toying with the Idea of just leaving the sandblasted cover unpainted. The above comment is proof of how I was NOT thinking. Once blasted, I now know - it must be painted or corrosion will set in rapidly.
I did not get the cover degreased before the sandblasting thinking I would do that later before painting. That turned out to be a blessing in disguise. I only took the oil separator off so as not to get the sand embedded there forever. The better way would be to mount the cover, as was suggested here to a wood or metal plate.
Once blasted the cover looked clean, yet half baked…So I chose to have the same facility poder paint and bake it right there and then. Black or Dark Gray, which would have been my choice was not available and meant waiting for several days until they could fit me in with a large paint order. As this is my daily drive I went for the available - light Gray.
The paint stage is when a mounting plate, or not degreasing the belly in advance is the way to go. Even though they only paint the outside – some paint does find it’s way underneath. I lucked out because the paint did not stick to all the oil & crud.
The cover was powder coated and baked at 200 degrees celcious and put back on the car yesterday. Took the car out for a long run and so far the cover is not peeling or leaking. Here’s for another MB project I thought would take no time at all...
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