After 3 years of a type-R wrinckled red valve-cover, I really needed to change this color !
Once you go black …
I decided to use a black wrinckle paint as on the original B16a valve-cover.
Here is the result … not so bad I hope. The part received many layers of a water-based paint removal gel and then was cleaned and dryed before painting.
This paint is not so easy to apply as the ‘wrinckle effect’ depends directly of the quantity of paint applied. You have to force yourself applying paint on some places that apparently don’t need more … but it is necessary in order to equilibrate quantities for each layer.
And back on the car. Looks nice and … softer than the red.
Why you need to NEVER sand blast a valve cover
Just before I tell you why, here is an inside view of the valve cover :
This part is made of aluminium and is assembled with a kind of riveted oil baffle inside. I told you that I removed the old paint with a dedicated gel for a good reason.
If you sand blast the part, thin sand will go in between the cover and the riveted parts. Because you can’t access those covered areas for cleaning, even if you do it a few time, sand will remain inside the valve cover.
I let you imagine what can do thin sand, going from the top of the runing engine inside the oil system … see what I mean ?
So please, don’t SAND BLAST your valve cover …
