Anyone use the Glyptal paint inside an engine?

[451Mopar]

Anyone use the Glyptal paint inside an engine?

Just curious if it is worth the money.

 

[steve340]

I never bother. It looks nice/trick and there probably is a small benefit - but the engine needs to be really clean to get it to stick well.
Too much work for me. I would rather spend a bit of time with a die grinder and get the oil back a little better that way.
I have pondered how much heat it can actually hold in rather than letting the oil pick it up.

 

[3sloppydogs]

Yup I have used it several times. Works great to keep the valley very clean
I bought a quart and still have plenty.
If they have pints buy that instead

 

[PurpleBeeper]

I don't know that product. I've "read" that internal coatings can help oil return. To answer steve340's question, you'd need to know the specific heat of the coating (how much heat it will hold) and it might be good to know the thermal conductivity (heat transfer). Steve is right that the block would need to be ultra clean

 

[3sloppydogs]

I always put it on immediately after the block returned from the hot tank. No problem with adherence because of that.

 

[steve340]

I believe I saw an interview with Bill Jenkins and he said they did not bother with it.
I have seen it done on a few engines but most is no.

 

[451Mopar]

I never bother. It looks nice/trick and there probably is a small benefit - but the engine needs to be really clean to get it to stick well.
Too much work for me. I would rather spend a bit of time with a die grinder and get the oil back a little better that way.
I have pondered how much heat it can actually hold in rather than letting the oil pick it up.

I usually do the same. Die grinder to remove casting flash and such. I think on my old 360 I polished up the valley. It looked nice, but I doubt it made any difference?
I have a 440, that I might coat one valley side and compare oil flow back between the coated and uncoated sides just to see any difference?

 

[steve340]

My thoughts are if you can be bothered to do it - I doubt it hurts.
I'm just to lazy.

 

[bandit67]

Ive often thought on a race motor thats gone into fairly often, yes, but a street motor, Ive wondered how long before it would start peeling off and clog the pickup and or filter.....

 

[Dibbons]

I use RustOleum Rusty Metal Red Primer.

 

[RJRENTON]

I don't know that product. I've "read" that internal coatings can help oil return. To answer steve340's question, you'd need to know the specific heat of the coating (how much heat it will hold) and it might be good to know the thermal conductivity (heat transfer). Steve is right that the block would need to be ultra clean

Glyptal was originally developed by G.E. is an insulating "paint" or varnish that can be brushed on or dipped and was used for the protection of motor windings from moisture and to help with heat transfer. Specific hest is defined as: Q=mcΔT where Q is the symbol for heat transfer, m is the mass of the substance, and ΔT is the change in temperature. The symbol c stands for specific heat and depends on the material and phase (liquid, solid, gas). The specific heat is the amount of heat necessary to change the temperature of 1.00 kg of mass by 1.00ºC. Your statment about specific heat characteristics is a little vague.
Glyptal dries to an almost impervious coating. I believe it is/was used to seal the block's internal surfaces to retain any grit and crud and to promote a significantly smoothet surface to help oil drain back. It should be applied to a "clean" dry surface. Is it worth it??? Depends on one's viewpoint and expectations.
BOB RENTON

 

[rmchrgr]

I use it. Good stuff.

 

[WileERobby]

When contemplating using anything, I always think of the "cost-benefit". Everything has a cost, and what benefit does it produce.

 

[6PKRTSE]

I have never used it myself. Many of the engines that I have seen it done to have some of it that has come off once torn down for a rebuild . It's gone somewhere within the engine. I feel it is not worth it to me.

 

[70bigblockdodge]

I use Rust-Oleum. You have to allow time for it to cure, takes a while. Does it work? It's cheap enough to not be a concern about major benefit.

 

[Fran Blacker]

Read way back when engines for Ronny Sox the valley was polished. Would hate to be the grunt doing that.

 

[rmchrgr]

I use Rust-Oleum. You have to allow time for it to cure, takes a while. Does it work? It's cheap enough to not be a concern about major benefit.

In general, I try to avoid using stuff just because it’s cheap. Either way, using Rustoleum over Glyptal is not an apples-to-apples comparison. Maybe R.O. has some similar kind of product I'm not aware of so pardon my ignorance if that's the case.

And that's not to say Rustoleum doesn't work (I wouldn't know though, never used to seal the lifter valley or some such thing) but Glyptal is specifically-formulated stuff for a particular application. It sounds silly but it’s not your average paint. Don’t know exactly how the chemical makeup differs but AFAIK regular paint, whether it's Rustoleum, Krylon or whatever is not generally used for insulating the insides of electrical motor housings. Glyptal is an "industrial strength" coating.

Also note that cast iron is somewhat porous and the Glyptal seals it. As mentioned already, this helps create a smooth surface to aid in oil drain back which would be similar to polishing. Conversely, one would likely not use it on an aluminum block.

This is the last engine I used it on, a 438" stroker. We put it in the lifter valley and timing chain area. I didn't put it in the area below the cylinders or along the block skirt area this time. I thought about it, just didn't. This block went in the hot tank after it was painted and it came out looking exactly the same; no big strips came off, no areas washed away, nothing. We cleaned the crap out of these surfaces beforehand, they were spotless. YRMV if you do a half-assed cleaning job before brushing this stuff on. The guy that machined the block said it was good to use.

 

[70bigblockdodge]

In general, I try to avoid using stuff just because it’s cheap. Either way, using Rustoleum over Glyptal is not an apples-to-apples comparison. Maybe R.O. has some similar kind of product I'm not aware of so pardon my ignorance if that's the case.

And that's not to say Rustoleum doesn't work (I wouldn't know though, never used to seal the lifter valley or some such thing) but Glyptal is specifically-formulated stuff for a particular application. It sounds silly but it’s not your average paint. Don’t know exactly how the chemical makeup differs but AFAIK regular paint, whether it's Rustoleum, Krylon or whatever is not generally used for insulating the insides of electrical motor housings. Glyptal is an "industrial strength" coating.

Also note that cast iron is somewhat porous and the Glyptal seals it. As mentioned already, this helps create a smooth surface to aid in oil drain back which would be similar to polishing. Conversely, one would likely not use it on an aluminum block.

This is the last engine I used it on, a 438" stroker. We put it in the lifter valley and timing chain area. I didn't put it in the area below the cylinders or along the block skirt area this time. I thought about it, just didn't. This block went in the hot tank after it was painted and it came out looking exactly the same; no big strips came off, no areas washed away, nothing. We cleaned the crap out of these surfaces beforehand, they were spotless. YRMV if you do a half-assed cleaning job before brushing this stuff on. The guy that machined the block said it was good to use.
View attachment 1238268

I agree, but I'm still cheap, not arguing against Glyptal.
Just my one cent worth.
See cheap^^^^^^

 

[R413]

My machinist said not worth the trouble on a mild engine. Could cause many problems of it doesn’t stick. Mopar V8’s have a wide open lifter area for drain back. And 426 Hemis don’t need it because most of the top end oil goes down the ends of the heads through passages in the block so very little oil is in the lifter valley.

Only need to use it if you have a high RPM engine and have trouble with oil flowing to the pan.
He is a life long racer, currently has a 632 in a dragster. Seen it and done it.

 

[rmchrgr]

My machinist said not worth the trouble on a mild engine. Could cause many problems of it doesn’t stick. Mopar V8’s have a wide open lifter area for drain back. And 426 Hemis don’t need it because most of the top end oil goes down the ends of the heads through passages in the block so very little oil is in the lifter valley.

Only need to use it if you have a high RPM engine and have trouble with oil flowing to the pan.
He is a life long racer, currently has a 632 in a dragster. Seen it and done it.

Like I said, one has to clean the surfaces to be painted really well before painting. It's just like body work - the better the prep job, the better the end result. Same old story - someone fails to go to the necessary lengths to prep the surface and then the paint comes off so they blame the paint.

Also, I'm not sure I agree with your machinist that "better" oil drain back is only a "high rpm" concern. Why not reap the benefits on a regular street driven engine that sees a lot of heat cycling and is subject to all sorts of different conditions? Race engines are generally idling in the pits or at WOT with very little part throttle operation or too much in the way of varying temps. Street engines have to deal with more variables which you figure should have a greater impact on oil life than going to WOT for 10 seconds at a time. Race engines tend to get the oil changed more frequently and have looser bearing clearances so that's also not an apples-to-apples comparison.

Using Glyptal in a street application could theoretically ensure a more complete circulation of the total volume of oil. Even though it's a slight amount, any oil that pools in the lifter valley is not going to circulate at the same rate as the rest of the oil in the system. This creates a situation where there's slightly less total volume. Less volume=harder work; harder work=faster oil breakdown; faster breakdown=problems.

I dunno, maybe I'm reading too much into it?