Paint or alodine?

[Sid Lambert]

I'm thinking of leaving my engine rebuild with no paint and just the alodine the engine people put on. It will look like a Continental.

Are there any downfalls to doing this that I am missing?

[92ndwest]

Saves time, money, weight and will not peel or chip. It just looks like a Superior engine.

[flyingriki]

Does it need to be clear coated to preserve the golden look and keep it clean?

[djonesdnd]

Ken, at Lycon, says engines that are Alodine coated run 20 degrees cooler than painted engines. Another good reason to Alodine rather than paint IMHO.

[Ironflight]

Originally Posted by djonesdnd

Ken, at Lycon, says engines that are Alodine coated run 20 degrees cooler than painted engines..

Oil Temp?
CHT's?
EGT's?

That is a pretty non-specific statement for folks known to produce good quality performance engines. Without knowing what parameter he's talking about, it doesn't help a bit.

[krwalsh]

We had Lycon do all of the machine work on our engine. We left it alodined on their recommendation. I was initially worried it would get very dirty, but having reassembled it, and gooping it with aviation gasket seal, oil, moly assembly lube, etc, all of it wiped off with a rag or a mild amount of solvent.