valve covers question

[born2drv]

i just bought some NA valve covers in pretty decent shape. I'm going to have them bead blasted and chromed, then have the black and red lettering re-applied in powdercoat.

i was looking at the inside of them, and there is a baffle in there for the PCV. so under each nipple is a plate baffle i guess which is used to make sure only oil fumes travel up the PCV and not just oil.

so my question is, if i plan to remove those nipples and put -10an fasteners, how will it be done without removing those baffles and is there enough room in there to do it?

 

[jdub]

You can do this two ways...tap & thread or weld. There should be enough room...I would not remove the baffle. Use a drill press for the hole to tap. The downside is taps this size are kinda expensive if you don't already have one.

Welding will work just as well or better...you will need an AN-10 aluminum bung.

Good luck chroming those...not too sure if chrome plating will work on aluminum

 

[pimptrizkit]

ditto on the plating,

i know they look real clean when polished..



any ways, im sure a pair of plierd and a torche should make removal of the nipples fairly easie..

 

[cjsupra90]

Your better off taking the baffle out to do it. Maybe not all, but everyone that I have ever removed had a filtering eliment of sort between the V/C and the baffle. I would be to afraid to get metal shaving from drilling and tapping in there and adventually have them fall into the motor. If you got aluminum AN fittings, and welded them in, you would be better off.

As for chroming them, as far as I know, you can not chrome plate aluminum. Plus chroming is not a good idea anyways cause it traps heat. If you are after the polished look, just do it with the bead blaster and use either crushed walnut shell or crushed up corn on the cobb cobbs. If you start with a very coarse media and then work your way up with finer and finer media and then finish with one of the two mentioned media's, a very nice finish can be acheived.

 

[tookwik4u89]

Sand 'em smooth with a die grinder and 3m cookies, then use some finer grit on them , buff with polish....sweet!

 

[boost PSSH boost]

Sand them and powdercoat them with "mirror chrome" powder.

Or polish them and throw some clear powdercoat on.

 

[tookwik4u89]

Zoopseal FTW

 

[born2drv]

hmmm i think i'll weld it in like jdub and cj recommended. i think that's the easier and safer solution.

as for the chroming, i searched extensively and there are mk4s that do it all the time, so i don't think it will be a problem, i don't think the valve covers get that hot, maybe a few hundred degrees, but nothing like the exhaust manifold, etc... eventually i want to get everything under the hood chromed as long as it doesn't get exposed to high heat.

also i know some poeple won't chrome AL (not sure why?) but the guy i take my stuff to does, he chromed my cusco front strut tower bar, check it out (OLD PIC):

unfortuantely my new turbo setup and IC pipes are too big to fit underneath it, so we had to take it off, until i get my FFIM!!!!! (which i will also chrome!!!)