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some general questions...

Discussion in 'XJ Technical Chat' started by jmilliken, Apr 30, 2011.

  1. jmilliken

    jmilliken Well-Known Member

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    I got a couple of general questions about maintenance.....

    1. I have some caked on crud from the years of neglect by th po... can I use a pressure washer, or could that damage the aluminum?

    2. I forgot to mark which way was up on my butterflies.... how can I tell, or does it matter?

    3. Do the butterfly screws get locktite-ed in?

    Thanks!
     
  2. bigfitz52

    bigfitz52 Well-Known Member Premium Member

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    1: It's not a matter of damaging aluminum; it's a matter of blowing water into your engine or tranmission past seals that are there to keep oil in, not water out.

    I like to use a Citris-based automotive engine degreaser; be sure to get one that says it's for use on cold engines. Spray on, let soak, work in with a nice stiff scrubby brush, and flush with LOW PRESSURE water from the garden hose.

    I'm also a big fan of a product called "Tarminator" its' a solvent-based bug and tar remover; or just good old mineral spirits.

    2: You should be able to tell by close examination; I don't think the edges are straight; I believe they're slightly angled to match the bores, at least they are in the Mikunis.

    3: Since you're not "stomping" the ends of the screws like they were to begin with, then yes. You absolutely need to use Loctite.
     
  3. Militant_Buddhist

    Militant_Buddhist Member

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    I'm assuming you cleaned the butterflies really good and are now putting 'em back in. If they were still dirty I'd say look for the discolorations that line up with the various jets.

    It would be a mighty sad day if one of those screws wiggled out from vibration and got sucked into your intake. I buy new screws. put a large drift in the vise to act as an anvil and centerpunch the end like they do at the factory to swage it out.

    It occurs to me now to ask... loctite is fuel safe? if I knew for sure that it was then I guess I would use it here.
     
  4. KrS14

    KrS14 Active Member

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    Hitachi butterflies have angled edges as well.
     
  5. Robert

    Robert Active Member

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    The edges of the Hitachi butterflies are angled and will require that they are properly aligned. I've suffered through this once and, after looking at the edged and a trial-and-error fit, got them figured out. Once you know which side is angled how, you can confidently reinstall the rest. Just be sure to check seating before you torque the screws down (with Loc-tite of course).
     
  6. GFB85

    GFB85 New Member

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    I did the same thing in forgetting to mark them. I can tell which side is 'forward' by the marks left from the shaft. I did my best at 'guessing' which was way up by matching the shinier edges of the butterfly to the darker marks on the body; this is assuming the wear is causing the darkening and the shining.

    I also don't fully understand the 'angling to match a bore'
    that just makes no sense to me.
     
  7. waldo

    waldo Member

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    GFB85 if you look at the edge of the butterfly plate you will see that it is not a straight edge like a coin it is cut on a slight angle this allows the plate to completely seal the bore
     
  8. bigfitz52

    bigfitz52 Well-Known Member Premium Member

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    Precisely. It's because the butterflies aren't at perfectly 90 degrees to the bore when closed; they are still at a slight angle. If the edges were completely straight (like a coin) they wouldn't "match" the bore as closely.
     
  9. GFB85

    GFB85 New Member

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    So if it's meant to fit only one way, would you not be able to shine a bright light behind it once everything but they butterflies are back on and be able to tell which way would be more fitting by the amount of light coming in comparatively?
     
  10. bigfitz52

    bigfitz52 Well-Known Member Premium Member

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    Sure sounds plausible. It's also a good way to ensure they're properly seated and on straight.
     

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