Lesson learned: non flammable brake cleaner

[m in sc]

So, we put a new topend on matts 350 this weekend, went really well until we went to go start it. (i'll let him share the pics of the installation).

one thing we did was, i used the non flammable brake cleaner to clean the top of the cases since both base gaskets were leaking somewhat. and while this may sound obvious after the fact, some got into the crank case.

what we should have done was blow it out, but i didn't think there was that much, if any in there. about an hour and a half later when we put the new cyls/pistons on, everything went great. went to start it would NOT fire.(mind you it ran fine before but had low compression).   Nothing else was changed.

turns out , the brake cleaner was in the crank case and was fouling the plug similar to if an oil line seeps.

to compound that, turned out the RH condenser was taking a shit at the same time.

so, if you use this stuff, make sure you blow the crank cases out prior to starting.  It just wasn't volatile enough to evaporate i guess. and, i wasn't spraying it down in there either, so it didn't take much. when we did get it fired off, you could def smell it. luckily, since it wasnt chlorinated, nobody saw any 'new' colors. 

I should have known better. - sigh.

[automan]

perchloroethylene

[kramdua]

it will evaporate but it probably mixed with the oil in the crank case and stuck around. also that stuff is toxic when it burns.

[msr]

It definitely had us scratching our heads for a bit until we finally got it to fire. That SMELL when it did, though, was pretty awful.

I'll get the pics up shortly. Was very fun day even with this unexpected turn.

[IR8D8R]

1,1,1 Trichloroethane was like that too. They used to use it in fire extinguishers. Not sure any brake cleaners are pure CFC like that anymore.

I like the 3M High Power Brake Cleaner. It's definitely flammable.

IR8D8R

[m in sc]

FWIW i run 2 very effective fans in the garage w the door open anytime i work on stuff. always a big squirrel cage and a 24" floor fan. its all they had on hand that day, TBH.  and yes it has perchloroethylene in it.

[msr]

Some of the pics from that day. I'm pretty happy with how it all turned out. Will be even better when I have a painted tank on this bike.