[Shop-talk] Spark Plug Cleaner

[old dirtbeard]

I have one of them and they  do work well.  They used to make sense back in
the day when lead would leave deposits, carbs would run rich and points
would burn, weak spark, etc., resulting in good, relatively new plugs that
were sooted or covered with lead deposits.  Also, if you had two-strokes,
they tended to foul plugs.

With modern ignitions and lead-free gas, plugs last a very, very long time,
and they probably are worn by the time that they get dirty, if they ever
get dirty. I also have read that sandblasting will round-off the sharp
edges, resulting in less efficient sparking surfaces (I do not know if that
is true).

Of course, the big bugaboo is the potential of leaving some sand/grit on
the plug and inserting it into your cylinder to scratch the bore.

I think the last time I used my spark plug blaster was to clean a lawnmower
plug or a chainsaw plug that sooted out.  It is always there, though, if I
needed to put a vehicle on the road and I do not have a plug to do it.  :-)

Best,

doug
BSA B50SS

On Sun, Oct 21, 2018 at 2:57 AM Bob Spidell <bspidell at comcast.net> wrote:

> Have heard--no hard data--that blasting damages the polished coating on
> the ceramic insulator (that's what blasting is for, after all).  I think,
> given how relatively inexpensive plugs are that it's not worth the risk.
>
> Bob
>
> On 10/20/2018 9:57 AM, Al Fuller wrote:
>
> Anybody still using spark plug cleaners – such as the small air powered
> sand blasters of old?
>
>
>
> I’m looking at plugs for several cars, snow blower, etc. – and wondering
> whether the cleaning is known to damage the plugs.  I don’t recall that
> being an issue when I used them years ago, nut I do confess that the newer
> plugs seem to be made of more exotic materials.
>
>
>
> Thoughts?
>
>
>
> Al Fuller
>
>
>
> '65 BJ-8
>
> '85 Rx-7
>
>
>
>
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