50 Year Old BabeBee Restore

ian1954 wrote:I always like to see the restoration of a neglected engine.
Did you re black the cylinder or did it clean up to that finish?

No Ian, I used Hoppe's #9 in a sonicator for 20min and blew it off
with compressed air. I was a little surprised myself.
Bob

That was fortunate. I have never had one that cleaned up that well.

I would have been surprised!

Did you use Mothers on the tank? What is your technique for the Ultrasonic cleaner? You have a jar with Hoppes resting in Ultrasonic cleaner? The engine looks great. Andy

Looks great Bob!

roddie wrote:Wow Bob! That put a smile on my face! One of my favorite subjects here at CEF, is when someone documents a restore/cleaning such as this. Well done!  

Same thing with me...I was really touched to see her becoming a beauty after so many years of careless storage by the previous owner...Poor li'l thing...I am curious to learn if the assumption of a short previous runtime on her was right and the compression etc are fine...

Thanks Ian, Andy, Ron, Roddie, Balogh and Jacob for
the kind responses.
Andy, that's exactly how I use the sonic cleaner and Hoppe's #9.
I'm a little leery about putting the #9 directly in the sonicator, as
the bath liquid heats up somewhat. I put the parts in a small
jar with the #9, and imerse that in the water bath. Seems to work well.
Also, I did use Mother's billet polish on the tank.
Balogh, on re-assembly, she has lots of compression.

  Now for the rest of the story.
I fueled the Bee up on the test stand and drip,drip,drip.
I know the factory tank screws are a little(3/32"?) shorter.
It's never been a problem before, as I always bottom tap
the case threads to accept the extra length (3/4") screws.
I guess the holes in the old case didn't
have the extra depth to tap.
Anyway, I shortened the screws(pita) and fired her up.
Tight as a drum now and runs like a champ.
I didn't tach her, but she sounded good.
Thanks again all, here she is.
Bob

Now that's what I like to see! Here's a greenie for ya.

I like the engine test stand. That looks nice and shiny too!

Really nice job < BOB > Looks great and the stand too did you buy or build that test stand? Glad it ran out good for you . Getback  

Thanks guys!
Getback, the stand is an old Tatone with
a mount block I picked up on E-Bay years ago.
Bob

Whooooo Buddy.....you really brought that Baby Bee back to the fold. Kinda like the Tin Man on the Wizard of Oz)))) All spiffed up.
I too like that engine test stand.
Love seeing an old engine get on back in the game.
Shug

It must have crashed on its maiden flight judging from the photos before cleaning, nice job. Those old bees are nice runners.
For me they always run the opposite way I flip the prop.

where can i get one of those sonic cleaners? ive seen some on ebay for cleaning jewelry go for 30 to 40 bucks. are those things any good for cleaning engines?

looperdude wrote:where can i get one of those sonic cleaners? ive seen some on ebay for cleaning jewelry go for 30 to 40 bucks. are those things any good for cleaning engines?

looperdude, I've used one of the less expensive cleaners(Chicago Tools), and
they're no great shakes(yuk yuk). A good small unit will set you back
$150-$200. I was lucky to be gifted one by a scientist friend who made the
leap fron research to acedemics. A few forum members have had
good results using Hoppe's #9 as a good plain soak. A decent
sonic cleaner just speeds things up.
Bob

Your project inspired me to save this old Bee, 10$ shipped on eBay. Looking at the tank and backplate made me think it could have the early flathead screws, I don't have one.
It turned out to have the newer screws but it does have the 4 piece piston. Having a hard time cleaning the black off the backplate and of course it has the plier marks.

Looks like a worthy candidate! Seems you are well on your way. Fine sandpaper works wonders on fins and heads. Hope to see it when it's done.

I have to ask though what's the fourth piece in the piston?   

Hi Ron, I got to work on those plier marks, the head is not so bad, if I can get em out of the cylinder it will need to be blacked.
I was thinking about using this from Blue Wonder http://shop.bluewonder.us/gun-black-kits/blue-wonder-gun-black-2-oz-refinishing-kit/
I have never blacked a cylinder before and don't want to use a complicated process.
Ya the piston I've seen em called 3 and 4 piece, I guess 4 would be piston, rod,retainer and clip?

That should work well. I have used lesser quality stuff than what you have and it turned out OK, but not as dark as from the factory.

I have taken one of those older pistons apart and all it consisted of was the piston, rod and a clip to hold in the rod.

Maybe there is also a 4 piece version? Don't know...

Hey Doug, looks like a nice engine there. Older
than the one I just restored.
Lots of beauty to be uncovered.
The Blue Wonder looks interesting. I've never
tried bluing, but I have several cylinders that
could some. Thanks for the link.
Bob

Oops I did it again, my latest Bee from eBay. The pics were poor but I gave it a bid, turns out looks like its never seen fuel.
It has the four piece piston and a very early glow head