An oil story about my 6G74 3.5L vehicles...

[normal_dave]

For general parts cleaning, I like the "odorless" mineral spirits aka parts cleaning fluid in the metal can from the farm store. I use it to refill my parts washer, has a higher flash point for safety. The one I usually get is $ 39.00
http://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/crown-psc-1000-parts-cleaner-5-gal

If you are just cleaning/bleeding Mitsubishi lifters then diesel fuel only for that job.

 

[Deleted member 144409]

Er, well, this got complicated. What's the general rule when using parts wash vs. diesel? My plan was to parts wash everything, then "rinse" with spirits or alcohol. Then use a patchouli candle to clear up the smell in the garage.

 

[coffeegoat]

The trick with the lifters is they end up filled with the cleaning fluid so you want something with some lubricating properties. Diesel is both a cleaner and a lubricant so it works well. When I did it I used methanol as the cleaner (it's my favorite solvent and I had some lying around) and then pumped them full of standard motor oil afterwards. This way I could use whatever cleaner I wanted and then flushed them with oil afterwards. Make sense?

Technically you could even use a water based cleaning solution like hot water and dish soap or simple green provided you got them dry and re lubed afterwards.

 

[Deleted member 144409]

That's great! I didn't know that about diesel. I thought it was just for burning brush piles based on my dad's use on the farm. That's the guideline I needed, then.

Thanks!