So I'm going to be installing a new water pump on my 350 soon, and I plan on painting it so it doesn't just surface rust after the first winter like the last one. Am I correct in thinking the OE pump was on the block when the engine was painted? Was the thermostat housing installed as well? Thanks in advance guys

 

Yes, it was painted engine color if that's question..

 

Ok cool......that was one of my questions. Anyone have any tips on actually painting it?

 

Clean, prime and paint.

 

Haha well I figured that much! The thing is I'm using paint from OPGI and it says no primer is needed I had also figured it would need primer. Here's the paint I've got........

https://www.opgi.com/cutlass/1970/ca...rkers/C220129/

 

I usually lay it on some card board, and clean any oil off it, then shoot it with a ceramic hi temp paint. VHT has a gold that's really close to the Olds color. The paint you have should work fine, no primer necessary.

 

Not only were the water pump and thermostat housing already installed when the factory painted the engine, so was the bypass hose between them. So to be perfectly authentic, you need to get lots of overspray on the hose, too.

 

Wow thanks I never would have thought that!! So if the thermostat housing was on the engine.......does that mean where the upper hose gets clamped got painted as well? I'm going back to the OE housing that uses the J-hose that's why I ask.

 

Page 24 of the Engine Assembly Manual gives painting instructions, including the many areas which were to be masked. The outlet for the upper radiator hose was one of them. Exactly how they masked it and how far down the housing it went, I have no idea.

By the way, we're talking non-W cars here. From what I can tell, the entire aluminum intake manifold (including thermostat housing) was either masked off or not even installed before painting the W-30 and W-31 engines.

 

you dont need to prime it if your using engine paint...spray it with several very light coats of paint

 

This is the most important part. The casting is rough and lots of oil was used on it to prevent shipping rust. I used Eastwood's PRE, or paint thinner will do also. I poured some on, brushed it a little to get it into the pores, then used a lint-free rag to dry it up. Paint stuck flawlessly.

 

Hmmm looks like I've gotta find one of those manuals....are they re-produced anywhere? And yeah it's non-w car haha!

 

Yes thanks for the tip. The pump does seem quite oily out of the box lol (it's a flowcooler pump) Should I be worried about the paint thinner getting at the seals in the pump? Seems like they wouldn't like that too much.....but I know it has to be CLEAN!!!!

 

Don't dunk it in a bath of thinners to clean it, use it on a lint free rag to clear oil off. Basically avoid letting thinners get to the shaft and you will be fine.
I hope I'm stating the obvious, but fill with a 50/50 antifreeze solution to maximise the pumps life.

Roger.

 

X2.
I meant either pour on just a little, or dip a toothbrush and use that amount in a few square inches, then wipe away. Accidental contact with the seals will not destroy it, but just avoid it as much as possible for prevention. When I painted, I masked off the front seal area and shaft and fan mount too.

 

Just by coincidence, I sell reproductions of the 1970 Engine Assembly Manual. PM me your e-mail address for more info.
Or you can find a lower-resolution version of it on the Wild About Cars website (or whatever they're calling it nowadays).

The painting instruction page is actually one page in the manual which must be taken with a grain of salt. The page doesn't answer every question you may have, and unmolested original engines show that the line workers took some liberties with their masking and general quality of paint.

 

Thanks for the tips everyone Got it painted yesterday. Basically just hosed it with a few cans of brakeclean, after plugging the weep hole with a plastic cap I found. Definitely got it absolutely clean! Paint went on really nice for a rattle can. I'll post some pics once I'm off work