b2xu
Plastic
- Joined
- Nov 2, 2011
- Location
- California Central Coast
I rebuild vintage auto parts, the real carb cleaner and solvent went away years ago...I get along with a couple of heated parts washers (soap and water and agitation). I've always had a couple of gallon containers on my bench with acetone and lacquer for all my little bright work. It was great to clean the little shiny stuff quick and swell all the seals and o-rings for easy removal. Now they've reduced the voc count from 300 to 25! Both the lacquer and the acetone are completely useless, they leave the parts a gummy mess. MEK is totally off the market. Brake cleaner is like a non flammable mineral spirit. I'm using a MEK subsitute for industrial coatings. It's better than nothing but barely. Someone said use diesel? Someone said buy up a bunch of alternator and starter cores and tell them you can't use water base in the electrical rebuilds. Last time they (epa, aqmd (air quality managment district) and carb (California air resources board) were here they treat you like a criminal. "what are you blasting in your sandblaster?" "uh, rusty parts" "no paint?" "uh, no" "well, we need to see your filter" luckily i'd just cleaned it out. They actually fly over areas looking for paint booth vents I'm not kidding. Remember, it starts in California and heads east, you'll be dealing with the same problems soon. For now if anybody has any ideas i'd love to hear some.