Glyptal Paint Inside your Engine Making the Case to do it! 

Glyptal was patented in 1914 and became their liquids research division of G.E. (General Electric, Thomas Edison) and used the name as a logo. In the 1930's it was used as a paint. Back then is was applied for it's electrical insulation properties. The company was spun off in the 1980's. Now they manufactured different paintable coating for different applications. The 1201 is available in traditional red, white, light blue and black. For spraying, use Xylol or Xylene as the thinner. The surfaces must be free of oil. If cleaned in a hot tank, it must be washed afterwards to get rid of any caustic chemicals (than also includes any alkaline cleaners such as Purple Power). Caustics will cause a breakdown of the paint greatly reduce adhesion. It is also a good measure to wipe down the area with acetone or Xylol as a last step prior to painting so all moisture is removed. I was curious about the do's and don'ts as the website has no instructions so I called Glyptal and these are the instructions given to me. Xylol or Xylene is commercially available and one brand everyone recognizes is Kleen Strip. Just for an idea, Amazon distributes Kleen Strip Xylol for about $15.00 a quart. Hope this helps everyone considering using this and having no issues.

Uncle Tony suggested I join you channel .....love the content 👍

I used Glyptal inside my first 4-bolt main Cleveland block 36 years ago for all the same reasons that you mentioned. Very useful video. Thanks Andy 👍. And btw, I still have that block because it has withstood the test of time.

Great video and explanation and case for using the genuine glyptal.

Hey Andy I recently started following you and all's I can say is keep up the great work your doing for those of us who appreciate your knowledge, and expertise in engine building. You are bring to light techniques and ideas I learned about over 40 years ago when I was a young hot rod enthusiast. I owned some nice Detroit muscle back in the day. From my 65 Pontiac GTO and 68 SS 327 Nova to a car I regret sailing to this day, my original 70 Cuda 440 six-pack. Now at the age of 68 I relive the fun I had tinkering with those vehicles through you and your videos. Take care God bless and thank you...

Hi Uncle Tony says you know your stuff and I should check your channel out. When my Dad played with high powered cars he always painted the lifter valleys don't remember what he painted them with, but he said it helped seal the block, now I know why thanks for the reminder next engine build I'm doing that.

Jaguar xk120 straight 6 engines have been using it since 1948

Andy, you're always easy to listen to & learn from. I also appreciate the brief history titbits.

I always wondered about this. I figured it was for faster oil movement, but didn't know about the rest. This was really good info thank you for sharing.

Smokey Yunick would work for weeks to free up even just 1 horsepower....cast iron is porous, so after all final cleaning is done thoroughly saturate the area with lacquer thinner and fan dry several times to purge any contaminants and moisture and it won't come off.

Awesome video! Uncle Tony sent me! I saw your dual quad video and I just had to subscribe!

I have used the Rustoleum rusty metal primer on the cast iron internals of heads and blocks for decades. I don't know if the new cans list fish oil as an ingredient to promote penetration but it has a long shelf life, Glyptal states that it has a limited shelf life but I have never Glyptal, it does look good. As an added note I have seen industrial gear boxes painted on the inside and they look painted before any machine work was done.

Been using it for years. Good video Andy 👍🏼

I used Glyptal paint in the past. Always used the same cleaning proceedure of the block prior to using the Glyptal. One motor rejected the coating and came off in sheets. It was a mess removing it. I now use Rostoleum rust primer. Since it is a slow oil paint its much more forgiving for any missed oil on the block surface(still requires thorough cleaning). If it does come off, its small bits or flakes and the filter can handle it. It just won't kill the engine like the sheeting action of the Glyptal. A machinist friend suggested that after a tho rough cleaning, bake the block at 350* to force out any oil that may be in the cast iron pores.

Outboard Motor Co (Johnson , Evinrude etc) Was using Gylptal coating in there powerheads in the 50 and on. Only saw it start peeling in severely overheated engines.....it also withstood Methanol fuel in modded engines!

I have always found that if you clean any surface with what the paint thins with ie. The paint thinner used in the paint you’re going to use. You won’t have a reaction, and I’ve used Rust oleum red oxide

Late to the party. Uncle Tony sent me from the dual quad video. Good stuff!

Thanks for the info for sure. I have never used it before. Thanks for the info Andy.

Like everyone else, saw the dual quad video and came over to subscribe, Great videos and information!

My dad was a paper mill millwright and swore by this in gearboxes & electrical motors. When I went to auto & diesel school he gave me rattle cans and I would use in valve covers, oil pans, lifter valleys etc. even dipped rocker arms & pushrods etc. Opened those engines up years later and they are clean as a whistle…. Carbon & dirt will not stick to gylptal painted surfaces at all. Which in theory means that it will be caught by the oil filter instead.

Pretty good info Andy. I have a OLD How to book that talked about glyptol. I’ve never tried it though, never really had anything that nice to justify trying it. Lol

Good one..i ill try buy some in Australia,,,, yes i saw this on good builds in 1978

but how, after the very first coat of oil... is there a rough surface anymore... the first time you fire the engine up in the morning, now all the pores have oil in them, and new oil is going to just slide across the filled holes isnt this like saying the ocean is going to have turbulence from the mariana trench... but it doesnt because once it's filled up, it just flows overtop of it? or am i WAY overthinking this

Great video Andy. I am going to do this to my olds 425 over winter should help oil drain back need every bit that helps on a olds.

harley Davidson used this product back in the 1950s because the aluminium cases (block) are so porous that the oil would sweat out ,

I m not sure if Smoky/the Grump Advocated glyptal painting? Smoky did start applying lacquer paints (I believe 1950’s); to promote oil drainage. Engine builders vary their still sets & Preferences; usually from experience. I personally did not paint my blocks/heads (iron or alum) internally; more harm, then good scenario. If you prep a block correctly, no need to paint or apply Barrier coatings. Plus, modern times would likely one will modify the lifter valley and oil system so that oil drainage/aeration is not a concern. If I was back into racing again; Magflux/Sonic NDT, physical preparation & hygienically environment (at or near clean room settings) is something I would focus on.

I heard about this paint in the mid to late 70's from some of the racers and engine builders that my grandfather and uncle knew. They both raced dirt track at Selinsgrove in PA. I do remember hearing about the big debate, who used it first but from what I heard is that they both used it about the same time. Is that a 351 Windsor block? Looks very similar to the one that I rebuilt in my '88 Crown Vic Police Interceptor.

Hi doesn’t surprise me that smoky yunick thought of this on another channel are saw smoky’s contributions to cars and they are mind-boggling there was there were no wings on Indy cars until he invented them the there were no reverse cycle engine in existence and he thought that moving the weight of a race car around will improve it and he invented one and had it built.

Can you also paint the undersides of pistons with an aerosol can style Glyptal, to shed oil off?

More interested in the 100 hours of prep you did on the block before the paint job.

Hagarty is using it on the Cadillac block they are building.

why wouldnt a heat gun cure it after? i would also use the heat gun on the surface drying out any moisture before painting.

a LOT of debate on this subject!, My question is do you think the RISK of having paint inside engine is worth the FEW potential HP to be gained? Idk seems Risky for us " Budget builders"

$115.00 spray can and $160.00 a can here, Australia.

The only time I ever painted the valley of an engine was on how RPM engines just so oil could get back to the pan quicker. You're not revving the engine to the Moon normal driving it's a wasted process.

I get the point about heat but just sand it is plenty.

I pulled the intake off my LS to do this but havnt noticed any gains. 🤔

Would a two part epoxy paint not bond as well and do the same purpose?

I had never heard of Glyptal most of the guys I know use a header paint

You da man!

You mentioned that the Glyptal keeps the heat in the block and out of the oil. Have you thought about painting the bottom of the intake manifold, to help keep heat out of the intake?

What about ceramic coating?

I'd think it'd be close to impossible to clean the inside of a used engine clean enough of the oil that had made its way into that porous cast iron surface to make it bond and stay adhered to it when hot and running. I mean is have to soak it in acetone for a week. Then again I cud be full of shit like my wife says but it's just a thought for all u fellow OCD suffers who just have to have a pretty inside to ur motor too, even though ur the only one who's ll ever see it most likely. Rich/San Jose

Have you ever tried engine paint on the inside ?

Respectfully....this is an old wives tale. If it ever did anything, why not paint the cylinder head as well? Why not paint the crankshaft? They all get covered with oil. But here's the reasons people think they should do it (other than--someone told me. Yes, Smokey Yunick said to do it. He also said longer connecting rods make more power. Yet Rehr/Morrison and plenty others went on the dyno and found Smokey was *gasp* wrong) 1) "it smooths the passages". yeah, run your fingers over it or just take a real good look at the video...does that surface really look smooth? if paint ever had a brain and could fill in rough spots, body men would toss out their 1,000 grit sandpaper and use that paint. Also, how can you apply paint and get an absolute smooth layer? well, you spray an equal distance from the surface--how you do spray the passages and achieve that? Ironically, you have a better chance of creating runs and drips--the opposite of that surface you want to be smooth. the only way to get a smooth surface, is break out the grinder. Bonus benefit--you get a surface area that pulls heat out of the oil. and you're getting rid of any sand grain left over from the casting process (which, guess what, comes from the water passages too--anyone painting those?) 2) "it traps debris". ok, when's the last time you opened a 100,000 block and found a ton of sand in the bearings (hint, run your finger over the bearing-feel gritty?) ? hint: that's what the oil pan screen and oil filter are there for. If engines are really have debris problems and yet making it to 300,000 miles...maybe you need to put more debris in there :) Here's the truth--the only doggone way, that paint will ever stick to the block so it doesn't become a floating paint chip (just like paint you've seen on the outside of old engine blocks) is...to clean the oil film off the cast iron so you are actually spraying on the cast iron--ask any body man, you clean before you spray. How do you clean down to the pores like that? Well, you use pressure...and that is going to get the sand grains as loose as any oil pressure pump is going to. no offense, but if you know the engine has to be clean in order for the paint to stick (it may bake on during operation, but remember its mixing with oil and coolant while its baking away), then you know there's no debris left, so why say the paint is to prevent debris. Oh, you may spin a bearing someday and cause debris, but believe me, there's no paint that's going to catch that mess or dirt from a carb with no air cleaner or whatever. You need magnets epoxied into the lifter valley to catch blown valvetrain parts, and epoxy screens over the cam holes to keep those parts (like say the fool who runs solid roller lifters on the street like Popular Hot Rodding magazine did and blew needle bearings all over the crank) from entering the crankcase. 3) "I won't be using this block anytime soon, so I want to prevent rust". If you are assembling a spare race engine, and you store it in a humid climate, this MAY be an actual issue. Which is easily solved by overfilling the crankcase, or spinning the engine from time to time to take pressure off the valve springs, lube the rubber seals and gaskets, and spread oil around the inside of the engine, which displaces water. Oh, and another issue with painting the block? You might just be creating an insulation effect...and the block wants to transfer its heat to the oil and coolant. you may have boiled/baked out all the rusty scale so your engine will run cooler, only to cause the same effect by strapping on another layer of something in the cooling system. A paint job simply doesn't take the place of doing the job right the first time. if it did, then ANY manufacturer who put a warrantee on their engine, would spend $5 to paint its insides to save $2,000 later replacement cost. But when's the last time you pulled an OEM car engine out of the junkyard to find they did? Some engineer thought it just wasn't worth the trouble...

Ça coûte 100€ en Europe c’est trop chère

no ...dont...just dont.... if you want to paint the nside of a motor, cerakote v series. not glyptal, one batch of bad fuel? just a few drops of solvent in your oil....it will wreck your motor, its old crap....cerakote...

Your one of the few folks that understands the benefits of Glyptol properly. Only thing to add, is again, clean, clean and clean again before applying. I use a portable infrared heater to cure it right after painting. Never an issue. I will guarantee anyone, your engine oil will stay MUCH cleaner with a sealed engine. However, if you don’t have the patience to do this right, then don’t do it.

Deere was painting the insides of engines and transmission cases at least back in the 1940's. I have used the Deere buff primer sealer in blocks for years with good results. Glyptal probably the best but it is certainly not cheap.

After a thorough de-burring and chamferring the oil passages/returns, I painted the inside of the block halves and the rocker arm areas of the heads of my Corvair boxer six engine w/ Glyptal to aid in both oil return and as a thermal berrier. My engine runs cooler than any other Corvair I know and my oil never looks black and nasty like I've seen in other engines. I change the filter every 750-1000 miles (filters are relatively cheap as compared to an engine re-build/overhaul) as general preventative maintenance and only actually change the oil about the 10K mile mark, other than the half quart or so that gets added when I do the filter change. I also added an oil accumulator to prime the oiling system before cold starts to minimize dry start-up damage. I expect at least a couple hundred thousand miles from this engine.

I used glyptal on my last 351W build. Coated the block and cylinder head internal surfaces. I also used a similar electrical motor thermal insulation coating on the intake manifold undersurface.

I’ve done the same thing with engine enamel since the early 80s. I’ve had people tell me that it’s gonna come loose and cause problems. I gotta tell you, I’ve had absolutely no problems, because I made sure everything was really clean. I still run the first block I did it to since 84. I’ve refreshed the engine 3 times, and there is no sign of any of the paint coming loose, and cleaning the engine is much easier to do

I painted the insides and the heads on our 68 Hurst factory Hemi Dart engines back in 1968 using Rustoleum Zinc oxide primer with good results.

$150 for the quart tin here in New Zealand

Good tip....... Thx Glyptal Glyptal is a polymer. Glyptal is also known as alkyd resins. Glyptal is formed by condensation polymerisation of ethylene glycol and phthalic acid. Glyptal is a synthetic polymer. It is basically a Polyester. Polyester is a category of polymers that contain the ester functional group in their main chain. Glyptal is non biodegradable i.e it cannot be broken down by natural organisms and acts as a source of pollution. Glyptal is a thermosetting plastic i.e it is a polymer that irreversibly becomes rigid when heated. When its solution in a suitable solvent is evaporated, it leaves a tough but non flexible film. It is therefore used in the manufacture of paints and lacquers. Glyptal is formed by condensation polymerisation of ethylene glycol and phthalic acid, but terylene is formed by condensation polymerisation of ethylene glycol and terepthalic acid. Also, The growing use of Ethanol in modern pump fuel significantly increases the risk of carburetor and fuel system corrosion. Ethanol is added to fuel as an “oxygenate” for emissions purposes. But Ethanol is hygroscopic, meaning it absorbs moisture, which causes corrosion in the fuel system and inside the engine. Plus, high levels of Ethanol dilution in the motor oil can lead to increased moisture in the crankcase, thereby causing rust and other corrosion problems. Ethanol by itself is corrosive to components made of Aluminum and Zinc, while gasoline-oxygenate blends can corrode other materials such as Magnesium and Steel. Problems caused by Ethanol in gasoline and oil are then compounded by long periods of storage between uses. Another reason to paint inside your motor.

None of the proffered reasons for painting the interior of an engine with Glyptol make any sense at all from a physical point of view.

I know when you wash a 9" carrier that Glyptal always looks like new under all the sludge

I've used glyptal and oil base rustoleum inside the engine. Oil base is a fraction of the cost, has been several years and l have no problems, the engine l did it to was a 3'rd gen hemi.

Can you use this on the inside of the oil pan?

Same here, Uncl Tony said get on over to this channel. I hope I can get this paint in Australia for my 440 engine block. Great information and presented extremely well. Thank you for sharing your knowledge of the finer details on performance engine building and tuning. ( Speed be with you )

Complete and total waste of time and money. Zero benefits.

Thermal efficiency and hydrodynamics those are the reasons to paint the inner surfaces of the block.

Can glyptol be used on a street/strip engine?

Great video, but I do have one question. Would it be benificial to paint the underside of the intake manifold also?

Im starting a caddy 500 build thanks for the info,, subscribed

5 Hp 😂😂

You should do a live chat. You are a very interesting guy.

Glyptal also makes a black paint and if i remembered a couple other colors and they each have a specific purpose I have noticed everyone uses red for engine's Is there a reason for that?

Very good information

Mr Vizard is brilliant.

Would it be a bad idea to use it on a block that will see daily driver use?

I'm torn on whether to try it on an upcoming build. It is very time consuming and any type of cleaning on the block after that has to be done very carefully , during a subsequent overhaul or freshening. A proper deburring accomplishes many of the same oil return issues. The rotating assembly is and always will be the leading cause of aireation. Another reason is because one of my mentors (Waddell Wilson) says not to use it .

I've been on the fence about this stuff for a long time. I've seen engines that were so fresh and clean get ruined because of this stuff (operator error I don't know, I've never personally used it). The only problem I could see would be the graphite that's in the cast iron. To me the biggest benefit of this stuff is faster oil return and less/ no aeration. But why not go a step further and polish the surfaces that see oil? Then you never have to worry about chips in your pickup. Also think about a cast iron skillet, when properly seasoned it is smooth and non stick. Over time(especially on a polished/smoothed surface) I think the internals would get oil seasoned like a skillet. I'd like to do a test, one side polished the other painted and see what is and if there is a difference Thanks, take care.