05-02-12, 05:23 PM
for your rad i suggest putting it over a bucket and pouring many kettle-fulls of boiling water through it. gentle agitation with a long bristle brush helps too. i tried a few things to dislodge the accumulation of road grime and insects etc. from the finned area when i did mine, repeated boiling water seemed most effective.
with regards refinishing, i straightened as many fins as my patience allowed and harshly sanded back (started with 240 grit iirc) the black sides until smooth where corroded. i then primed any exposed metal and satin blacked the whole rad. i used only standard aerosol primer and black for this and it's lasted this year without peeling or deteriorating so far. paint loves a bit of heat.... i use concept chemicals' aerosols for primers and basic colours, they are around £5 and streets ahead of anything sold on the high street. my local paint factor stock them.
as far as your down pipe collars go i think attacking them with a wire brush on a grinder might be the go. it's then pretty simple to mask the pipes and either brush paint or aerosol them. simoniz aluminium engine silver is cheap (£5 from euro car parts) doesn't require primer and heat resistant if you can live with them being silver....
is it clean enough?