How to clean a camshaft without stripping embedded oil?

[ktb]

I watched this YouTube video a while back where Ed Smith says (starting at the 2:36 mark) not to clean your old camshaft with solvent because it will strip the oil that's soaked into the cast iron, instead coating the camshaft with solvent, so now new oil won't stick to it, possibly causing damage when the engine runs again.  My question, then, is what should you clean a camshaft with?  Soap & water?  Is carb cleaner OK?  And do you need to let it soak in an oil bath before reinstalling it or just use assembly lube?  Thanks!

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nWHSw9J86jE

[Plymouthy Adams]

is it oak elm or maple?

[kencombs]

All I'll say is that I've been working on engine internals since 1959.   Cams, cranks, blocks etc.   Disassembled, cleaned, reassembled and installed.  

 

Never have I  concerned myself with that question.

 

Oh, and most of them ran when I finished.

Edited March 11 by kencombs

[ktb]

39 minutes ago, kencombs said:

All I'll say is that I've been working on engine internals since 1959.   Cams, cranks, blocks etc.   Disassembled, cleaned, reassembled and installed.  

 

Never have I  concerned myself with that question.

 

Oh, and most of them ran when I finished.

Fair enough, thank you!

[Los_Control]

I remember watching that link awhile ago when it was posted .... there were a few things I did not agree with, I did think the guy was very knowledgeable.

 

I also was reminded about how old men like to sit around and tell stories  🤣🤣🤣

 

The story about the camshaft was what caught my attention .... never in my years have I heard that.

[JBNeal]

If oil can soak into metal, it can also be flung out when that metal is rotating several thousand rpms...diesel is a good solvent that can soften any buildup but leaves behind a thin layer of hydrocarbon to displace moisture...diesel can also get into the lubrication system without causing damage.

[Ivan_B]

Sounds rather silly... BTW, do you really clean the shafts by hot soaking, etc.? I usually just spray with\dip into something, or just wipe the lobes... If you don't like the carb cleaner, you can use diesel oil 😁

[Matt Wilson]

I saw that video too.  The guy's rationale is that the camshafts are made of cast iron, so they are porous and have absorbed oil during operation - oil that you don't want to eliminate and replace with solvent during cleaning.  If you think about it, though, the engine block is also made of cast iron, and yet we spend a lot of time and effort in cleaning the cylinders with solvents and/or soap and water to remove honing grit after the cylinders have been bored and honed.  No one worries about doing that.  We all just clean them as thoroughly as we can, then coat the cylinders, pistons and rings with a little oil and assemble the whole thing and run it.  The same can be said of cast iron crankshafts, which are used in many engines, although not in our flatheads.  So, like the others here, I have serious doubts about the notion that we should be worried about over-cleaning our camshafts and inadvertently displacing the embedded oil with solvent.

[Ivan_B]

Oilite bushings used this porous metal approach, but these are usually not actively lubricated like the aforementioned internal engine components.