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I finally tried that ultrasonic cleaner for carbon-clogged fuel nozzles
My lead at the Denver hangar swore by his Crest unit, and after seeing it clear a set of nozzles from a Cessna 172 in 20 minutes, I'm sold. Anyone have a good solvent mix they prefer for turbine parts?
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maxmurphy1mo agoTop Commenter
Honestly, seeing a Cessna nozzle get clean in 20 minutes is the problem. That's a simple part. You throw a clogged turbine nozzle from something like an old PT6 in there, and you're just softening the outer layer. The real carbon deep in the passages needs serious soak time, not just a quick buzz. I've pulled parts out of ultrasonics that looked shiny but were still totally blocked inside. It gives a false sense of security. For real turbine work, you still need the old school chemical bath and a lot of patience.
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skyler_mitchell1mo ago
That "false sense of security" line is a stretch. A good tech knows to follow up with a flow test and backlight check, same as they would after any clean. The ultrasonic just does the heavy lifting. I've seen it work on PT6 fuel nozzles plenty of times. You just need the right cycle, maybe a pre-soak, and a proper solvent like Safety-Kleen 105. Writing off the tool because someone used it wrong on a complex part is like blaming a torque wrench for a stripped bolt.
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