First Question: Got my Roush Timing Cover and it looks very impressive, it has almost like very course sandblasted surfaces where it's not machined, both inside/oil wetted area and outside . There's a similar finish on modern Edelbrock heads and intakes. You compare these "new" parts to original FoMoCo intakes, timing covers, oil filter adaptors etc and they were cast very smooth not to mention they often sported typewriter sized print part numbers.. I don't know if FoMoCo used "finer" molds, different types of molding techniques for their castings, if it is from some form of agressively shot-peening the as cast surfaces?...............................
Second Question: there is almost a rainbow color reflection from bright light on the machined sections - is this just from very fine machining of aluminum or some sort of clear coat/sealer applied to the entire part before/after machining?
It all looks cool (modern but cool - it will stick out like a sore thumb if you used it on an all Ford FE motor). The modern castings textured finishes look to be road dust and grime magnets. You can wipe grime off a FoMoCo timing cover with a Kleenex, you'd tear a Kleenex to shreds whipping it on a Roush cover.
Pardon my borrowing someone elses photobucket pic but his photo shows the surface perfectly and saved me the pic ordeal.
