Hi Mike. Chased it with our national drink, "Klippies 'n Coke", (Klipdrift Brandy and Coke)
Hi Dave. Luckily I've got a stomach like a kerosene can. Years of training as a bachelor.
I was quite ruthless with it, because I thought it was shot and would have to be re done, so I was going to use it as a pattern only. I use some evil stuff I buy from a little store selling self-made cleaning chemicals. It seems to be heavy on caustic soda. (When one uses it in a pressure gun you have to wear breathing apparatus otherwise you literally cannot breathe.)
I removed all the switches etc and dumped it in a 10% solution of the stuff in a plastic tote and let it sit for about an hour. During the hour I shook it around every so often. I then hung it on an old frame thing and hosed it down with fresh water. That was when I discovered that it was in fact in fairly good shape.
I then carefully removed all the wrapping, using elec tape at all the junctions to retain the integrity and pattern of the loom. Then stuck it back in the tote with a fresh mix, left it for about half hour and then just rubbed up and down along the wires, spreading the wires apart to rub directly on as many wires as possible. Then hosed down and let it dry. Inspected it again and then took a rag and lacquer thinners to areas with sticky goo from insulation tape and overspray from PO spray jobs. Then a last quick soak and thorough rinse.
On the last rinse I used the engine cleaning gun and blew through each terminal plug from both sides to make sure the terminals were all clean.
It started off very dirty (diesel, oil, dust, paint and glue) and ended up looking like new. It was only the glue that was a bit of a hassle to get off. When I wrap it again I will be using the glueless tape from Coolerman and the premium 3M insulation tape where necessary.