Tortoise shell engine? (1 Viewer)

[IronGiant]

Hi, everyone on this forum is exponentially more knowledgeable than myself so I wanted to reach out here. My engine has been caked in several mils of nasty oil since I purchased it (leaking valve cover). I am replacing the valve cover gasket this weekend so I went ahead and started cleaning the old oil off the surrounding engine areas. Now that it is semi clean I noticed it has this tortoise shell look to it. These seem to be cracks as I can feel them with my fingernail. This is a little unsettling so I'm curious if this is a known deal or something super weird? Thanks

 

[ppc]

Casting marks completely harmless.

 

[Malleus]

These are common surface failures in cast aluminum. Nothing to worry about unless any crack appears to be widening over time.

 

[IronGiant]

These are common surface failures in cast aluminum. Nothing to worry about unless any crack appears to be widening over time.

Awesome, thank you for putting my mind at ease!lol I was only semi freaking out haha

 

[Fj80oregon]

Same marks just not as exaggerated on a new aisin cover.