Today I cleaned the front cover with diluted muriatic acid. Other cleaners/degreasers/wire brush did not get all the 20 year old crud off. I was careful to start with very diluted and slowly added acid to get to a strength that got most of the dirt off without getting a violent reaction. Kept the hose handy to rinse quickly. The acid loosens the crud so that afterward a wire brush worked a lot better.

I also installed the front bearing. From an demo online I heated the cover (275F) and put the bearing in the freezer. The video showed only hand insertion was necessary but I had to add a little soft hammer taps to get it seated in the machined cavity. Be sure to support the front cover under the bearing so as not to crack it and only tap the outer race.

Waiting for my bearing separator delivered tomorrow when I'll make a puller for it. 200 watt soldering iron not here til Friday.