Does anyone have any tricks for removing really stubborn gasket materiel? I have tried all the ones I know, and that stuff wont come off.

Thanks in advance,


Rat

 

dont use a razor blade, it leaves big grouves, well at least be careful. id say some kinda of plastic spachula is your best bet. I think you out of luck with any other magic trick, haha, i hate that stuff

 

Wire brush attached to a die grinder or drill. It works amazing.

 

Hair dryer! Heat gun would be even better. Warm the gasket up and it will slide right off.

 

I wish I had a heat gun. The only ones I know about are at work. And they frown on taking tools home. What if I heat the metal with a small torch?

 

I like this idea...

Rat

 

A plastic type abrasive pad would be safer then metal wire

 

I used a chisel....and a flat head screwdriver

 

On aluminum?!?!

 

Don't use a torch! It will warp the aluminum. A hair dryer gets pleanty hot enough to loosen the gasket. You will still need to use a scrapper but the gasket will scrape off a lot easier.

 

Gasket remover.

No kidding - I dunno if you've tried it already, but they sell "gasket remover" in an areosol can at most parts places. Spray it on, let it soak in, and scrape it off. Just WATCH OUT FOR PAINT! This stuff is pretty corrosive, so whatch out what you spray it on.

The wire wheel on a drill works well too, just use a relatively soft bristle brush....

 

I use a 3M Abrasive bristle ROLOC disc on my die grinder, designed for the OEM Mechanics so it doesn't damage aluminum gasket surfaces

 

Here:

http://www.positivemarketing.com/bristle/

or

http://www.northerntool.com/webapp/w...oductId=203292

 

didn't know you were talkin about aluminum...

 

Guys avoid using aerosol gasket removers must of them have Methylyne Chloride as a base agent. This **** IS NASTY!!! Regukar gloves do not protect against skin absorbtion, the gloves that work for it are Expensive!.

 

The lower intake manifold was a total bitch to get the old gasket material off. I used 3M gasket remover and a gasket scraper. I let it soak in, then scrape, spray some more, scrape some more. It took several days but I ended up with a very smooth clean surface.

 

I've also used very fine sandpaper taped around a paint stirrer to keep it flat so you don't round of the corners

 

I hate doing that gasket crap, so time consuming, next time I have to do it im going to try heating it up as mentioned.

 

Yea gasket removal sucks. I did it the hard way using aerosal gasket remover with plenty of scrapping and then fine sanding it by hand. It took about a full day of work to clean all of them off. But I think the wire brush idea sounds MUCH better and wish I would have done that. All you need is a drill and 4.99 for the wire brush.

 

We used a grinding wheel on a drill and just ground it all down to bare metal. It was a giant pain in the ***.

 

Guys: the wire brush has the potential to damage the base material, gasket seating surface. In case I wasn't clear: The Roloc Bristle Disc can also be used on a drill. It is designed NOT to damage the base material. It is your best option.

If you are wonddring, I have 20 + years in Nuclear Plant Operation, design, Maintenance and Quality Assurance. I do know what I am talking about on these issues.

 

I just used a wire wheel attached to a Dremel. Worked just fine!!

Rat