Valve cover gasket cleaning/removal

[djmcmath]

Welcome to Dan's "Newbie Question of the Day" for Saturday! Today, we'll discuss the issues surrounding valve cover gasket cleaning in terms that a 4 year old (ie Dan) can understand!

Ok, so I'm doing my first valve adjustment, and all of the procedures say "clean the valve cover gasket seating surface." When I've done similar cleanings on other engines, it's normally a hit of some cleaner and a greenie, and the stuff is down to bare metal in a matter of minutes. Today though, not the case.

I've had the valve covers off since Thursday, and they've spent most of that time being either soaked in arbitrary cleaners or scrubbed aggressively by me with a greenie. I've tried everything from dish-soap and citrus cleaners to aircraft grade aluminum paint stripper, and the cruddies that adorn the seating surface seem to be completely impervious to everything.

So the questions -- is this normal? How clean is clean enough? What tool should I be using for this problem?


Once again, thanks in advance, all.

Dan


PS -- Fan belt works fine now.

[djmcmath]

PS -- If it makes any difference at all, it's a 3.2L '86.

PPS -- If anybody else decides to try that aircraft grade paint stripper, read the warnings on the label. Given the accuracy of their "get this on your skin and it will eat a hole through your hand" warning, they're probably also right about it being a carcinogen.

[djmcmath]

bump

[makaio]

Do you have chunks of gasket left or just discoloration? If it's just discoloration no worries. If it's chunks of gasket, then try a razor blade scraper.

[djmcmath]

Matt -- I just tried the razor blade approach. Some of the dark spots get lighter, others are impervious. The spots that don't respond to my most aggressive assaults may be discoloration?

I guess I probably shouldn't worry that much. I mean, if they leak a little, it's just oil, right? That should keep the nearby surfaces from rusting, anyway...

Dan

[Randy Webb]

put some sand paper on a flat surface (piece of glass) -- run them across that unltil shiny and hence flat. Clean and use new gaskets and new hardware to install.

[vash]

i used a small, wire brush. like the kind you get at gun stores. only i got mine at NAPA. but i didnt have that hard of a time.

[djmcmath]

Unfixed -- wouldn't there be concerns about making the surface uneven with a wire brush? I considered steel wool, but didn't want to ruin the surface.


Randy -- I really like that idea. Don't know why it didn't occur to me. I think I even have both sandpaper and flat surfaces readily available.

Right now, actually, they're soaking in Coke in a plastic photographer's tray. I figure Coke cans are made of aluminum, and I've never seen cruddies like these inside Coke cans, so if I expose my aluminum valve covers to Coke, then clearly there should be no cruddies. Eureka!

Tomorrow morning, after this fails completely, I'll do the sandpaper thing. Thanks Randy,

Dan

[Randy Webb]

The sandpaper is a std. way to make the surfaces flat.

If you have cosmetic issues, then run the valve covers thru a dishwasher (not necessarily one you own, or when anyone else in your family is watching...).

You can also paint or coat the exterior -- then run the top across sandpaper to make the letter silver.

Have fun.

[vash]

no, the brush is pretty soft.

[djmcmath]

Alright, I've done the sandpaper thing, and they look super-clean now. Woohoo! Paint is drying right now. Tomorrow after work I'll go sand the letters clean -- that sounds like an awesome look.

Now if I could just figure out this "valve adjustment" thing. My room-mate warned me that adjusting my 911 would probably be more complicated than adjusting his '65 Mustang...

Thanks for the help guys; please tune in tomorrow for the next episode of "Dan's Daily Newbie Question."

Dan

[Rot 911]

Originally posted by djmcmath
Alright, I've done the sandpaper thing, and they look super-clean now. Woohoo! Paint is drying right now. Tomorrow after work I'll go sand the letters clean -- that sounds like an awesome look.

Bit of advice, wait more than one day before sanding, I learned that the hard way. The paint takes a while to get good and hard. I used a dremel tool with a sanding drum. Took me about 2-3 minutes per cover.

[Randy Webb]

Remember the wife's dishwasher?

You can also use her oven to warm and 'bake' the paint....