Hi...I'm in the process of adjusting my valve clearances, & was wondering what is the best way to remove the old valve cover gasket? I have tried just about everything, & nothing really seems to be working except for a new razor blade. But i keep gouging the surface & I'm afraid of getting those fragments down in the motor. What do you guys use to remove old baked-on gaskets? Any tips or ideas would be much appreciated. Thank You....
-
Required reading for all forum users!!!
Welcome!
Register to access the full functionality of the GSResources forum. Until you register and activate your account you will not have full forum access, nor will you be able to post or reply to messages.A note to new registrants...
All new forum registrations must be activated via email before you have full access to the forum.A Special Note about Email accounts!
DO NOT SIGN UP USING hotmail, outlook, gmx, sbcglobal, att, bellsouth or email.com. They delete our forum signup emails.A note to old forum members...
I receive numerous requests from people who can no longer log in because their accounts were deleted. As mentioned in the forum FAQ, user accounts are deleted if you haven't logged in for the past 6 months. If you can't log in, then create a new forum account. If you don't get an error message, then check your email account for an activation message. If you get a message stating that the email address is already in use, then your account still exists so follow the instructions in the forum FAQ for resetting your password.Have you forgotten your password or have a new email address? Then read the forum FAQ for details on how to reset it.
Any email requests for "can't log in anymore" problems or "lost my password" problems will be deleted. Read the forum FAQ and follow the instructions there - that's what we have one for...
-
Returning Visitors
If you are a returning visitor who never received your confirmation email, then odds are your email provider is blockinig emails from our server. The only thing that can be done to get around this is you will have to try creating another forum account using an email address from another domain.
If you are a returning visitor to the forum and can't log in using your old forum name and password but used to be able to then chances are your account is deleted. Purges of the databases are done regularly. You will have to create a new forum account and you should be all set.
Valve cover gasket removal...
- Thread starter JT2Fast4u
- Start date
Razor sounds good. Pack the chain tunnel with paper towel. A little grease inside the 'rim' helps trap small particles. Keep more towel at the point you are working.
Solvents like kerosene or acetone will soften the old gasket. A plastic scraper is faster for removing the big bits.
Above all, patience.
Solvents like kerosene or acetone will soften the old gasket. A plastic scraper is faster for removing the big bits.
Above all, patience.
Also handy and cheap ... get a thin, flexible one so it rides along flat surfaces.... just sharpen it to 90 degrees at the edge when dull....use a fine file and polish any burrs off against a stone.
You can also use the other edges of a razor knife...not the blade edge. Same principle as above scraper
You can also use the other edges of a razor knife...not the blade edge. Same principle as above scraper
Last edited:
Then soak the new gasket in wd40 prior to installation for easy removal next time. Retorque after a few days.
I second the wood chisel. They usually stick to the valve cover. On material left after the chisel, I used heavy duty toilet bowl cleaner applied with a q-tip and touched it up with scothbrite and rinse when done.
Toilet bowl cleaner??? Ha-ha I have never heard that one before, but you know what, I'm gonna try it & I'll post back my results. Is their any particular brand I should use? Thanks for your help.
The guys here wont like my response...seeing they all gasped at seeing my gas tank on top of a bon fire. BUT here it is anyway. The real stubborn ones that make me invent new cuss words get the propane torch treatment. I soak all the oil out of the bucket areas and get wet shop rags stuffed into the cam chain tunnel. Then the torch heats the gasket nice and hot while the putty knife follows along and scrapes the crap off. Smokes and stinks and an occasional small flair up but the gasket yields rather quickly. I use the torch on clutch covers and the cam covers as well.
The flame heats through the gasket to base metal and releases the varnish and crap holding it down. I like to see the gasket get a little reddish glow to it as I go along. Its gonna take about a lifetime for the torch to get the head hot enough to start doing any damage.
Probably less expensive than my solution, which is the aerosol gasket remover (Permatex and others), but it's necessary to mask off the frame & painted surfaces. Scotchbrite is a good 'tool' for these bikes overall, and here especially.
Well, I tried the toilet bowl cleaner & it worked surprisingly well. I wouldn't recommend using it on the cyl. head side thou (unless you have the head off the bike) because of having to rinse the cleaner off with water. But on the valve cover side it worked pretty well for me. Thanks for this tip, & all the other tips too. I really appreciate it. Thanks again. You guys are awesome.
)
Dogma
Forum Sage
Interesting. Any danger to the paint?
I havent ruined any paint. I used to have a mini butane torch that was the cats behind for the job. I tried the paint stripper once on a clutch cover and that took what felt like half a lifetime. The torch was done in a matter of a few minutes.
The thing about the aluminum is that it spreads and dissipates the heat rather quickly and on head and engine cases the flame doesnt really heat the metal and paint enough to do damage.
The thing about the aluminum is that it spreads and dissipates the heat rather quickly and on head and engine cases the flame doesnt really heat the metal and paint enough to do damage.
G
Guest
Guest
third on the wood chisel. good news is it only sucks the first time, once you start keeping up on the adjustment it is easy peasy
G
Guest
Guest
Lots of good advice here, guys. My dilema is simply trying to get the valve cover to lift off the head. I've currently sprayed the seams with WD40 & let it soak overnight-not sure how effective it'll be. Any tips anyone can pass along here too? Thanks in advance.
Similar threads
