macnewma

I am finally getting around to replacing my Intake Manifold gaskets. All four are baked on quite hard to the Intake Manifold side.

What is the safest way to remove these gaskets?

Here are some options that I have found:
[list=1][*]3M Roloc Bristle Discs + Power Drill --- done by me [*]Permatex (or other brand) Gasket Remover and a Scraper [*]Sandblast them off and clean up the IM in the process[*]???????????????[/list=1]

Any thoughts? I am quite afraid of gouging my IM. I am willing to spend the money to do it right.

Also, should I apply some RTV sealant to the gasket? Which side(s) and what kind?

TIA,
Max

David Floyd

I can't really tell you the best way to remove the gasket, but I can tell you how to keep it from happening again. I put a light coat of wheel bearing grease on both sides of the gaskets, no more sticking this way.

Joe Jackson

Easiest method I have found is using a blade from a utility knife, and going at the edges of the gasket at around a 30 (or less) degree angle. They should come off in big chunks unless they are the originals in which case you may need to do some minor clean up, again with the utility knife blade. Any final residue left over can be cleaned off using Scotch Brite, the green or burgundy kind. This is the same method I've used for cleaning gasket material off cam housings and cylinder head gasket surfaces. Works every time and it's cheap.

macnewma

Yeah, my gaskets are probably original. I doubt the IM has ever been removed. I tried scraping them without any spray and I got nowhere. I am pretty sure I would have gouged the IM.

Max

Joe Jackson

If you go at the gasket at a small enough angle, you can get the blade under the gasket and it should come up pretty easily. Gasket remover won't help much and neither will the Roloc discs until you remove the majority of the gasket by scraping it away.

Don't be too nervous about gouging the aluminum (then again, don't be dumb). You will need to be pretty aggresive to remove the old, hard gaskets. Worst case, if you do put a deep enough scrape in the aluminum and the gasket wouldn't seal right any more, you'd need some RTV to get a good seal.

dand86951

Try soaking the gasket in varsol or use WD40 to get the gasket saturated and then a scraper should take it off easily. Then Scotchbright pad to buff clean.

Mike S

The permatex remover and a plastic windshield ice scraper should get it off without damaging the aluminum.

Danno

I just use a chisel. Lay the chisel so the flat side is on the intake-manifold and the angled side faces up. Then as you push parallel to the surface, it will separate the gasket from the surface. If it doesn't , it just cuts the gasket parallel to the IM surface and no harm is done. The angled top side then peels up the gasket. Typically, unless some super-duty sealant was used, the gasket will come off cleanly and after about 50% through, the rest will come off in one piece.