Some of you may know this one already, but this has saved my ass half a million times so i thought i'd share. get yourself some of this and one of these get the stubborn bastard good and hot and then hit it liberally with the freezing penetrating oil (sounds dirty, right?) and the thing oughta loosen very well. the massive thermal shock opens the bond and allows the oil to loosen the stuck threads quite well. if not loosened the first time, don't be afraid to give the thing a couple whacks with a hammer and or punch and repeat as necessary. like we need an excuse to play with fire my discovery of this methos came about working on an old holley 4110 aluminum body carb. well brass and aluminum don't get along that well and the jets had a grip like oprah on a steak hoagie. i got one out fairly well but the other 3 were fighting me like mad. well one of them was stripped out all but a tiny bit and i was near giving up when the idea popped into my head. i heated it up good, blasted it with the freezing oil and gave it a tap with a punch right in the center. reached down with my finger to see if it was cool enough a couple minutes later and it spun with my finger did it on the other 2 left in there and voila, out like a charm.
I have not seen that stuff in the store out here. would not surprise me if CA won't allow it. Someone want to smuggle some in?
Don't know which would be worse Freezing them off or putting a torch to them first. Either way I wouldn't look foward to the process.
Ya. And.. "don't be afraid to give the thing a couple whacks with a hammer and or punch and repeat as necessary" kinda puts the finishing touches to it too! Seriously.. thanks. Sounds interesting. I'll try to find the stuff.
that freeze off stuff works great even without heating first. i've been using it at work for almost a year and i haven't found anything that comes even close. where i live you can but it at checker auto, or walmart.
If I can get my torch on it it will come off most times. I wudnt mind using that stuff initially. One method I use if you can get something on the bolt to turn it. Start by tightening it just a bit, then turn it back, just to twist the bolt very little.keep doing that as every little twist you give, will allow penetrating oil to work down, be patient and dont try to go to fast.
Does anybody know if the compressed air computer dust-offs is the same stuff without the penetrating oil? you can get it anywhere, just spray it on holding it upside down and it freezes stuff. I entertain my co-workers by holding it upside down with my arm opposide side as their office door, with the nozzle pointing backwards As I walk by, I make a fart noice and press the button and a large cloud seems to come from my ample ass in profile in a strictly professional manner.
I use some stuff called 'chill out' and it works great. Available from janitorial supply for gum removal.
I've used the keyboard cleaner stuff this way many times--works like a charm, and you can find it at a 24-hour department store at 1 am when the auto parts store is closed and you're on a deadline. I've had ball joints I've beat on for an hour without budging come loose in one whack with the heat/freeze method. If you're using any of these super-cold methods on heat treated parts, though, back off on the heat a little. Going from cherry-red to ice-cold in one second scares the backyard metallurgist in me. And good luck with your well-fueled ascent up the career ladder...
i never said to get it red hot...i don't like the prospect of red hot metal shards flying at my face 4t64rd, that canned air stuff is usually propane and isobutane along with that industrial gum freeze off stuff. it does have its uses, but i don't recommend it around flames.
I like to spray with a little pb and then hit one corner of the nut or bolt with my air chisel, going in the loosing direction. If the bolt doesn't move then a heat and air chisel action again. A little bit of vibration goes a long way.
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