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New believer (Blaster)


OrangeMetalGuy

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I had to realign the muffler and associated clamps, fittings, etc. because my new-style hood's lights would not clear the muffler. So for 3 days in a row I sprayed PB Blaster on all of the fitting and the connection between the muffler and the elbow pipe. This afternoon, everything fell apart after I took the bolts out, like it was just assembled an hour ago... amazing that after 30+ years of rusting together, Blaster separated those parts that easily.
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I do like pb blaster. there was an informal study on one of the machine sites that I am on. they took like 5 products...placed them on the same rusted bolts (all controlled). Then used a torque wrench and looked at which product worked best. I think kroil came out on top and PB in the middle. I have never used kroil and if PB cant get it free then usually the fire axe is needed.
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I use Kroil for everything, since I got my first batch. Not only is it good for rusted parts, but it is also a good cutting fluid for turning or drilling. I have tried PB Blaster, but like Kroil much better. I do use the PB Blaster for cleaning the brake parts when I replace shoes on rear drum brakes.
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Interesting comments on Kroil. I have never used it but now I am going to have to give it a try. PB has worked for me in most cases but not all.
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Half the time, by the time I realize that something is seized and that there is a need for PB Blaster, I don't have the patience to let something soak for a week! Though I did just use it tonight with some success. I am disassembling a couple of the old-style rototiller pulley drives. The centers were frozen solid. I put a couple of butane torches on them ( I haven't had to do that since removing a rear wheel hub for Glen112) After 5 minutes of heat and a BAH, I got them to budge slightly. THAT is when I applied PB blaster and just kep working it back and forth (at first with said BAH) and in and out, and back and forth, etc....until the pieces finally came apart. It does work great, but I am not sure that it would have gotten these pieces unstuck even it I soaked it for a month. There is no substitute for heat and a BAH. :D
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My buddy said he seen a show the other night about all these products and they tested them all and then a homemade product which was acetone and trans fluid he said it came out on top of all of them Has anyone ever heard of this???
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  • 3 weeks later...
quote:
Originally posted by tracktor312
My buddy said he seen a show the other night about all these products and they tested them all and then a homemade product which was acetone and trans fluid he said it came out on top of all of them Has anyone ever heard of this???
I just seen this on another forum that I belong to. Happy knuckle busting ! Machinist's Workshop magazine actually tested penetrants for break out torque on rusted nuts. Significant results! They are below, as forwarded by an ex-student and professional machinist, Bud Baker. *Don't forget the April 2007 "Machinist's Workshop" magazine comparison test.* ** *They arranged a subjective test of all the popular penetrants with the control being the torque required to remove the nut from a "scientifically rusted" environment. * ** *Penetrating oil ...... Average load* None ............ ......... 516 pounds WD-40 ............. ...... 238 pounds PB Blaster ............ . 214 pounds Liquid Wrench ..... 127 pounds Kano Kroil ............ 106 pounds ATF-Acetone mix....53 pounds *The ATF-Acetone mix was a "home brew" mix of 50 - 50 automatic transmission fluid and acetone.* *Note the "home brew" was better than any commercial product in this one particular test. Our local machinist group mixed up a batch and we all now use it with equally good results. Note also that "Liquid Wrench" is about as good as "Kroil" for about 20% of the price. * ** Your mileage may vary.....
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I found a product called Gibbs Penetrant at a gasoline engine show several years ago. At the time I bought my first can, I had tried everything on the market, literally, to get frozen cast iron engines apart. PB Blaster wors decent, I will agree that Kroil works better, I did and still use on occasion a 50/50 mix of mineral spirits and ATF, when I need to soak something big. But, after finding and overpaying for the first can, I buy Gibbs by the case, now, and use it for everything, from clock oil to a penetrating oil. One of the better things about it, is that it can be painted over, without washing it off, so I also use it as a rust inhibitor while getting bare metal ready for painting.
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Sounds like a joke, but I am not joking. On those rusty exhaust parts WATER is the best penetrating oil. Yep. Just plain water. I have done some experimenting myself on this, even made a thread about it on here several years ago. Water is thinner than any oil and gets in the threads easier and quicker. Pour a drip some water on the joint while tapping it with a small hammer or similar and wah-lah. I will search for my old thread and post a link if I can find it, but it just plain works.
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Here are the links to the previous discussion on using water instead of penetrating oil: http://www.simpletractors.com/club2/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=45939 http://www.simpletractors.com/club2/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=45851 I used this trick today in fact. I did an engine swap on a 7012H (it's now a 7016H). Water did the trick once again. I just kept pouring a little on and tapped the fittings for a few minutes and they loosened right up. No waiting. I don't ever mess with penetrating oil any more at all. Water is far better on exhaust parts. Work well on a lot of bolts too.
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We use Howe's Lube? at work and it does OK. If I use heat on a part to break it loose I immediatly grab an oil can with ATF in it to use after the heat, I found this to work excellent. I think I am going to try mixing acetone in with the ATF to try before heat, I don't know about using it while the part is still hot after heating it.
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Heat the part and then put the penetrating oil on the joint. The cooling of the metal will pull the oil down into the joint.
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quote:
Originally posted by Kent
I'd be careful about using heat around acetone or an acetone mixture -- I think it is very flammable...
Quite true and it doesn't take much of a spark. We had a couple of jokers that liked to put dykem hi-spot bluing on the handles of the stand up lift trucks when the operators went on break. Then when they returned and went to operate them they ended up with it all over their hands. One guy cleaned it off with acetone and the instant he it the switch it went up in flames. It was funny at the time but could have been quite serious. P-blaster seems to work well for me. I use the liquid refillable rather than the aerosol cans. It doesn't work miracles but I have had better results than liquid wrench. Heard good reports about kroil but have never used it.
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