by "MrDakka" (mrdakka)
Published 12/27/2017 at 21:55
by "MrDakka" (mrdakka)
Published 12/27/2017 at 21:55
No Tags
STARS: 1
How do other opponauts deal with seized bolts/screws? I’m trying to replace my O2 sensors and the old ones aren’t budging and my usual solution of liberally spraying the trouble area with WD40 doesn’t appear to be working.
"E90M3" (e90m3)
12/27/2017 at 22:07, STARS: 1
When I helped replace an O2 sensor on a Subaru we heated it up with a blow torch.
"Akio Ohtori - RIP Oppo" (akioohtori)
12/27/2017 at 22:10, STARS: 5
PB Blaster works a little better than WD40. Also a very large breaker bar.
When I had a drain plug stuck I shot it with CO2 from an air duster can to get it super cold. That worked REALLY well, but I was tasting bittering agent for hours afterwards.
"Biggus Dickus (RevsBro)" (NKlein)
12/27/2017 at 22:14, STARS: 2
Pb blaster, heat, impact gun
"Urambo Tauro" (urambotauro)
12/27/2017 at 22:22, STARS: 2
I’m a big believer in using a 50/50 mix of ATF & acetone for penetrating oil. If you can heat up the bung, that’ll help a lot too.
It’s probably still going to put up a fight anyway, so try to get some decent leverage on it. When I changed the one on my truck, I ended up putting it on a hoist so that I could stand up underneath and lean into it with a pipe wrench and cheater pipe to crack it loose.
"I have another burner, try to guess it!" (ihaveanotherburner)
12/27/2017 at 22:24, STARS: 0
I’ve always been confused on how heating up bolts causes them to loosen up. I know it does, but you’d think heating them would cause them to expand and get more stuck.
"TFSIVTEC drivesavolvo" (drivesaswedishcarmadeinbelgium-)
12/27/2017 at 22:25, STARS: 0
Heat wrench... AKA Oxy Acetlyne torch. In a pinch I’ve had luck with the more pedestrian version of Oxy Map torch with mini bottles commonly available at ACE. I also live on Cape Cod/Islands where a substantial amount of road salt is used along with the ambient salty air so my method might be aggressive depending on your geography.
"MrDakka" (mrdakka)
12/27/2017 at 22:26, STARS: 0
I was looking at this and it sounds similar to what you did
"Urambo Tauro" (urambotauro)
12/27/2017 at 22:28, STARS: 2
Yeah, that’s why it’s better to concentrate that heat on the nut (or in this case, the bung) to try to focus the expansion effect and pull it away from the bolt/sensor.
"JawzX2, Boost Addict. 1.6t, 2.7tt, 4.2t" (jawzx2)
12/27/2017 at 22:30, STARS: 7
so, the trick is two-fold: heat the NUT, it will expand and loosen it’s grip on the bolt, which (usually) is a much larger heat sink and will not expand much, also, merely heat-cycling the assembly and the attendant differential expansion/contraction will crack rust scale and loosen things up, also said cracks in the rust scale will allow penetrants to work deeper into the joint accelerating chemical rust-destruction as well. heat + penetrating catalysts (not WD40)= best bet, ATF + Acetone + time = next best bet.
"RangerSmith" (theartistformerlyknownasrangrsmith)
12/27/2017 at 22:32, STARS: 0
Use your blaster/wd40 and impact first, then if that doesn’t do it add heat.
"FTTOHG Has Moved to https://opposite-lock.com" (alphaass)
12/27/2017 at 22:38, STARS: 0
I just gave up and moved to South Texas. Shit don’t rust here.
"Kiltedpadre" (kiltedpadre)
12/27/2017 at 22:39, STARS: 0
I typically start with PB blaster, use a long cheater bar, grab a torch if that doesn’t work, then start looking for the grinder if still no luck. I’ve been using a grinder a lot lately at work.
I’d avoid the grinder in the case of an O2 sensor though.
"nafsucof" (galinskiomatic)
12/27/2017 at 22:44, STARS: 1
Induction heaters! My best friend is a mechanic and uses a new tool that heats up just the nut glowing red in a second or two and the nut comes right off. He works on a lot of 6.0 power strokes and those truck gets rusty!
Edit: so they are $400. My bad. But yeah they work.
You need to heat the cat with a torch around the o2 sensor or cool the sensor itself.
"boredalways" (boredalway666)
12/27/2017 at 22:45, STARS: 0
Not sure which stores sell it, but get some
"Urambo Tauro" (urambotauro)
12/27/2017 at 23:03, STARS: 0
I was just looking at those induction heaters the other day, but oof, that price...
"AestheticsInMotion" (aestheticsinmotion)
12/27/2017 at 23:12, STARS: 0
Don’t neglect a good ol’ whack with a heavy mallet. The vibration breaks through where the bolt and nut have rusted together. Even if it doesn’t get the job done, it will help. Combine with other methods for best results
"tromoly" (tromoly)
12/27/2017 at 23:26, STARS: 0
MAP gas torch for ~30 seconds to one minute depending on how delicate the surrounding area is, then spray PB Blaster so it soaks in. Rinse/repeat for a while to make sure it’s really penetrated.
"Dogsatemypants" (kb113400)
12/28/2017 at 00:09, STARS: 1
Repeated applications of pb blaster, let it marinate. Heat with map torch, tap with chisel on inside edge to break it up, then put the longest breaker bar you have in the hands of your fattest friend and tell them to heave with all of their bulk.
"Dogsatemypants" (kb113400)
12/28/2017 at 00:10, STARS: 2
The idea is that hopefully the nut expands at a faster rate than the bolt, allowing it to get free.
"merged-5876237249235911857-hrw8uc" (merged-5876237249235911857-hrw8uc)
12/28/2017 at 00:27, STARS: 0
Also heating till red hot and hitting it with a lot of water can do the trick too, same idea as the expansion but it cracks the rust loose, then spray liberally with some penetrant spray. Pb blaster is better than wd40, but they have some new stuff out now that is better than the old regular wd40, and then there is also kroil. That’s good stuff but not easy to find. The acetone and atf is supposed to be great. But I haven’t tried it personally.
"merged-5876237249235911857-hrw8uc" (merged-5876237249235911857-hrw8uc)
12/28/2017 at 00:29, STARS: 1
If you’re going to replace the sensor, can you get an impact on it? Those work wonders for stuck fastners.
"merged-5876237249235911857-hrw8uc" (merged-5876237249235911857-hrw8uc)
12/28/2017 at 00:30, STARS: 1
I’ve tried that stuff and will not waste my time again, didn’t ever work for me, I always had to go to the pb blaster or kroil instead.
"Shift24" (the-nope)
12/28/2017 at 00:48, STARS: 0
Actually never tried that but seems good and decent reviews on Amazon.
But anyway WD-40 will not do anything. You need PB or Seafoam Deapcreep as penetrating oil. That CDC freeze off might be one two. The other thing is heat, primarily heat. Go out and get a propane torch and heat where the bolt/O2 is threaded into. As you can see that rusty bolt was a pain on my rusty k1500. All I used was heat, granted I let heat for 4-5 minutes but finally came out with out
"BiTurbo228 - Dr Frankenstein of Spitfires" (biturbo228)
12/28/2017 at 04:20, STARS: 0
Heat. Either run the car until the exhaust’s hot or heat up the bung until it’s basically steaming with a blowtorch and it’ll come out absolutely fine :)
"pip bip - choose Corrour" (hhgttg69)
12/28/2017 at 05:45, STARS: 0
subaru upper engine cleaner works well apparently
"Akio Ohtori - RIP Oppo" (akioohtori)
12/28/2017 at 09:46, STARS: 0
Seems reasonable. You can also buy “Freeze Spray” for electronics and get the same result. OR use a $2 can of air duster sprayed upside down...
As others have noted, this isn’t a sure thing. It could also (maybe) be used in conjunction with heat? Heat the area the O2 sensor is plugged in to and then hit the sensor itself with the spray? All you’re trying to do with both methods is break up whatever crud is bonding the O2 sensor to the exhaust so you can unthread it.
"AMGtech - now with more recalls!" (amgtech)
12/28/2017 at 10:49, STARS: 1
Penetrating oil won’t get you anywhere because of the sealing washer on the sensor. Heat the pipe, cool the sensor. Cut the wires off if you have to so you can get a socket on it, or just get O2 sockets.
"ateamfan42" (ateamfan42)
12/28/2017 at 11:19, STARS: 0
PB Blaster works a little better than WD40.
PB works a lot better. The “WD” in WD-40 stands for “water displacer”. It is fantastic at that job. But breaking up rust is a different task. Use the right product for the right purpose.
Aerokroil is another product to consider, but it is a good deal more difficult to get your hands on than PB Blaster. Also as has been said elsewhere, the 50/50 mix of ATF and acetone is a popular option.
With all those penetrating oils, time is on your side. Soak down the bolts as far ahead of your work time as possible— days if you can! Heat helps speed the reaction, and vibration/shock/hammering can help bust up the rust bonds as well.
"ateamfan42" (ateamfan42)
12/28/2017 at 11:23, STARS: 0
Vibration and shock can be amazing.
I had an O2 sensor that was being stubborn, and on the verge of rounding over with my sensor sockets. It was surrounded by a heat shield that blocked access with a wrench. I realized I was going to have to resort to a pipe wrench to gain grip on the rounding sensor, so used a cutoff wheel to remove the heat shield. When I put on the wrench, the sensor came out with minimal effort. The vibrations from the cutoff wheel broke up the bonds to the point where removal was a piece of cake.
"Mustafaluigi" (mustafaluigi)
12/28/2017 at 11:29, STARS: 0
https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/best-penetrating-oil-for-stuck-nuts-bolts.773380/
I’ve referenced this for awhile now. The best over the counters are kroil and liquid wrench.
"MrDakka" (mrdakka)
12/28/2017 at 20:36, STARS: 0
Thx, I’ve bookmarked it for future reference
"MrDakka" (mrdakka)
12/28/2017 at 20:37, STARS: 1
I got the O2 socket; will try playing around with hearing/cooling
"gmporschenut also a fan of hondas" (gmporschenut)
01/01/2018 at 22:56, STARS: 0
typically use a wire brush to remove bulk crap off the screw, kroil or other penetrating oil, wrench.
then heat as a last resort. I’ll go gentle with a propane torch. my dad whips out the acetylene and heats the fucker till its red hot and 9/10 snaps. problem us he does that regardless of how sensative the bolt may be and is then swearing while drilling it the rest of the way out.