I just realized this is a good post for this group!

Today I almost destroyed a nice stepper motor trying to remove a gear - only
to realize that it had some form of Loctite on it because I noticed a pink
powder like residue on the shaft and the bore of the gear. Is there a
Loctite Disolver sort of solution out there ?

Thanks !
JCD

"pogo" wrote in message
...
I just realized this is a good post for this group!

Today I almost destroyed a nice stepper motor trying to remove a
gear - only
to realize that it had some form of Loctite on it because I noticed
a pink
powder like residue on the shaft and the bore of the gear. Is there
a
Loctite Disolver sort of solution out there ?

Thanks !
JCD



Heat to about 150 deg C and most Loctite type sealers break down

AWEM

"pogo" wrote in message
...
I just realized this is a good post for this group!

Today I almost destroyed a nice stepper motor trying to remove a gear -
only
to realize that it had some form of Loctite on it because I noticed a pink
powder like residue on the shaft and the bore of the gear. Is there a
Loctite Disolver sort of solution out there ?

Thanks !
JCD


http://www.balisongcollector.com/threadLocking.html backs up Andrews heat
solution.

It also mentions Methlene Chloride. I think paint strippers contain
Methlene Chloride - but don't trust me - check it out first!


Some text from the above link:

"There are all sorts of myths about how to remove fasteners held by
thread-locking adhesives. Here's what it says on Loctite's own website:
The application of heat is needed to remove a fastener that can't be removed
with a hand tool. Temperatures of 325F and above is needed to break down a
standard [thread locking adhesive], 500F for high temperature [thread
locking adhesives]. A heat gun or propane torch is commonly used to do this
process, and careful disassembly should occur while parts are still hot.
Once apart, and cooled, use methylene chloride (Chisel #79040) to remove
cured excess material. Always wipe down the fasteners with clean up solvent
to remove the wax film that Chisel #79040 leaves on the surface. (350F =
177C and 500F = 260C.)

Chisel #79040 is a solvent product that Loctite sells specifically for
removing their thread locking adhesives. It's a somewhat hazardous material
and I've never seen it offered for retail, consumer sales. Methylene
chloride, the major active ingredient in Chisel #79040, is available for
retail purchase at automotive supply, painting, and home center stores. It's
a nasty solvent chemical, so be careful using it. Follow all the labeled
cautions and directions. Wear eye protection that completely seals around
your eyes; common glasses aren't good enough because the chemical and splash
around the sides and this stuff can permanently blind you if it gets in your
eyes; please take no chances on this (my website is not yet available in
Braille). Wear gloves. And work outdoors or in some other well-ventilated
area. Be especially careful with methylene chloride on any balisong that has
exotic insert materials or that has painted or coated handles. Even blade
coatings could be attacked by this stuff. Methylene chloride is a nasty,
powerful solvent; please be very careful with it.
"

"Andrew Mawson" fired this volley
in :

Heat to about 150 deg C and most Loctite type sealers break down

It should be mentioned that it doesn't just "go away" at that
temperature. It starts to soften, then decompose. Remove the locked
item as SOON as the material softens.

If you wait too long, the decomposition products become hard, and will
"re-glue" the lock.

I use replacable tips on several pyrotechnic punches and presses. They
wear fast, and machining new press pins is labor intensive. Tips take
but a few minutes to make.

I LocTite them in place (med-strength blue). When time to replace, I
chuck up the main pin, clamp a pair of locking pliers on the tip, then
heat with a torch until it moves. I then turn the chuck to briskly
unscrew the tip before the mass cools or the loctite decomposes
completely. Clean the residues with methylene chloride, or a long soak
in acetone followed by brushing.

LLoyd

On Sep 27, 6:56 am, "Lloyd E. Sponenburgh"
lloydspinsidemindspring.com wrote:
"Andrew Mawson" fired this volley
:

Heat to about 150 deg C and most Loctite type sealers break down

It should be mentioned that it doesn't just "go away" at that
temperature. It starts to soften, then decompose. Remove the locked
item as SOON as the material softens.

If you wait too long, the decomposition products become hard, and will
"re-glue" the lock.

I use replacable tips on several pyrotechnic punches and presses. They
wear fast, and machining new press pins is labor intensive. Tips take
but a few minutes to make.

I LocTite them in place (med-strength blue). When time to replace, I
chuck up the main pin, clamp a pair of locking pliers on the tip, then
heat with a torch until it moves. I then turn the chuck to briskly
unscrew the tip before the mass cools or the loctite decomposes
completely. Clean the residues with methylene chloride, or a long soak
in acetone followed by brushing.

LLoyd

For what it's worth, when I was doing gunsmith work, I used a
soldering iron placed on the head of Loctited screws to heat them
enough for the Loctite to break down. Worked every time for me without
overheating the surrounding material. Takes a decent size iron,
though, not one of the tiny pencils

I have a few friends in the "plexi-glas" forming business. Methylene
Chloride is the "glue" of choice, as it is rapid solvent and really
rapid evaporative. They apply it to/along a joint with a squeeze
bottle having a needle tip, and it is "glued" almost instantly and
cured within a minute tops. Most any neat specialty products where
you can't see any heat or glue lines were probably done this way.

Anyway, I'm just writing to say that in my own limited experience, get
the Methylene Chloride on the day you want to use it, and keep it
closed until ready to use. I've "borrowed" some a number of times
from the above mentioned friends. I can't recall how they store/stock
the stuff in the bulk quantities they use, but even in a closed bottle
they put my few ounces in its GONE by magic within a month, long
before the day I've ever wanted to use it.

Brian Lawson,
Bothwell, Ontario.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX


On Thu, 27 Sep 2007 15:27:47 +0800, "Robbo"
wrote:
SNIP
It also mentions Methlene Chloride. I think paint strippers contain
Methlene Chloride - but don't trust me - check it out first!


MORE SNIP
Methylene Chloride, the major active ingredient in Chisel #79040, is available for
retail purchase at automotive supply, painting, and home center stores. It's
a nasty solvent chemical, so be careful using it. Follow all the labeled
cautions and directions. Wear eye protection that completely seals around
your eyes; common glasses aren't good enough because the chemical and splash
around the sides and this stuff can permanently blind you if it gets in your
eyes; please take no chances on this (my website is not yet available in
Braille). Wear gloves. And work outdoors or in some other well-ventilated
area. Be especially careful with methylene chloride on any balisong that has
exotic insert materials or that has painted or coated handles. Even blade
coatings could be attacked by this stuff. Methylene chloride is a nasty,
powerful solvent; please be very careful with it.
"

In article ,
"Andrew Mawson" wrote:

"pogo" wrote in message
...
I just realized this is a good post for this group!

Today I almost destroyed a nice stepper motor trying to remove a
gear - only
to realize that it had some form of Loctite on it because I noticed
a pink
powder like residue on the shaft and the bore of the gear. Is there
a
Loctite Disolver sort of solution out there ?

Thanks !
JCD



Heat to about 150 deg C and most Loctite type sealers break down

AWEM

I've had good results using fingernail polish remover and time when it
wasn't practical to use heat.

For some unknown, and possibly unknowable, reason the folks who assemble
Quickie wheelchairs thread lock _everything_, even screws with nylon
locking nuts on them. Worse, they'll put 1/4-28 steel socket head screws
into blind holes countersunk in aluminum and thread lock those! These
are almost always Allen head on seating, wheel lock, and footrest
assemblies. We've ground or drilled the heads off more than a few dozen
of those

The chairs' overall quality is about the best in the business, but
they're hell to repair sometimes. What that method will do to an Allen
wrench _and/or_ the bolt heads shouldn't happen to a rabid Satanist
chipmunk with gonorrhea.

Our manufacturer rep tells the story of being sent out on a rush to demo
their "growable" seating system. Just remove a few bolts and screws and
slide it apart or together to change width and depth then bolt it back
together.

Only problem was: the assemblers had thread locked all the screws and
bolts and the rep couldn't get them loose to demonstrate how "easy" they
would be to change.

Oops.

Lloyd E. Sponenburgh wrote:
... It starts to soften, then decompose. Remove the locked
item as SOON as the material softens.

If you wait too long, the decomposition products become hard, and will
"re-glue" the lock.
...

Good to know! I've heard about using heat, but not about the re-gluing.
I can see the potential for a very frustrating situation!

Thanks for the heads-up,
Bob

Brian Lawson fired this volley in
:

I can't recall how they store/stock
the stuff in the bulk quantities they use, but even in a closed bottle
they put my few ounces in its GONE by magic within a month, long
before the day I've ever wanted to use it.


Brian, there's a trick to keeping methylene or ethylene chloride. It
does have a very high vapor pressure, and will even evaporated out of the
bottle if kept in your freezer.

I've kept a gallon in my unconditioned barn for over five years, and have
lost only about a quart to evaporation in that time. Here's the trick:

I bought a five gallon blue gas can (to visually distinguish it from my
red gas and yellow diesel cans). Put the methylene chloride in, not more
than half full. Gently fill the container to near the top with clean
water.

Surprisingly, methylene chloride is quite a bit more dense than water,
and almost totally immiscible with it. The methylene chloride stays on
the bottom, and water "cap" exerts enough hydraulic pressure and enough
passivation to the interface to almost totally prevent evaporation.

When I wish to dispense it, I merely invert the can so the air bleed cap
is bottom-most, then give it a gentle shake to float any water beads out
of the cap recess. Crack the cap, and the clean methylene chloride flows
out (under pressure, no less) into my working vessel.

Your can will swell in warm weather. It will collapse in the cold if you
don't replenish the used amounts with more water.

LLoyd

"Bob Engelhardt" wrote in message
. ..
Lloyd E. Sponenburgh wrote:
... It starts to soften, then decompose. Remove the locked
item as SOON as the material softens.

If you wait too long, the decomposition products become hard, and will
"re-glue" the lock.
...

Good to know! I've heard about using heat, but not about the re-gluing. I
can see the potential for a very frustrating situation!

Thanks for the heads-up,
Bob

Just keep in mind that there are many different types of Loctite, based on
different polymer and other technologies. You may encounter some strange
stuff if it's something that was applied in production. There are silicones,
epoxies, and other odds and ends. Some can take a lot of heat.

The ordinary threadlockers that are used in hand applications, and often in
production as well -- the red and blue stuff, and the less-common purple and
green -- are anaerobics based on acrylics. They'll lose 75% of their
strength, more or less, at 150C. But they're based on thermoplastics, so, as
others have noted, they'll get hard again very quickly when they cool.

--
Ed Huntress

Hey Lloyd,

Good trick. I will never see any quantity of it in gallons, or even
litres, but I'm sure the principle would apply for even very small 1
or 2 OZ amounts.

And speaking of "weight", we used Chlorothene Nu and Chlorothene EC
for cleaning large elevator control panels in the old days. (Probably
wouldn't be allowed today, and besides all the new ones are primarily
on PC boards.) It always surprised me how heavy the containers were
to pick up, much heavier than water or oil or varsol, whether in a 1
gallon jug or a 5 gallon pail. Just a surprise when grabbed without
thinking.

Take care.

Brian Lawson,
Bothwell, Ontario.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

On Thu, 27 Sep 2007 13:16:30 -0000, "Lloyd E. Sponenburgh"
lloydspinsidemindspring.com wrote:

Brian Lawson fired this volley in
:

I can't recall how they store/stock
the stuff in the bulk quantities they use, but even in a closed bottle
they put my few ounces in its GONE by magic within a month, long
before the day I've ever wanted to use it.


Brian, there's a trick to keeping methylene or ethylene chloride. It
does have a very high vapor pressure, and will even evaporated out of the
bottle if kept in your freezer.

I've kept a gallon in my unconditioned barn for over five years, and have
lost only about a quart to evaporation in that time. Here's the trick:

I bought a five gallon blue gas can (to visually distinguish it from my
red gas and yellow diesel cans). Put the methylene chloride in, not more
than half full. Gently fill the container to near the top with clean
water.

Surprisingly, methylene chloride is quite a bit more dense than water,
and almost totally immiscible with it. The methylene chloride stays on
the bottom, and water "cap" exerts enough hydraulic pressure and enough
passivation to the interface to almost totally prevent evaporation.

When I wish to dispense it, I merely invert the can so the air bleed cap
is bottom-most, then give it a gentle shake to float any water beads out
of the cap recess. Crack the cap, and the clean methylene chloride flows
out (under pressure, no less) into my working vessel.

Your can will swell in warm weather. It will collapse in the cold if you
don't replenish the used amounts with more water.

LLoyd

"Gerry" wrote in message
oups.com...
On Sep 27, 6:56 am, "Lloyd E. Sponenburgh"
lloydspinsidemindspring.com wrote:
"Andrew Mawson" fired this volley
:

Heat to about 150 deg C and most Loctite type sealers break down

It should be mentioned that it doesn't just "go away" at that
temperature. It starts to soften, then decompose. Remove the locked
item as SOON as the material softens.

If you wait too long, the decomposition products become hard, and will
"re-glue" the lock.

I use replacable tips on several pyrotechnic punches and presses. They
wear fast, and machining new press pins is labor intensive. Tips take
but a few minutes to make.

I LocTite them in place (med-strength blue). When time to replace, I
chuck up the main pin, clamp a pair of locking pliers on the tip, then
heat with a torch until it moves. I then turn the chuck to briskly
unscrew the tip before the mass cools or the loctite decomposes
completely. Clean the residues with methylene chloride, or a long soak
in acetone followed by brushing.

LLoyd

For what it's worth, when I was doing gunsmith work, I used a
soldering iron placed on the head of Loctited screws to heat them
enough for the Loctite to break down. Worked every time for me without
overheating the surrounding material. Takes a decent size iron,
though, not one of the tiny pencils

This seems like my best bet. I should have mentioned that the gear I removed
is plastic on an aluminum bushing. I was thinking of creating an
after-market product that would require this gear to be removed, but now I
think I need a different solution. I'm going to try the soldering iron
approach on the 2nd motor, though - seems like it has a chance !

Thanks to *everyone* that replied to this !
JCDeen

"pogo" wrote in message
...
I just realized this is a good post for this group!

Today I almost destroyed a nice stepper motor trying to remove a gear -
only
to realize that it had some form of Loctite on it because I noticed a pink
powder like residue on the shaft and the bore of the gear. Is there a
Loctite Disolver sort of solution out there ?

Thanks !
JCD

Wow! *Lots* of good info from everyone.
Thanks to *everyone* that replied to this !
JCDeen

On Thu, 27 Sep 2007 05:32:40 -0700, Gerry
wrote:

snip
For what it's worth, when I was doing gunsmith work, I used a
soldering iron placed on the head of Loctited screws to heat them
enough for the Loctite to break down. Worked every time for me without
overheating the surrounding material. Takes a decent size iron,
though, not one of the tiny pencils

Would that loosen up the Red Loctite stuff too? It used to
be the permanent locker stuff and came with a Bushnell scope
mount.

I foolishly used some on the screws by the hammer on a Super
Blackhawk years ago. I've wondered off/on if there was a
reasonable way to get them out again someday. I must say
though, they haven't shook loose again

--
Leon Fisk
Grand Rapids MI/Zone 5b
Remove no.spam for email