Hey all, Im about to put a set of aluminum heads onto my 350, the problem is the old head gaskets left a kind of textured residue on the block surface. My question is how to remove this stuff without gouging up the surface of the block. Perhaps a plastic scraper and brake fluid? Input is appreciated..

You will be hard pressed to gouge a cast-iron block's deck, imho..

A sharp heavy, rigid, 1" wide putty knife/gasket scraper and some hard work will clean them up fine. I've even used a sharp wood chisil for doing this!!

I always run into this problem, although only once on heads b/c I use Permatex, Indianhead Shellac Gasket Cement on about everything AND when it sets after a couple of years, it's kinda hard to say the least to remove..

After the problems with the heads I went to either Aluminum spray paint or either the dauber bottle or spray-on Copper-Cote headgasket sealer b/c it was so hard to clean up......

pdq67

With a little patience, a razor blade works great on the block decks.

Napa/Permatex gasket remover ang a rag should do the job. No to very little scraping, the stuff works good.

I usually use Laquer Thinner or MEK (MethylEthylKetone - get at hardware/paint stores), after I have Scaped all the 'big chunks' off, to Remove any residue and Clean the surface before I install new Gaskets.
A lite pass with a wire brush in a drill or air motor will help remove some gaskets and marks prior to cleaning the surface with chemicals.
Berimans (sp?) B12 (spray or bottle) also works great to clean surfaces before gasket install. Get it at all auto parts stores.
Use good gloves with any cleaning solvent to prevent absorption of the chemicals into your skin. See the "It's only Your Health" and Martins great postings in the forums for more info on this.

Hope this helps;

Razor blade first then a toothbrush sized wire brush to clean up any leftovers. At least that's how I do it.

I like the wallpaper scrapers with the 4" razor blade!! These have a long handle on 'em that makes them easier to use, they clean a wide flat swath, and you can replace the razor blade cheaply when it wears out!

Paul D.

I'll use a bunch of razor blades and a few cans of brakleen. The blades will dull up real fast. Follow up with some maroon scotch-brite and more brake / laquer thinner...

Passes with a wire brush on some sort of rotary tool will leave pieces of wire in it's wake that will need to be cleaned up well...

Hope this is somewhat helpful..

John

I started out with a gasket scraper..
but very soon went over to gasket-remover and razorblades. Much better!!

Don´t forget to clean the bolthole-threads!
A good tap and a wirebruch is very handy here.
Flush with brakleen.

Daniel