Gasket release?

Buying some proper gasket scrapers would be a really good start. Razor blades are a waste of time.
Also try an aerosol gasket remover.

 

I have about 10 different scrapers of different shapes and sizes for that reason. I also sharpen them like a knife. Razor blades are an effort in futility.
Go to the parts house and get gasket remover. Makes it easier, not simple.

 

I used the Loctite SF 7200 to soften the gasket and then used a cut razor blade to get around the studs. It is easy to clamp the blade in a vice and bend until it breaks off. It may help to swipe the edge against the vice to get it at an angle and align better with the surface. Not sure this makes any sense .. but lots of work, and a great feeling when done.

 

It is so much faster and cleaner to remove the studs with a proper remover vs. double nutting. Those studs are torqued in there with big torque but sometimes you can get a corroded steel stud to aluminum and then you make a bigger problem. You have to be smart about it and sometimes a little judicious use of penetrating oil and heat helps. Use collet puller on left with different mandrels center but not the roller puller that can damage threads.


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Those studs will be rusted in and will probably break off getting them out. I had one recently with some bad studs that needed to be replaced and before that job was done the head was off getting the studs out and the head repaired.

With proper tools the gasket is not that big a deal.

Fix what needs to be fixed and don't make more things to be fixed.

 

They just don't make gasket remover like they used to. The last one I used was Permatex and it was about $20 for 4 ounces. Still required multiple applications and wait periods. In the past I have had better luck with Jasco paint remover but jeeze, don't get any of that stuff on your hands, it's like Alien blood.

 

The old Ferrari grey gaskets are asbestos. Very hard and require patience.
They were banned by law and now we have the green paper gaskets.