Calling the Captain! I have a hydro question

[kgehring]

They must be removed. I am sure Luis will chime in as well.

[luis]

If you are referring about an adapter, yes, they need to come out.

[DiverTim]

Are ya'll talking about a bushing? I do not want to seem dumb but is a bung a bushing? Thanks, Tim

[captain]

Yes a bung is a bushing. I had to get a couple out when I had Tim's tanks hydroed. Go to a pawn shop and look for a 6 point socket, 1/2"drive is ok but 3/4 is better, that fits the bushing. That a good vise, a breaker bar and cheater pipe if necessary will get it out.
Then comes the fun of getting it back in with no leaks. I use Locktite thread sealent with teflon rather than teflon tape. you can get it at an auto parts store or hardware store. Seems to work better on old used threads than tape. You might also consider new bushing rather than reusing the old ones.

[Douchebag]

Hi Tom,

I have a fully equipped garage, and tried a six point impact socket with no results. Even tried the impact gun with no results! The bushing itself is deforming rather than loosening! I am now at a lose as to what to do next

Cheers,
Andy

Andy,

You can provide a lot more steady torque with a cheater bar than you can with an impact. Ditch the impact and go with a cheater bar. If it has to be a 4 foot long bar than so be it, you'll have much better luck.

[Bryan]

Get a bottle of CO2 with a LP regulator and hose on it. Sometimes welding gas suppliers rent them or if you have a friend with a soda fountain those will work too. Turn the bottle upside down and give the bushing a good shot of liquid CO2. WEAR LEATHER GLOVES It will freeze and ice up pretty quickly and the bushing should shrink enough to loosen it up. Hopefully before the cold gets to the cylinder.

[antique diver]

....Then comes the fun of getting it back in with no leaks. I use Locktite thread sealent with teflon rather than teflon tape. you can get it at an auto parts store or hardware store. Seems to work better on old used threads than tape. You might also consider new bushing rather than reusing the old ones.

We are dealing with up to 6000 psi air in our business, and have had good luck with sealing pipe threads using 5 wraps of teflon tape... forget that textbook stuff about 1 or 2 wraps! I have never had a leak due to "too much" tape, but too little will sure contribute to leakage even with lower pressures. I always use 4 to 5 wraps, on 1/4" npt threads at any pressure service, and on larger threads I would not hesitate to use more, especially if the threads are not perfect. In my opinion, 6 wraps works great on 1/2" NPT valves. The icing on the cake that really makes for a good seal at 6000 is first the tape wrap, then adding a thin layer of teflon pipe dope over that.

[luis]

I would also recommend the use of a long cheater pipe when working on a tapered pipe threads. Tapered pipe threads do not respond well to an impact wrench.

At Divers Service Center in PR we had a cheater pipe about 4 ft long and a couple of times we added an extension.


I also agree about the use multiple layers of Teflon tape. I have always used several wraps and have never seen the reason to limit it to only two. I never had any problems sealing tapered threaded valves, but it has been a lot of years since I have had to deal with tapered thread valves.

[captain]

One of the usual 150 foot pound impacks can hardly remove a tight 1/2" bolt. Like I and others said Loooog cheater bar, 6 point socket, maybe a friend for more weight on the cheater bar.

[regwhore]

Where do you get new bushing adaptors?

[Fibber McGee]

Yes, the cheater bar is the way to go; even if you use the CO2 chilling method.......it's simple math...for example: if you weighed 100 lbs and had a 10 ft bar then you could exert 1000 pound-feet of torque...way more than a usual impact wrench and without the risk of harming the threads from the hammer effects....the biggest problem is clamping the cylinder in place without damaging it...a chain vise with some rubber padding may be helpful there.

[captain]

Where do you get new bushing adaptors?

Here is stainless steel

http://www.mcmaster.com/#4443k757/=3i57ku" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

or here is forged carbon steel

http://www.mcmaster.com/#4513k348/=3i58zs" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[captain]

This is the tank clamp I made for stubborn valves and bushings. The base is 1/4" x 2" angle, two pieces of 1" angle and 1-1/2 x 3/16" flat bar. I just clamp it in a vise but it could be bolted down to heavy bench.
I glued a strip of medium sand paper from a belt sander band to the strap.

[captain]

I think it's just the years they have been in. More than likely just plain old fashioned pipe dope was used rather than Teflon tape.
I really made the clamp specifically for Tim's old tanks because the bushing were carbon steel and had been in for 30+ years. When I finally got them out I couldn't tell what sealant had been used but it definitely wasn't any type of Teflon.

[antique diver]

Be sure to put a valve or pipe plug snugly into the female threads on your bushing before trying to take it out. This will help keep from distorting or crushing the bushing under heavy torque. Even if you aren't going to reuse it, it will help prevent distortion that could cause your wrench to slip.