[alpinelakespilot2000]

Wondering if there are any "easy" ways to remove cured proseal? In the process of sealing the access plates on one of my tanks, I made two mistakes:

1. I used way too much proseal, and
2. Was interrupted with a family emergency, right after I globbed the proseal on, preventing me from smoothing all that (excess) proseal out around the access plate and gasket. By the time I was able to get back to the tank, I didn't want to try to smooth out stiff proseal, fearing I'd make a greater mess and compromise the seal.

The result is that I have a leak free and very functional tank but a VERY (embarrassingly) messy inboard rib/cover plate. The proseal has cured and I'm not sure whether removing the access plate and starting over is a reasonable alternative. Is there any good way to get proseal off once it's cured? (Even if I take the cover plate off, there's going to be quite a bit still on that inboard rib). What are my options?

Thanks.

 

[Mel]

MEK with persistance will cut cured Pro-seal. But if you have a leak free installation, don't mess with it. It will not show with the wing root fairings in place. If you do need to remove it later, you can cut through it with a sharp putty knife. Then clean it up as necessary. If you try to clean it up without removing the plate, there is always a chance of MEK seeping into places you don't want it and compromising your seal. Just let it be!
Mel...DAR

 

[Rick6a]

Removing cured proseal is no big deal but can be tedious. I usually scrape as much as possible off with this tool then (when possible) use a 2" fine or very fine scotchbrite disc in a right angle die grinder to finish up. In fact, using a scotchbrite disc is a great way to remove large gobs a proseal in a hurry, but the downside is that it also gums up your discs pretty fast. Any residue left on the surface can be wiped away with MEK. The pictures are of a typical plastic scraper used in the aerospace industry for just such a task. I'm surprised our favorite tool vendors do not carry these inexpensive and handy little tools as they serve well in many tasks. However, a quite usable plastic/plexiglass scraper can be fabricated from an ordinary automotive style ice scraper. Do not be tempted to use a metal scraper, you will almost surely scratch the aluminum.

Using such a plastic/plexiglass scraper, you may have to resharpen the bevel frequently but using a bench sander, the process takes about 5 seconds.

Rick Galati RV-6A "Darla" 76 hours