63 grille removal

[F H.]

Thought this would be simple. Never been out. cage nut clips fastened to fiberglass tabs. ARGH!! Cant heat. Cant force. laughs at penetrating fluids. Any wizards out there??

[Bob R.]

Re: 63 grill removal

My friend had a similar problem with his 63. I believe he took a dremel tool and cut away the fasteners behind the grill. Cutting off the head of the screw will allow you to remove the grill but the fastener will still be stuck on the tab. If you apply too much force trying to remove them you will break off the fiberglass tabs. I had to replace several tabs on my 63 and I am guessing that is why.

[John D.]

Re: 63 grill removal

Try my favorite penetrating oil FM Aero-Kroil. Works like magic. John
Only available on line for some reason.

[Tracy C.]

Re: 63 grill removal

You may be forced to drill off the head with a 1/4" bit. With the heads off you can remove the grill. With the grill out you can grind the top edge of the U nut where it goes over the fiberglass tab and it will fall out of the tab on front and back.

[Edward J.]

Re: 63 grill removal

To add to Bob's post had the body of frame when I removed those Phillips heads, what I did was use a air operated cut-off tool and just ground off the caged nuts and then it no problem , by removing the cages nut this will give you some protection and not destroy any fiberglass. I would say remove the radiator or hood to access. There is no penetrant that will remove 50 year old bolts. I like you tried just about everything, I have been in the auto trade for 40+ years and live in the northeast where rust is always a issue , the best stuff I ever used was GM'S and Mopar's heat riser penetrant. don't even know if its still made.

[Frank D.]

Re: 63 grill removal

There was a recent comparison done on penetrating fluids and the best by far was a 50/50 mix of ATF and acetone believe it or not....better than Kroil, Liquid Wrench, PB-Blaster, etc.. With patience and continual soaking over several days in some cases, 50 year old bolts can be worked loose. Its simply chemistry....sometimes heat will carry the day in addition to the penetrate.

[Harry S.]

Re: 63 grille removal

I'm not sure I would let acetone anywhere near my paint.

[John D.]

Re: 63 grille removal

I absolutely love Sili Kroil. Neither Aero Kroil or Sili Kroil will hurt paint.

[Paul Y.]

Re: 63 grille removal

F M, these are all good tips for getting it out. When you put it back in, apply some anti-seize to the fasteners and do the next time a big favor.

[Mark E.]

Re: 63 grill removal

There was a recent comparison done on penetrating fluids and the best by far was a 50/50 mix of ATF and acetone believe it or not.

Here's couple of penetrating fluids I learned about in "Auto Restorer" (btw, a great magazine with no ads!)-

- From a reader's letter in the March 2012 issue: "I happened to see an article in the stack of papers a fellow volunteer had sitting out at the Chrysler Archives where we volunteer... They tested a bunch of popular "Liquid Wrench" type products... and found this home brew was better than any of them. The recipe is equal parts mineral spirits and ATF. Both common and inexpensive."

It works well for me, although I haven't tested it yet with a real stubborn fastener. I mix it into a small pump-action oil dispenser I have with a flexible tip and keep it on my tool cart.

- Written up in the October 2010 issue with favorable comments is a commercial rust-removal product called "Metal Rescue". Has anyone tried this?