Removing old running board covers?

[Ken Arms]

Does anyone have a trick that would remove Henrys running board covers? I tried a plummers torch to warm them up and it sort of works but very slow and difficult. Ken

[done4]

I have use a paint scraper and hammer lightly hitting the scraper. After the bulk of the rubber is off I use paint remover to clean up the residue, but it's a mess. But I can only imagine what it smells like heating up Henry's old rubber!

[19Fordy]

Hammer and an old 1/2 in. wood chisel that you don't mind abusing. I also used a flat blade screwdriver ground to a chisel point and a hammer. It goes faster and is easier on your hands (wear gloves) if you use the smaller size chisels as there is less impact required to remove the rubber.

[rotorwrench]

Once you get it thin on the surface, a paint stripper (methylene chloride based aircraft stripper available at many hardware stores) might help loosen the stuff to a gum like consistancy that could be removed a little easier perhaps. That is definitely not a fun project since the rubber was fully vulcanized to the surface.

[Ken Arms]

Yup, hammer and chisel seems to be working as well as the aircraft paint stripper, thanks for that tip. still what a pain in the.. what is vulcanized? The board has holes in it and teets in the rubber, I cant imagine they were glued since it would be difficult to line up all those holes before it set!

[cmbrucew]

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I have a pneumatic gasket scraper from Snap on whick is very good for this type of job.
They offered different width scraper bits. If you ever see one for sale go for it.

Bruce

Works good
Lasts long time

[ford38v8]

Originally Posted by 19Fordy

When the liquid rubber is pumped into the die cavity under pressure where the running board is the liquid rubber is forced through the little holes in the steel running board.

The process you describe is called "injection molding", and does not apply in this case.

I believe the exact process to vulcanize running boards involves the laying of uncured rubber sheets on the boards, then enclosing the set in a press, which is then steam heated under pressure to vulcanize (bond/cure) the rubber to the boards. Water cooling of the press completes the process, the boards are then removed and the excess flash (if any) is trimmed from edges and at the holes in the steel boards.

[cmbrucew]

ford38v8 is correct. They do use a cement between the rubber and the steel.
Same process as vulcanizing a conveyor belt.

Bruce

Works good
Lasts long time

[rotorwrench]

The vulcanizing process is more similar to a welding process than a bonding process. They get the rubber material hot enough that is is nearly fluid and it also changes it chemically to make the final product harder and more durable than the material was before heating. Tires , steering wheels, and other hard rubber products were made this way and some products as far back as when Charles Goodyear figured the process out. Curing agents are added to the package before heating that might look like adheasives but they just add agents like sulphur to the mix to make it more solid. Pure rubber is soft and sticky and would never work well by itself until it's vulcanized.

Many of the covers made now days have to be glued on with adheasive. Hunley Acuff is one of the few that still do the original type process for running boards.

[JM 35 Sedan]

I remember reading a post on one of these old car websites about somehow placing running boards above a charcoal fire that would heat the boards enough to allow the rubber to be easily scraped off of the surface of the boards. I'm not suggesting or condoning this as a good way to do this, just wondering if anyone else has heard about ortried this method?

[johnny]

sugest putting them on the barbeque metal side down, heating the metal will soften the bond between the two,so the rubber can be scraped off. never tried this method but should work .

[41Fordor]

I clamped them vertically in a workmate and used a propane torch to heat the metal underside just enough to soften the rubber and scraped from the other side with a putty knife. Do it outside!

[19Fordy]

Originally Posted by cmbrucew

ford38v8 is correct. They do use a cement between the rubber and the steel.
Same process as vulcanizing a conveyor belt.

Bruce

Works good
Lasts long time

Thanks for setting me straight.

[FlatheadTed]

I wonder if they could be sand blasted of ,just wear away the rubber at high pressure .

[barry]

I had my running boards soda blasted. wasn't easy but came out great

[benji]

I used a propane torch to remove rubber. Tried on top directly to rubber and made a gummy mess, then went to bottom and heated metal, result, the rubber was easy to scrape off with a putty knife.

[Ken Arms]

I got one stripped using a wood chisel and hammer, I might try my air hammer on the second one with a chisel end. Thats assuming I can lift my arm today after banging off the first one! The aircraft stripper does do a nice job getting any remaining rubber film off. Thanks again everyone.

[Chris Nelson]

I found that the muffler/tailpipe pneumatic rattle hammer works really well. Using the flat blade, it jsut peels it right off the steel.

[ford38v8]

Originally Posted by FlatheadTed

I wonder if they could be sand blasted of ,just wear away the rubber at high pressure .

Ted, before you try that method, put a piece of ordinary masking tape on a steel panel and hit it with the sandblast. Your results will surprise you and should approximate rubber removal from a running board.