[Ryson1]

Trying to remove a big truck exhaust tip, got the clamps all removed but the tip is seized at the top of the muffler and I can't get it to move to take it out... just wondering what other guys have done to help it free up. I tapped with a screwdriver and hammer trying to loosen them apart and sprayed a generous amount of movit where the tip slides into the top of the muffler, letting it soak a bit at the moment. Thanks

 

[woodytr99]

For the price of the muffler replace it too

 

[4840mf]

Try heating it up with torch ?

 

[albertabuck]

You don't say if you are trying to save both pieces or just one. Next to impossible to save both, don't waste your time trying.
If you want to save the stack, take a grinder of some sort and split as much of the muffler the stack is inside as possible. If you are careful you can do this with minimal contact of the stack itself. Then pry away the muffler from the stack and then wiggle the stack to loosen it up and pull it out.
If it's the muffler you want in one piece, simply take a large blunt punch and collapse the stack just above the muffler. Usually in one place does the trick, as once you collapse it, it will make the OD of the stack smaller pulling it away from the muffler. Takes some wiggling and effort if it is stuck deeper into muffler than it should have been.

 

[Ryson1]

I haven't put any heat to it yet, will try that.


If I have to damage one piece, the stack will be the one that gets sacrificed.


Thanks for the pointers so far!

 

[flatfoot]

I agree with albetabuck if clamps have put a ridge into pipes, but if not, might want to try air chisel with a flat mallet on outside (gently) of pipes. It will stretch outer pipe a bit and turns rust to dust!

 

[Northern Farmer]

Your Pete may be set up different then mine and have different hardware but I went through the process a few years ago of replacing the mufflers/elbow pipes/y pipe in my case. The more I took apart the more I realized how bad a shape the mufflers were in and the chain reaction of the three bands around the muffler falling to pieces that have to be in place to hold the stainless steel heat shield on. In my case it was the stack that I wanted to save if I could as the mufflers were destined for the garbage anyway. The surprise came in two forms, the muffler was rusted out behind those bands and the insane price of three bands for a muffler as they were far more than the mufflers themselves. I don't know what the price of the stacks are but I doubt they are cheap either ... they really get you coming or going $$$.

Its been a while now so I can't recall what shape the top part of the muffler was in when I had finally got the stacks out but I was doing some prying with blade screw drivers and spraying something into the joint opening I had created and would have been up in a bucket of a front end loader and leveraging back and forth to break it loose and get it worked out of the muffler.

I would suggest if any band type clamps are needing to be replaced, only buy the stainless steel ones as I've seen far too much of the galvanized ones crumble to pieces far before anything should have needed attention again.