I'm in the middle of rebuilding my 22re (89 4x4). I decided to also remove the baffle from the underside of the valve cover to clean it out and also thought about powder coating the cover, which the baffle would have to be removed for anyway.

The baffle is factory installed with pressed in rivets... has anyone removed one before? Do you just drill out the rivets then tap the holes and bolt the baffle back on afterward? I'm interested in hearing about anyone's experiences with this.

Thanks!

Nobody has done this?

i don't think anybody removes the baffle when they clean/paint there's. i didn't. and i'm almost positive you're only supposed to powder coat the outside, so it shouldn't matter. just use some good degreaser(ie. simple green or purple power) and scrub it real well. if not powder coating, make sure you rough up the outside w/ sandpaper real well then wipe it down w/ acetone so the paint will stick.

maybe someone else has more info on removing the baffle and will chime in.

I remember reading a couple of months back where someone removed it by drilling it out and tapping it like you said. But I can't find that post.

The baffels I've seen are bolted in: 8 or 10mm heads, can't remember for sure. Good gasket sets have these baffel packings in them. I believe their purpose is to trap the water resulting from condensation formed in the cover when the engine is heated-cooled-heated-etc.
If you're worried about re-attaching, just get an older style head cover with the bolts. I believe they will all fit.

I took mine out. They weren't rivets they were pins and the baffle was press fit on them. I think I remember prying off the baffle with a plethora of screwdrivers and pliers lol. In the process I bent it up pretty good, but it all hammered back down when I reinstalled it.

Mine had a lot of carbon buildup. If I had to do it over again I don't think I would bother taking it off. Theres nothing underneath it except empty cavities . My rebuild kit came with the proper gasket to replace it with.

Also, I tried everything to get the carbon to come off, 3000psi washer, soaked in mineral spirits for a week, wire brush, ect.... Only thing that remotely worked for me was soaking it in simple green and using a very small wire bush attachment on a drill.

Thanks for the input guys <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/cheers.gif" alt="" />

Hey guys, just thought I'd update the thread with pics of the valve cover that I got powdercoated. It came out really nice!

Just a little update in case anyone else wants to do this. It was the earlier '80's models that had the baffle attached to the valve cover with bolts. There were only 8 on them vs. 10 mounting points on the later models.

The bolts are part no. 90080-11691 and come with the integrated washers. They are anywhere from $.72 ea. online to $1.00 at the dealer.

The heads of the pins originally used were drilled out/ground off, then you have to drill/tap new 6-1.00 holes and the factory bolts will thread right in. Of course you could use anything similiar, but this is what was used at the factory so to speak.

great job ,thats real nice <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/cheers.gif" alt="" />