Crap, I am R/R'ing the fuel injectors, and I accidently dropped a copper fuel line gasket into the intake manifold! I pulled the intake manifold. Boy is it dirty down in the head there! Could use a good cleaning anyhow.

Will I be able to fish it out somehow? I dont see it. Any tips or tricks? Or am I screwed and have to pull the head?

As long as the intake valve for that cylinder wasn't open, there's a chance you can retrieve it. Since it's copper a magnet is out, but you might be able to find a gob of suitably sticky stuff to extract it, or maybe you'll get lucky and be able to grab it with needlenose or bent needlenose pliers. I'd try darn near anything short of pulling the head.

For future reference, I ball up a sheet of paper towel and stuff it in each intake runner, to prevent such occurances.

You might try using a shop vac to get it out. Just be sure to use some screen (or something) on the end of the nozzle. That way you can check to se it it comes out. <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

luckily copper is soft. Maybe it wont brake anything and it will slowly get smooshed into shape and just be a thin copper plated area. <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/baby.gif" alt="" />

yep shop vac, even if you tape a small fuel line sized hose on the end of it.

or hose and push it in and hopefully past it and use air to blow it out.


try a magnet unless you are sure it is pure copper.

My dad was working on his isuzu truck once and lost a bolt. After looking for 30 minutes or so he gave up and buttoned everything back up. When he started it up he heard the sound of the bolt rattling around on top of the piston it was sitting on and he instantly figured out what happened...

With a flashlight, one of those flexible "dropped part" sqeezer grabber things (excuse my technical terms :p ), about 30 minutes and loads of patience he was able to fish it back out the spark plug hole it fell through.


Back OT, I defintiely wouldn't hope for it to just sqiush out of the cylinder if that's where it ended up. You're gonna have to fish it out somehow...

I like the shop vac and screen idea the best so far. That just might work.

yea the suction idea sounds like a good idea. by the way welcome. ovrrdrive.

Thanks guys. Shop vac it will be. I'll make sure to clean out the container real good and make sure I get the copper gasket out.

Good luck <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/kewl.gif" alt="" />

Let us know how it goes <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/cheers.gif" alt="" />

The gasket came right out with the shop vac!

Now I'm probably going to have to helicoil a spark plug hole or 2 <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/angry.gif" alt="" />