Vortalex disassembly question

[Josh Atkinson]

Any idea what I am missing here?  This is my first Vorty but I can’t get the housing off of the motor. It is locked tight. I have removed the four screws in the front and back and the two holding the handle together but it is rock solid. No give at all. 

[Lawrence Smith]

Score the line around the back half of the motor. I usually use a razor blade & gently pry , then go progressively bigger blade until it comes apart. Some people tap the front of the rotor & it separates the halves . Be Careful doing that so it doesn’t break something 

[Josh Atkinson]

Got it. Thank you. Man, that thing was stuck in there solid as a rock. 

[Josh Atkinson]

I hope I’m not asking too many questions here but on the same topic, does anyone know how to completely disassemble the bottom which attaches to the oscillator from the gearbox? I need to get it apart because it’s filthy and I need to clean it well before it’s repainted. I have searched YouTube and cannot find a video that shows me how to do it. 

[Tom Zapf]

THERE'S NO SUCH THING AS TOO MANY QUESTIONS, THIS IS HOW WE TOO ALL LEARN BY READING OTHER POSTS. BETTER TO ASK THAN BREAK IT.LOTS OF PARTS CAN BE POT METAL AND WHEN BROKEN THERE'S NO FIXER-ROO. SO BETTER TO TAKE CARE AND NOT FORCE ANYTHING 

[Eric Skaggs]

Hey Josh - how much effort prying did have to put into separating the oscillator gearbox?  I've gotten mine about 2 millimeters away from the rear motor housing gently prying with a small screwdriver but progress has slowed and I'm worried about breaking something. The plastic autobody trim tools I tried weren't strong enough.  Any way you could post a pic of the bearing side of the gearbox so I can see what all comes out?

[Lawrence Smith]

Eric depending on the year & the wear some of those gear boxes are swollen & cause issue/breakage when removing. Rather than prying see if a light tap with a blunt tool while pop it out . Just be forewarned you could cause damage. 

[Malcolm MacGregor]

Lawrence makes very valid points on your Vortalex. I am working on a pedestal model currently. Clean inside and out as best as possible. But don’t pry that oscillating bell off the gearbox. If you have a wire wheel, used a fine wheel and clean it up. Then assemble it and spray paint as one piece. I use a long screw threaded into one of the cover holes and hang it somewhere and paint away.