How do I remove my stuck Gearbox Front Cover?

Before you say anything, YES I did remove all the nuts...... All eight of them, without a hitch........ The gearbox is out of the car, on the floor, and the clutch lever is removed. The front seal/gasket was weeping a little oil (Until I drained the transmission), and I wanted to replace the seal/gasket while I had it out of the car, but the front cover won't budge! I've soaked it in Liquid Wrench, tried to pry it out via the clutch lever aperture, and attempted to get a better grip with a hammer and chisel ( Read - "My Dad's Screwdriver" ): no dice..... How do I get this thing out? PLEASE HELP!!!!

Yours Truly,
Sam

Just did this over the week end. Try tapping on the various ridges from different directions. Use a piece of wood to absorb the hard tapping.

ALSO: Watch out for the circular shims that are between the cover and the bearing flange when you take the cover off. I held them in place with engine assembly lube when putting it back together. If the shims slip out of place the are very thin and will deform as you snug up the nuts.

Also lube the outside and inside of the seal to help seat it properly. Just some thoughts that might be helpful...

I asked about this when Dan The [Possibly] Fit Man ( ;) ) posted about this, and he had absolutely no problems getting his off, so I assume it's rare. I've beat on it for ages, and I can't really seem to get a good enough bite to get it loosened up. I'll keep whacking at it, but so far; no dice.......... Anymore ideas, guys?

Yours Truly,
Sam

Last resort would be getting some kind of wedge to penetrate and split it away from the case. Use extreem care though as you can screw up the gasket surface easily with your wedge.

I'll make this brief as I had shoulder surgery 2 days ago and my motions are restricted and typing is tedious.

If you have all of the fasteners removed and the cover will not budge I suspect the PO used a very aggressive sealer that will not release easily. There is a simple remedy that works quite well and I use it a lot. Take a propane torch or light flame on an Oxy/Acet setup and apply some heat. Clamp a vise grip to the T/O pivot stanchion to manipulate the cover off. You need to make the cover very hot to the touch but not so hot that it melts the cover. Even if that cover is epoxyed on this method will work, silicone is harder to get to release but with a bit more heat it too will yield. I use this method on all manner of gaskets and it makes gasket removal a lot easier.