Stupid trailing arm question
Thread Starter
Pro
Joined: Jul 2011
Posts: 508
Likes: 36
From: Ia
Stupid trailing arm question
Ok, so I am on the road to replacing my trailing arm bushings on my 77... I got the outer shims out but the in-board shims won't freaking budge! do I saws-all the bolts with the shims still in? or do I keep hammering/ prying on them to get them out first? It's /so/ frustrating *deep breath* Any advice would be helpfull.....
Racer
Joined: Mar 2014
Posts: 295
Likes: 18
From: Easton Massachusetts
I had the same problem with mine so I just kept prying them up and down and spraying them with PB Blaster till they finally worked their way out. Then the bolt was rusted solid to the bushing sleeve. It took me a whole day just to get one side off but keep working at it, it will eventually come apart.
Safety Car
Joined: Jun 2013
Posts: 4,399
Likes: 793
trailing arms
You can sawzall them off. Short blade about 6-8 inches. Put the blade in between the metal washer and head if the bolt. Go slow you don't want to cut into the arm itself. Once it all out and you do your thing a good tip is to put a piece of dental floss through the long bolt with some grease on it. You can the pull the bolt through the inside part of the frame into the trailing arm and back through the ouside hole of the frame. good luck
R
R
Thread Starter
Pro
Joined: Jul 2011
Posts: 508
Likes: 36
From: Ia
That's just it.. the inner shims won't even move up and down. I'm taking hunks out of them with a hammer and punch/chisel trying to get them to break free.
I soaked everything with penetrating oil again, letting it sit while I clean/organize some stuff in the garage (aka: trying not to think about why I thought buying an old Corvette was a /good/ idea
)
rvzio: good tip about putting the bolts back in... I had done some reading in posts past and that was my plan...
I soaked everything with penetrating oil again, letting it sit while I clean/organize some stuff in the garage (aka: trying not to think about why I thought buying an old Corvette was a /good/ idea
)rvzio: good tip about putting the bolts back in... I had done some reading in posts past and that was my plan...
2026 Loser of the Year
Joined: Sep 2013
Posts: 36,579
Likes: 7,020
From: New Or-leens Loo-z-anna
On my '68 I started soaking them 2 weeks earlier....and it still took a couple hours of prying/hammering/scraped knuckles to remove both trailing arms.
(too stubborn to use a time-saving saws-all
)
(too stubborn to use a time-saving saws-all
)
Melting Slicks
Joined: Jul 2009
Posts: 2,091
Likes: 40
Put the car up on a lift. Getting a good angle and doing it standing , takes only a few minutes. Laying on the floor not seeing what your doing , not attacking it right ...leads to long frustration
Sawzall..with new blades ...is quick......car high in the air.
Use stainless shims and get a professional four wheel alignment .
It's worth the trouble and expense . Your corvette can handle like it was intended .
Sawzall..with new blades ...is quick......car high in the air.
Use stainless shims and get a professional four wheel alignment .
It's worth the trouble and expense . Your corvette can handle like it was intended .
Last edited by LS4 PILOT; Apr 6, 2014 at 09:10 AM.
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Thread Starter
Pro
Joined: Jul 2011
Posts: 508
Likes: 36
From: Ia
VICTORY IS MINE!!!... Well almost. The driver side still needs to be cut out. The inner shims did start to move.. but just barely. More penetrating oil and time, but as Alton Brown says "That's another show"
Put the car up on a lift. Getting a good angle and doing it standing , takes only a few minutes. Laying on the floor not seeing what your doing , not attacking it right ...leads to long frustration
Sawzall..with new blades ...is quick......car high in the air.
Use stainless shims and get a professional four wheel alignment .
It's worth the trouble and expense . Your corvette can handle like it was intended .
Sawzall..with new blades ...is quick......car high in the air.
Use stainless shims and get a professional four wheel alignment .
It's worth the trouble and expense . Your corvette can handle like it was intended .
I would /LOVE/ to put it on a lift, but that's not an option. To make matters worse I only have about 18" on either side of the car to work in (aka: small garage) but it will be worth it once it is back to gether and finally get to see all four of the new 17" wheels on it.
Thanks guys for letting me blow off a little steam
Drifting
Joined: Jun 2008
Posts: 1,495
Likes: 134
From: Blanco County, TX
While the PB blaster is soaking, use the time to run to Homey Depot to buy more sawzall blades.