Help! T/A removal nightmare
Le Mans Master
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 9,192
Likes: 27
From: Boca Raton Florida
when I did my 77 they came right out. I now have my 81 all apart, except the pass side TA bolt, everything else is off, so I got to get a blade or 2 too. I actually thought I was going to get by with this thing.
Thread Starter
Team Owner
Joined: Oct 2004
Posts: 23,831
Likes: 10
From: Springfield MO
St. Jude Donor '07
Bolt question - I got the S/S shim kit from VB&P, not realizing that the bolts were included. Those bolts are Grade 5. Van Steel has Grade 8 pivot bolts listed - would it be worth it to order the harder bolts? I need to order some hardware from Van Steel anyway.
Pro
Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 564
Likes: 0
From: Pittsburgh PA
I tackled this problem only a month ago. The bolts were solidly rusted to the rotted bushings, but I was able to get the shims out. As a previous poster showed in pics, you can put a wrench slightly larger than the shaft diameter under the bolt head, which I did... I then used a tie-rod pickle-fork (about $15 at Kragen), and forced them out this way... 
It worked very slick, and it took me about two hours per side, to finally drive the bolts out... I simply kept adding more wrenches (and later the shims themselves) as spacers to provide the proper surface to drive the pickle-fork against...
As I said, it was a real smooth (though not fast) solution, and I didn't have to lay under the car for hours with a sawzall... (IMHO, this is the method of LAST resort... Or first resort, if your name is "Bubba..."
).
Give it a try... I think you'll be very surprised.
It worked very slick, and it took me about two hours per side, to finally drive the bolts out... I simply kept adding more wrenches (and later the shims themselves) as spacers to provide the proper surface to drive the pickle-fork against...
As I said, it was a real smooth (though not fast) solution, and I didn't have to lay under the car for hours with a sawzall... (IMHO, this is the method of LAST resort... Or first resort, if your name is "Bubba..."
).Give it a try... I think you'll be very surprised.
Thread Starter
Team Owner
Joined: Oct 2004
Posts: 23,831
Likes: 10
From: Springfield MO
St. Jude Donor '07
Got six 8" DeWalt 14 tooth bi-metal metal-cutting blades today. Once it cools down a bit more I'll attack the bolts again.
Any suggestions on the replacement bolt grade?
Any suggestions on the replacement bolt grade?
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Race Director
Joined: Feb 1999
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From: In Dreams There Is Truth Ohio
Originally Posted by I'm Batman
Bolt question - I got the S/S shim kit from VB&P, not realizing that the bolts were included. Those bolts are Grade 5. Van Steel has Grade 8 pivot bolts listed - would it be worth it to order the harder bolts? I need to order some hardware from Van Steel anyway.
Grade 5 will do just fine
Thread Starter
Team Owner
Joined: Oct 2004
Posts: 23,831
Likes: 10
From: Springfield MO
St. Jude Donor '07
The 14-tooth DeWalt 8" bi-metal blades were the ticket. I went through three of them, the third is still pretty sharp. Now I've just got to figure out how to get the bushing sleeve assembly apart. And get that stupid stuck shock mount loose. And get the rotors off.
Once the T/As were out, I pushed the bushing off of the inner side of the strut rod that's still attached. On the driver's side the bushings were in lousy shape, but still in mostly their original size and dimensions. The inside bushing on the passenger side was reduced to about 1/3 of it's original mass, and was completely missing on one side of the inner shell. Combined with the decayed pivot bushings that would allow me to swing the T/As from one side of the pocket to the other, it's no wonder that the car used to like to kick sideways under hard acceleration.
Once the T/As were out, I pushed the bushing off of the inner side of the strut rod that's still attached. On the driver's side the bushings were in lousy shape, but still in mostly their original size and dimensions. The inside bushing on the passenger side was reduced to about 1/3 of it's original mass, and was completely missing on one side of the inner shell. Combined with the decayed pivot bushings that would allow me to swing the T/As from one side of the pocket to the other, it's no wonder that the car used to like to kick sideways under hard acceleration.