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Easy leaf spring bushing removal?

dyeager535

dyeager535

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Getting ideas lined up for when I have a chance to work on the rig again, and I know the leaf spring bushings have to be replaced.

They are probably the originals to the springs.

Watched a YouTube video where a guy uses a torch and air hammer with chisel bit to remove the bushing. https://www.google.com/search?sxsrf...MS4xMpgBAKABAbABDw&sclient=mobile-gws-wiz-hp#

Seems like about the easiest compared to the other ideas I've seen, and conversations I've listened to about the difficulty one can have.

Although I don't think I've got an air hammer, if that's about as fast and easy as can be expected, a cheapy air hammer I figure would be worth the price.

Anyone seen or used a more effective method? The whole drilling bit seems ridiculously laborious, if I can use fire lol.
 
The drill actually works really well, as does a hole saw

often have to drive the sleeve out with a punch after the rubber is removed
 
Ive seen drilling a bunch of holes in it and then pressing it out but I've also seen this.


I've been wanting to try this and see.
 
Drill method with an air hammer follow up for the steel sleeve worked best for me. I found out that if the springs are locked in a vise it makes the job must easier and faster. Before that I had the spring on a block of wood with me foot for support on the ground. Way harder. Lol live and learn.
 
drill and pop out the rest . = less stink and clean up .

i have got lucky with a ball joint press a few times and some spacers .
 
:weld:.....I described how to burn them out in another thread in the past few days..

My friend has luck using a u-joint or ball joint press with an air impact to press them in & out..
 
I tried the burn out method years ago and it was a mess of black smoke and didn’t work. Ended up drilling them out. I used a 12 ton press to do a second set and that worked way better.
 
bp71k5 said:
I tried the burn out method years ago and it was a mess of black smoke and didn’t work. Ended up drilling them out. I used a 12 ton press to do a second set and that worked way better.
Click to expand...
I have a 20 ton press I use for this stuff but before I got it, I did the u joint press, except one time the bushing was so rusted to the spring, I used the hole saw on the rubber then chiseled the bushing inward to peel it off
 
I'd seen the drill method, that looks pretty clean for sure, but I'm guessing an air hammer with chisel bit would be needed to make quick work of the outer sleeve.

If the drill method works as shown (I saw videos of it being done multiple times do I have to assume it does) I don't know as it could be any simpler, really don't need specialized tools, press, heat, etc.

Just wasn't sure if that method has worked for anyone here.

I suppose rubber isn't going to be problematic to drill through either, if it came to that.
 
You can use a sawsall to cut the outer bushing sleeve by putting the blade in the opening where the spring eye ends,after you get the rubber and inner sleeve out..then it'll be easy to collapse it and get it out with no air chisel or torch if you lack those tools ..

The burning method worked well for me but I used a cutting torch,not a propane or mapp torch..you don't have to let it burn completely ,just long enough for the rubber to get to marshmallow consistency so it can be poked out..

The hole saw or drill method sounds like it'd work well provided your drill is beefy enough,rubber tends to get sticky and resist being cut ,using some kind of rubber lube may make it easier for the saw or drill to go thru it without gumming up..
 
diesel4me said:
...
The hole saw or drill method sounds like it'd work well provided your drill is beefy enough,rubber tends to get sticky and resist being cut ,using some kind of rubber lube may make it easier for the saw or drill to go thru it without gumming up..
Click to expand...
I used a drill press so yeah enough power
 
I'm not looking forward to dealing with this when I go to replace the rear forward spring hanger on my truck...just because I know how to do it, does not mean it wont turn into a major fiasco...
I may put it off until spring rather than risk not being successful at getting it back together..

Worst part of that job is getting the leaf spring bolt out of the bushing..

GM decided it best to hide the nut on the back side facing the frame where it is in a hidden "pocket"...and I've never had that bolt come off by using an impact gun or a cheater pipe on a breaker bar turning it from the head side of the bolt--always end up torching it off or sawing it off..
One method my friend explained I may have to use is to get the hanger off the frame,leave the spring bolt in,then jack up the truck until the hanger clears the frame rail,then I can get at the nut..

I have had to saw off the bolt head on other spring bolts that were hopelessly frozen into the inner bushing sleeve--I got the nut off OK,but the bolt just refused to budge--I got a brainstorm once and thought cutting off the bolt head,then stacking washers under the nut and use the impact gun to tighten the nut might work,and it pulled the bolt shank free and as soon as it spun,it came out.--saved me from having to deal with replacing the bushing..
I usually don't get that lucky..
 
In the video above I noticed he cut the bolt off in the bushing, I suspect the rust out east makes it worse, but as I recall any of those bolts tend to not want to come out, even if you can get the nut off. Mine have "only" been together for about 10 years I suppose, so hopefully will come out relatively easily.

That was what was appealing to me about the torch/air hammer method...get it hot, if it starts on fire who cares. Figure I can go do something else while it burns itself out lol.

Not like I can't try the various methods to see what is easiest. The drill around the perimeter seems pretty easy too, has anyone successfully used that with the leaf spring bushings? Not sure it matters whether there is a metal sleeve inside, if the bushing is mushroomed out around the outer edge, etc. I'll have to get the springs out to see what I'm dealing with I suppose, but from what I can see, it looks like on at least one of them, the bushing material has shifted, and one side of the spring eye is metal on metal (spring to hanger) and the other side the rubber is protruding.

This truck sees so few miles, pot holed dirt road at worst, anyone gone with new rubber for real mild usage, only to swap them out for poly later? I know the aftermarket rubber engine mounts suck, or the last ones I tried did, so I'm a bit leery about bushings. But as I know I only put maybe 1500 miles a year on this thing, durability really a huge concern. But I don't want them failing in two years either. Is Dayton a good brand?
 
Bob, cut the bolt and replace, don't f around with a POS rusty backass wards bolt.
 
I will probably have to cut the bolt if the nut comes off and the washer trick fails,I'm hoping to not have to replace the spring bushing ,I won't have a choice once the bolt is cut off and still in the bushing though..
My fear is the spring bolts likely haven't been touched since the truck was built in '82,and the decades of road salt will practically guarantee the bolt ain't gonna budge...perhaps a u-joint press I can borrow will be able to force the bolt out...(I have new bolts to replace it with--it was "fun" finding 9/16" grade 8 bolts the right length around here--99% of the stores only have 1/2" and 5/8"..)

When I replaced a rear shackle about 4 years ago,I had a day long battle getting the bolt out of the bushing--and when it finally came out--the dam sleeve came out with it!..had to coax it off without ruining it,then use a C-clamp to press the sleeve back in--the bushing was a bit bunged up,but I didn't have a new one and wasn't too worried it would be a big deal..(now you'd never know that shackle was replaced,it has rusted so much already--the paint lasted about one winter,now its flaking !)...
When you buy new shackles for later GMT trucks you get a new bushing with it--square bodies you must buy it seperately..but I got a box full of various new bushings from my friend,he only replaces the bushing if he had no choice as long as the old one looks good when he replaces a shackle,and I think the bigger ones in the assortment look to be the correct size for my truck..so hopefully if I end up having to destroy the original bushing one of those will fit and work..
 
I’m in the process of doing the original rear springs on my 71. Bolts came out easy. Used a drill to drill out the rubber which was slow. Once the drill bit broke it worked much better. Carefully used a sawzall to cut the outer sleeve. Used a chisel to get a lip around one side of the sleeve. Sprayed with a penetrating oil and let sit. Found a socket that would fit in the spring eye but big enough to catch the sleeve. Started beating it until it came out. I did break a socket.
 
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