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shackle flip rock...

jms

jms

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Seven rivets out, five to go, and my ears are ringing from the drill, air chisel, air punch, and compressor - Stephen, can't you invent something that'll make these things want to come off? Beam them out? Then again, I could just wear earplugs.... /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

Changed the post title from blues to a more applicable music term, considering the ruckus /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif
 
Re: shackle flip blues...

Torch and air hammer. It took me maby 5 minutes to get them all out. Drill? man your doing it the slow way. No wonder you got the blues...
 
Re: shackle flip blues...

[ QUOTE ]
Seven rivets out, five to go, and my ears are ringing from the drill, air chisel, air punch, and compressor - Stephen, can't you invent something that'll make these things want to come off? Beam them out? Then again, I could just wear earplugs.... /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

[/ QUOTE ]

You got to wear ear plugs or mickey mouse ears when using tools like that. Or you'll be saying what, what, WHAT in a few years. /forums/images/graemlins/thumb.gif
 
Re: shackle flip blues...

Don't mean to rub it in, but GM must have run out of rivets the day they put my frame together! Mine came with BOLTS from the factory, made it a cinch! No one can ever believe it, but that's how it was (truck was TOTALLY stock when I bought it, and the bolts were never touched before me)...guess I got real lucky.
 
Re: shackle flip blues...

All I used was the acetalene torch and I had all 12 rivets out in 3 minutes or less /forums/images/graemlins/deal.gif. Just torched them and smacked the hanger with a BFH and in two whacks it fell off /forums/images/graemlins/thumb.gif.
 
Re: shackle flip blues...

It's not a fast process....but since I've now done it TWO times.....I'll share my secret.

- Use an angle grinder or cutoff wheel to create a flat spot on the rivet.

- Centerpunch the rivet so a drillbit won't "walk off" it.

- Use around a 1/4" drill bit to drill almost entirely through the rivet.

- Using a drift (or a large phillips screwdriver!) hammer out the remains of the rivet.


Once you remove the majority of the "guts" of the rivet, there's no real strength to hold it there and it sort of collapses away from the hole. I started out grinding EACH rivet all the way flush and still couldn't get them through the frame holes.....that's when I came across this idea.

Anyway, it's my technique but you want to try it, you may save yourself some time! /forums/images/graemlins/thumb.gif
 
Re: shackle flip blues...

Thanks everyone for their suggestions; got them all out now /forums/images/graemlins/thumb.gif Torch won't work for me - no open flame in the garage allowed. Greg, I ended up pretty much with what you suggested: center punch // drill with small bit // drill with 1/2 inch bit almost to frame // air chisel rivet head off // air punch the center thru frame. I gotta get the exhaust out of the way; I think the next fun thing is to get the old bushings out. I'm going to use a drill on the spring bushing, but have a question about the shackle: I wonder if I submerge the shackles in Carb cleaner, shouldn't that pretty much soften up or dissolve the old bushings? Anyone tried that?
 
I'm kinda in the same boat. I'm moving the gastank up so I've been grinding out the rivits. Dont have a torch but I think I'll just rent one. Should be worth it. /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif
 
drilling out rivets sucks... i did it with my shackle flip and it took forever. the best way to do it on the cheap (no torch setups or any of that jazz) is to get a cheap 4.5" angle grinder and just grind the heads completely off. then you use big punch or socket extension or something, put it on the shaft of the rivet and hit it with a BFG. I took some bumpstop brackets off my rig once with the grind method and it was sooooooo much faster and easier than drilling. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif that one job paid for the grinder by itself in that I avoided hours of agravation. /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

j
 
We have a snap-on air chisel that is THE answer to this problem. We laugh at rivets now, they're almost easier to remove than bolts.

BUT, I remember lots of torch/grinder work before this and it did suck. All above suggestions are good to consider.

If it makes you feel any better, my dad used a hammer and chisel to remove a set of brackets at a wrecking yard one time. Maybe we're all a bunch of meows.....
 
COME AWN PEOPLE!!! I spent 5-8 minutes a side grinding mine out. BIG angle grinder. I wasnt' worried about the bracket I was taking off, so I jut lit into it.
 
[ QUOTE ]
... and hit it with a BFG.

[/ QUOTE ]

I suppose you meant BFH /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

[ QUOTE ]
... my dad used a hammer and chisel to remove a set of brackets at a wrecking yard one time. Maybe we're all a bunch of meows.....

[/ QUOTE ]

You're probably right. Meow.
/forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif
 
Re: shackle flip blues...

Bushings for me are just a bunch more drilling......

I used a 1/8" IIRC and drilled all the way through the rubber (nice smell too!) and just kept drilling holes until the bushing started to disintegrate. It's amazing how "frozen" those bushings get in the sleeve!

Anyway....don't worry too much about putting little "nicks" in the shackle with the drillbit. All the shackles I've dealt with have a metal "sleeve" that you'll still have to cut out, so any damage you do will happen to that sacrificial part anyway.......

Keep on going! It's worth it......but just takes a while. I think I spent TWO solid days on my shackle-flip to get it done, and I didn't even have to drop the gas tank!!!!
 
Re: shackle flip blues...

I did my '70 in one long day. I hade to drop my 37 gallon tank. Greg check out the red hose from the filler tube to the tank. I know where to get that type of hose in San Jose, it's alot beefier than the stock stuff. You do have to use longer hose clamps with it as its thicker hose than stock too. /forums/images/graemlins/thumb.gif
 
Re: shackle flip blues...

Thanks for the encouragement! I used a drill and small bits on the old bushings when I put the greasable bushings in the front. At least this time the sleeve shouldn't give me any problems, that air chisel ought to make short work of it. Turns out I'll have some more time to spend in the garage tonite anyway, since the Denver airport is stuffed and my lovely wife is stuck in California /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif.
Almost got the exhaust out of the way (it's a two piece tailpipe, don't want to cut it, but it's stubborn). Frame looks pretty clean where the brackets were, got some black paint just in case. Gas tank is probably next.
 
Re: shackle flip blues...

arrrhggg, dear gawd the memories! drilling out 16 year old rubber bushings. bad times! not that it was hard or anything... but when u had removed 75% of the rubber and pounding on it with a hammer still didnt budge it... good grief it got exhasperating (sp).

j
 
Got everything done over the weekend /forums/images/graemlins/thumb.gif. Took me probably a total of two days work for the rear; finally, all those phone books came in handy when I lowered the gas tank. The front was a cinch in about half a day. I like the new stance of the truck, but now the 33s look kinda lonely in the wheelwells.... /forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif
The rear is now a bit lower (2.5 inch flip/3 inch TC's in front); but I figure I'll wait on zero rates after the rear 60 goes in. Next up are pitman arm and brake lines, not sure yet what I'm going to do about the shocks.
 
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