Spring bolt removal..worst job ever on a truck!

[diesel4me]

Spent all day yesterday under my truck trying to remove the bolts to the leaf springs on my '82 K2500,so I could replace the shackles..

The original shackle had rotted away to a crusty nugget,and broke in two as soon as I torqued on the bolts!....could have quite a ride if I'd have been driving it when it busted....

I had a real battle getting the bolt out of the spring eye bushing..after I finally got the nut off (they dont give much room to get at it either!),the inner steel sleeve started coming out with the bolt..

I probably should have just bought new bushings and burned the old ones out,but I've had limited success getting a new bushing installed with the spring on the truck,using threaded rod and washers,once I ruined the new bushing,another time the eye of the spring snapped off with a bang,rendering it JUNK....

I wasn't up for that kind of a battle,so I decided to use the threaded rod to put the inner sleeve back in the bushing after getting it off the bolt--by soaping the inside of the bushing up good with dish soap--it still went in pretty hard,so I said screw it,the old bushing will live--and it it doesn't,I can always replace it later--the new bolts will come out easy because I used a ton of never-seize on them..

I was able to save the bolt that came out of the spring eye,I ended up re-using it on the bottom shackle mount,as the bolts I bought were only 4" long and wouldn't be long enough to fit thru the frame bracket enough to put a nut on!..I was able to use them on the spring eye OK though..(hope grade 5's are good enough,thats all I could get in a 9/16" bolt around here that long!)..after seeing how weak the shackle was,I'm not too worried about the bolts being too wimpy!..

I wasn't able to use my old trick of removing the bolts by using the threads on the bolt to pull it thru the bushing after cutting off the head of it,because GM,in their infinite wisdom,decided to put the bolts in with the heads facing out,and there's not enough space between the frame and spring to get it in the other way..

Anyone have an easier way to remove spring bolts??..

I had to use a 6 lb. sledge on the bottom bolt for about a half hour,berfore it finally came out about an inch!..then I ended up cutting the head off it with a grinder close to the hanger,and bashing it back thru the shackle bushing--then crowbar-ed the remains of it out of the hanger--took me 6 hours to remove two stupid bolts,about 3 minutes to install the new shackle!..got a nice slash in the palm of my left hand too,from the old shackle....I always seem to get wounded right at the beginning of a job,so using wrenches is difficult,and I hate grinding grime into a fresh wound..truck is never satisfied till it draws BLOOD!..

As I was beating on that bolt,about 5 pounds of rust flakes fell off the frame --most of it went in my eyes..and the rear steel brake line to the rear axle,started dripping brake fluid,it was THAT crusty,that just the shock from hammering near it made it flake apart and leak..more frigging headaches....

I still have to replace the top plate on the drivers side spring,possibly the u-bolts too--I dont think I'm going to put the other shackle on right away,I might as well let it rust some more,its not as thin as the other one was I just replaced..and when I do,I think maybe I'll buy a set of polyurethane spring bushings,at least those go in a hell of a lot easier than the rubber ones do..it'll be a week before my bruises,wounds and sore muscles heal enough and I can get up out of a chair again,before I'll be crawling under my vehicles again,if I'm lucky..getting old sucks,I'm ready to either sell all my vehicles or forget fixing them myself any more--beginning to feel like a useless cripple when it comes to doing any work on them now....

 

[max 02]

Well that sounds like a normal day working on a old truck! LOL Your not the only one.

 

[wasted wages]

Last time I worked on spring shackles and bushings, I was doing the same exact thing...beating the snot out of them with a sledge hammer and getting nowhere fast....

For grins,, I pulled out my air chisel...put the flat end punch in it,,,,pulled the trigger and the bushings jumped out of the spring ends....I couldn't believe it...

All the hammering force with a sledge must be absorbed by the bushing I guess,,,where the impact just drives them right out...

I cut the heads off the spring hanger bolts and drove them right out too...

would never attempt to do bushings again without an air chisel...

 

[79rustyk10]

I dont even try on the rear ones. just chut the ****ers out, however all the trucks Ive had the front bolts come right out for some reason. Maybe this is why blocks are so common in the rear???

 

[str8axle55]

Welcome to New England, rust sucks.

 

[tRustyK5]

My fronts were all seized, upper bolt for the front spring at the shackle end on the pass side was sheared leaving only the stub buried in the bushing. I grabbed my cut-off wheel and finished the job. Ordered new upper shackle mounts from Kert as well as enough greasable bolts for the whole thing.

rene

 

[diesel4me]

Welcome to New England, rust sucks.

Lived here in MA all my life--started off in Fitchburg and moved to the Taunton area in 1971,so I'm no stranger to rust!..

Every thing I have had to fix on my vehicles is always rust related--I never wear anything out or break anything,it just rots away on you,no matter how you try to delay it..(never stop it no matter what you use for undercoating,etc)..every car & truck I have owned that wasn't a rotbox already when I got it soon was,and all of them eventually succumbed to rust....I admit this truck was neglect more than anything on my part,I just got jaded after seeing all the others rot away despite the money and labor of applying paint or oil,etc..and figured its inevitable,so why bother?..

I did try my air chisel on the bolts,it was a joke..maybe because mine is a 10 buck flea market cheapie perhaps,but it seems to work well on other jobs..the rubber in the bushings absorbs the hammer blows,especially on the spring eye one,that isn't trapped betweeen the hangar bracket..

I've never used the poly bushings myself,but a friend tells me if it were him replacing a shackle he'd just buy the rear kit for the springs for about 40 bucks and just use the one eye bushing on the shackle end--he's tried installing the stock ones and said its a time wasiting suck pill ,though they are cheaper at about 10-12 bucks..

I got new shackles for 23.99 each at a spring shop ,that a former co-worker now works at..made in USA!..by a company called "Auotomann" in NJ..he said they sell a lot of them,and their shop has an air impact that has 1" drive and 1200 ft lbs of torque,and a special air chisel that costs 600+ bucks that rivals the ones used to bust up concrete ,and it rarely fails to get those stubborn bolts OUT!..if I wanted to pay 175 bucks they would have installed both,but I knew if they saw my springs they'ed want to chop them off with the torch!..they are very crusty,but I dont have 300 bucks for a new pair installed..

I'm going to keep my eyes out for a used pair off a 2-4" lift kit,maybe I can score some better front ones too that'll hold up the plow better than the 2 leaf stockers..whether I'll be able to swap them in myself I'm not so sure--I dont like doing suspention work at home,never did,and its definately not easier being OLD now!..it sucked when I did the last spring job on my Blazer 15+ years ago..

My Contour needs 2 struts in the rear too,I scored a recently replaced set at a boneyard,so I'm putting them on springs & all..Oh the joy,of installing those!..

Everything I'm driving is crumbling..mothers '93 Caravan is overdue for a timing belt (86K and 17 years on the original!)..only thing under the hood thats not original is 3 spark plugs (the front ones easiest to change!)--the altenator belt,battery,and air filter,and I put a distributor cap & rotor off a junkyard donor when the original started shooting sparks out to ground!..nothing else ever changed,not even the fuel filter!..(but its had regular oil changes,every 3000 to 8000 miles)--the brake lines are barnacles,ready to burst any day too...had to replace the left front steel line a few months ago..
I think one ball joint is getting close to due too..
My luck will be to fix everything else ,and then the timing belt will fail before I get that replaced,and bend all the valves..

My truck now needs :

Left Shackle replaced
U-bolt plate and maybe U bolts too,,cebter bolt too probably..
Master Cylinder
Rear wheel cylinders
Every steel brake line, except maybe the left front,which I replaced last fall-
Front rotors are rusted badly in the vented area..
Calipers and front brake hoses look like Jaque Cousteau found them at the bottom of the atlantic..
Oil pan needs replacing..have one,just haven't done it yet..(2+ years I've had it now)..engine needs to be raised to do it..
Engine had one glow plug snap in half and it chowed it!..now it has noisy clatter like lifter noises until it gets fully warmed up...
Cab supports will need attention soon on drivers side--never did finish the cab corners or door bottoms I put on it 6 years ago--still have drive screws and braze,and pop rivets holding them on--never did get to the bondo and paint stage..

with my luck the crankshaft will snap in half, after I fix everything on the list--

 

[DEMON44]

pull an oil pan on a mercedies MBE 4000 in a Freightliner columbia........ lift truck, secure frame. pull both front spring pins. swing steer axle down. remove pan.

pull a valve cover on a detroit series 60 in a volvo............. lift the CAB, remove valve cover.


they bring the suck............

 

[diesel4me]

Every time I go to the Ford Dealership down the road,and see all the new Ford trucks with the CABS hoisted off the frame,just to replace a head gasket (that failed before the warranty even expired!)--I dont feel so bad about my GM's..but it matters not what the name is on the grill,they all rust,and they all suck to work on..I dont know how anyione can do it day in,day out..no matter what they get paid,its not enough!..

I dont know if I'm just getting old,or am out of shape ,or am sick,but man,I feel like I have been run over by my truck today..wasted a beautiful day I could have been getting progress made sitting or lying down eating ibuprofin trying to kill the pains!...

 

[str8axle55]

Yeah it sucks tryin to work on older stuff around here, rust sucks attacks everything. I worked on Volvo`s for 12 yrs, they don`t really rust, the Toyota`s I work on now, are a different story...I just did the flexplate in my Burban, all the nuts and bolts came right out, thanks to the firehouse for keeping out of the weather for 21 yrs.

 

[diesel4me]

I also have an '85 K10 Suburban with a 6.2/700R4,that needs a tranny I bought around last thanksgiving and haven't done anything with yet too!..I'm begining to realize I might not be in good enough shape physically to replace it myself any more..might have bitten off more than I can chew..I also have a complete Fisher plow setup I want to install on it too..on top of all the other chores around the house and yard that need doing,one of me isn't enough to go around,even if I were in perfect health its a gargantuan task to try doing alone..worst part is my 82 year old mother isn't getting any better and I dont have time on my side--have to get all this done NOW ,before its too late,and I end up having to sell everything off "half done" at scrap price ---..

 

[smalltruckbigcid]

pull an oil pan on a mercedies MBE 4000 in a Freightliner columbia........ lift truck, secure frame. pull both front spring pins. swing steer axle down. remove pan.

pull a valve cover on a detroit series 60 in a volvo............. lift the CAB, remove valve cover.


they bring the suck............

Fun times eh?We do them a lot with about 1500 Columbia's with mostly MBE's and some series 60's.

And volvo...what do you say about a truck that badly engineered. I swear they had someone follow the engineers around and say if 2 bolts are great lets use 20...oh and make sure that we use a size nobody else uses