waynem Posted November 8, 2002 Share Posted November 8, 2002 Trying to separate some outer hubs from lobro joints (from 4x4 Sierra). My God those b*******s are stuck fast!!! The bolts are Torx headed (and quite small considering the amount of oomph I'm likely to require.) This is no doubt made worse by Loctite and 10 years of rust. They have been wire brushed and WD40'd which does seem to be penetrating, but my small ratchet (which has the Torx bits) will not shift them. Is it just a case of a loooong extender bar and some 1/2" drive sockets and a meaty vice ?? (i.e. More money for new sockets... ) Any top tips for freeing these b*******s before I get physical and break either them or myself ? Heat cycling ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
damianc Posted November 8, 2002 Share Posted November 8, 2002 Yup, heat, plus gas (seems to work better than wd40). Impact driver? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markg Posted November 8, 2002 Share Posted November 8, 2002 grind the bolt heads off part the joint then get the studs out with molegrips Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NevilleBull Posted November 8, 2002 Share Posted November 8, 2002 Well having the same problem. Went out and spent £150 on a new socket set and special high strength torx bits. Well it didn't work, instead it sheared the actual bolts! Nighmare, now not even a torque driver does anything, just spins in the slot. Angle grinder could be messy though, (trying to get the diff out of the car). I would end up having to buy two new lobro joints as the bolts are flush against the lobro joint. Also I don't have an angle grinder. Are they expensive? Oh dear, what next??? Anything else other than angle grinder? I'm so fuc&in annoyed with it I'm considering chopping the axles off just to get the #### thing out. After all this I have got no real proof that it's the diff that's gone. I have a very loud metallic resonance noise when slighly pressing your foot on the accelerator, the noise seems to be coming from inside the diff, but can't be sure. As soon as you floor it the noise goes. Any ideas? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pmaltby Posted November 8, 2002 Share Posted November 8, 2002 Hey waynem Have you got a decent garrage round near you that uses compressed gas for their tools? you prberbly will have. Before attacking with cutting tools try to get some heavy duty impact sockets and What i know it as is a breaker bar (air powered rivit gun with a T-Bar on the hammer with the socket on the end of the required bolt head sized bit) this process is noisy but it vibrates the bolt and thread breaking the seal between the bolt thread and the tapped hole. once this is loose then a 1/4" ratchet will spin the bolts out easily. HTH Pete Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
damianc Posted November 8, 2002 Share Posted November 8, 2002 Angle grinders are the tool of choice for most jobs, second only to a coaxing hammer (lump hammer over 2.5kg) and cost about £30 upwards. If you remove the diff and have 10mm or so of bolt showing then use a stud remover after a good soaking in plus gas followed by heat then plus gas etc. Unlike mole grips it'll tighten as you apply more torque Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
waynem Posted November 10, 2002 Author Share Posted November 10, 2002 Cheers Guys, I did something similar to Neville. Go some nice new sockets with torx bits(1/2") drive on a two foot extender bar. Started on the first nut and sheared the socket bit in two within 20 seconds of getting it out of the box.... Maybe angle grinding a slice of could do the trick... The drive shaft is out of the car, but I'm just trying to separate the outer shaft from the inner... More heat, chemicals and a little less brute force methinks.. Those nut heads don't take too much punishment! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kennedyj Posted November 11, 2002 Share Posted November 11, 2002 I had exactly this problem on the lobros that came with the driveshafts that the transmission reconditioners threw in for free when I bought my Sierra dif. I broke two SnapOn Torx bits trying to shift several of the b*&&$£s and eventually took them back to the transimission reconditioners for them to try. They immediately broke their SnapOn Torx driver and resorted to much heat and a cold chisel which got them off eventually. BTW - I called SnapOn and told them that I had managed to break two of their Torx driver bits and a couple of days later a nice man in a big van delivered two replacements to my front door - gratis -JohnK Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
waynem Posted November 11, 2002 Author Share Posted November 11, 2002 I have perfected the technique...... (using damianc's suggestions!!!! Cheers ! ) Plus-Gas (as suggested) seems miles better than WD40.... An impact driver(the type you whack with a hammer) and plenty of heating. Just iterate around this loop and never be tempted to really force the nuts. With the right tools and patience I had them all whipped out in 10 minutes.... I had thought the b*******s would take me all afternoon!!!! Don't know who's my favorite, Plus Gas or the impact driver. One things for sure, they make a wicked combination.... Wayne M Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
damianc Posted November 11, 2002 Share Posted November 11, 2002 I must admit, the coaxing hammer's still my favourite. That atavistic pounding against metal Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.