Help: removing steering components

I broke down and purchased Track Bar and Drag Link kits which includes all the ends and sleeves I need for my 89 XJ.

I found a good tip which suggests that if replacing everything, try to take the bits that are on there off in once piece they they can be used as a guide to set the distances on the new bits (at least to 'ballpark'). Seems pretty smart to me! Just wondering: how difficult is it to remove the 'nutted' parts of the tie rod ends from their respective 'sockets'. Can I just beat on them with a BFH (assuming I have access) or will I likely need some sort of a press or pickle fork?

Thanks for any advice.

Hose down the nuts & TREs for a couple of days with a rust penetrant (I've been using a 50/50 mix of acetone and ATF.) A pickle fork, or a TRE remover will help. Once you get some pressure on the joint. smack the side of the joint with a light sledge hammer to break the taper loose.

get the tie road and draglink out of the way first. I don't like the pickle fork, it usually trashes the rubber boot. I use a TRE puller, similar but smaller than a pitman arm puller. Use this in 3 places; 1-to separate the draglink from the pitman arm, 2-draglink to tie rod, and 3-to press out the steering stabilizer from the drag link.

Then to get the ends out of the steering knuckles, loosen the nuts most of the way. Use a 5lb minisledge and give a few good hits on the front of each steering arm. This will momentarily oblong the taper hole that the TRE is pressed in, and it will drop right out. Unbelievable, but it works everytime.

The trackbar is a little tougher, do the frame end first. I'll resort to the pickle fork here. The axle end of the track bar should be pretty easy after the frame end is down. I've found that if I do the axle end first, I strip the bolt out, and its still just as hard to do the frame end.

pickle forks take 2 seconds to use, a puller takes 2 minutes..... and he is replacing his old stuff with new....

whatever you do, do not hit the top of the TRE threads, even with the nut on backwards ive damaged the threads. it also helps on tre's to bang the side of the tre with a large HAMMER, not a mallet, not a soft blow hammer, nor dead blow... HAMMER. you need that metal on metal BANG to shock the tapered TRE loose.... ive watched people go to town on tre's, only to walk up and twang the sides of the tre a handfull of times to watch it fall off.

trackbar depends... do you need to take the bracket off? replacing the bracket or drilling the bracket will require removal... might as well pull the drivers side front tire for easier working room if your not at 6" of lift.

Sorry, I've got my terms mixed up...I picked up replacement drag link and ti rod kits. I wasn't planning on replacing the track bar - I don't think there's anything wrong with it. I put a pry bar on it in several locations and gave it a goo heave and i'm not detecting any movement - is that a legitimate test?

XJBucko said:

Sorry, I've got my terms mixed up...I picked up replacement drag link and ti rod kits. I wasn't planning on replacing the track bar - I don't think there's anything wrong with it. I put a pry bar on it in several locations and gave it a goo heave and i'm not detecting any movement - is that a legitimate test?

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a better test would be to have someone saw the steering wheel back/forth while you watch the track bar ends. If its loose, the body will shift sideways before the tires start to turn, and you shoudl see the slop in the axle end, the TB tie rod, or the TB bracket can flex if cracked if the fasteners have loosened. When driving on the road, the rig will wander with a loose TB.

RenegadeT said:

a better test would be to have someone saw the steering wheel back/forth while you watch the track bar ends. If its loose, the body will shift sideways before the tires start to turn, and you shoudl see the slop in the axle end, the TB tie rod, or the TB bracket can flex if cracked if the fasteners have loosened. When driving on the road, the rig will wander with a loose TB.

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Hi Rt:

Thanks for the advice. I've received my replacement kits so I'll do a more thorough check of the Track Bar when I'm replacing the other stuff.

Can anyone tell me what size TRE I need for the original Cherokee TREs, also for reference, the pickle fork size? Thanks.

Not sure what you are trying to accomplish here since you said you had the replacements but will offer the following.

TREs are not one size fits all. The Rockauto catalog provides a good reference. Moog is simple -- three TREs and the drag link. Raybestos has the actual dimensions if you need these for something. (Note that Raybestos has "professional grade" and "service grade" when you are looking for the set.)

Don't know about the pickle fork.

Get back if this doesn't answer your question.

Hi pelican:

Thanks for your note.

I forgot to include "puller" in that post. Yes, I have all the replacement parts. But the tools for removing them, either the TRE pullers or pickle forks, come in different sizes to fit different sized TREs. Since I don't know what size I have now, and not sure what the measurements refer to, I don't know which 'sized' tools to buy. I was hoping that someone would know the standard sized tools required for the Cherokee.

XJBucko said:

Yes, I have all the replacement parts. But the tools for removing them, either the TRE pullers or pickle forks, come in different sizes to fit different sized TREs. Since I don't know what size I have now, and not sure what the measurements refer to, I don't know which 'sized' tools to buy. I was hoping that someone would know the standard sized tools required for the Cherokee.

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If you are going to go to an auto store to purchase them, get the TRE out of the box and go over to the tool wall and test fit the pickle fork. That would be the easiest.

I just bought mine eyeballing it, not knowing they came in different sizes, but if it helps:

The gap between the tines on mine is 7/8. The tines are 1/2 each. Making the entire pickle 1 7/8.

Those measurements are in inches. You'll have to convert them to metric yourself! :wave:

I never use pickle forks. No need. Just whack the knuckle or pitman arm where the TRE stud goes through it a couple times with a BFH and it should drop right out... without tearing up the grease boot at all (not that this matters when you are replacing the TRE anyways.)

I do as Kastein suggests, even if I'm throwing the part away, because it is quick and effective.

As far as preserving the distances is concerned, I would not bother too much with this. After you've replaced the whole lot of steering parts you'll almost certainly want to do an alignment anyway. If you have a flat paved surface or a garage floor on which to do it you can do this fairly easily with a long stick, a magic marker, a big piece of chalk and a block of wood with a nail in it.

Jack up one wheel, rotate the wheel and mark the tread of the tire with the big piece of chalk, all the way around.

Now drive a nail into a block of wood and snip the head off so it's got a point in it. With block on floor, rotate the tire again so that the nail makes a nice sharp mark line in the chalk, also all the way around. Old-time alignment shops had a spring-loaded tool for this, but the block works fine if you're careful.

Repeat on other wheel. Lower both wheels, and get a stick long enough to span the distance between the two lines. If possible, put little legs on the stick so the distance from the floor is always the same (the actual distance is arbitrary). If you're really finicky, and you have an old broken tape measure, you can nail it to the stick. Otherwise, have the magic marker handy.

Now all you need to do is mark the stick with the distance between lines at the front, and again with the distance between lines at the back. Since the XJ specs call for zero toe-in, you adjust the toe until the two distances are the same.

Once that's done, you take it out for a little ride, and note how far off center the steering wheel is. Make sure the clamp bolts on the drag link are free, and the threads not too rusty. You can take along the tools, and if possible, find a big parking lot where you can drive a bit, stop, adjust, etc. Adjust the drag link until the wheel is centered.

Done.

Hi MC:

Thanks for your note. Your suggestion is awesome and that's exactly what I"ll do!

Just one question: Since the jeep has a solid front axle and the camber is the same with the wheels on or off the ground, woudn't it be better to make toe-in measurements and adjustments with the wheels off the ground otherwise, adjusting the toe-in with the rubber on the ground will lead to some flexing of the rubber and inaccurate measurements after an adjustment is made (since the friction between the tire and the floor will have the tires resisting the adjustment).

XJBucko said:

Hi MC:

Thanks for your note. Your suggestion is awesome and that's exactly what I"ll do!

Just one question: Since the jeep has a solid front axle and the camber is the same with the wheels on or off the ground, woudn't it be better to make toe-in measurements and adjustments with the wheels off the ground otherwise, adjusting the toe-in with the rubber on the ground will lead to some flexing of the rubber and inaccurate measurements after an adjustment is made (since the friction between the tire and the floor will have the tires resisting the adjustment).

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I don't think it should matter much either way as long as there's no significant play in the steering components. The tires don't seem to fight the adjustment as much as you fear, and it's never seemed to cause me a problem, but I do wiggle the steering around after the adjustment, and double check it just in case.

The older and looser the vehicle, the more I'd worry, but in that case I'd also err a wee bit in the direction of toe-in. In 2wd, friction will try to toe the wheels out, and in 4WD it will tend to drive them toward toe-in, so if you're adjusting a slack old beater for highway use, a little toe-in doesn't hurt.

If you adjust with the wheels off the ground, make sure the suspension is at ride height (i.e. jackstands under the axles) and the vehicle is level, else your measurements will be off since the caster changes slightly as the suspension cycles (unless the upper and lower control arms are exactly the same length, that is.)

ouch!...you guys are rapping the pitman arm to get the draglink off? That can't be good on the steering box, dunno. I'll beat the snot out of a knuckle to drop the TRE (it just takes a couple solid hits), but use the TRE puller on the pitman arm joint. You can pick one up at autozone loan-a-tool for free, bring it back in 30 days, get your deposit back. The TRE puller looks like a mini pitman arm puller, I think they only have one size.

I've never actually had to hit the pitman arm to get one out. Mine are always so soaked with oil and trans fluid and PS fluid from leaky hoses and seals that they pop right off by the time I get the nut unscrewed.

On the one from the tie rod to the drag link I generally put my pitman arm puller on and crank it down most of the way to preload it, then rap it a couple times with the BFH. Pops right out. That one can be a real bear to get a solid hit on with just a BFH so every little bit helps.