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Frozen rear shackle bolt

V

vortex

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Chehalis, Wa
As the title says it is froxen and PB blaster has no effects i have heard that heat will help but where do i need to apply it and what else can i do.

-PJ-
 
What's 'froxen' mean? jk
Heat as much of the bolt/nut that you can without starting a fire.
Ever soldered copper pipe? Feed some candle wax the same way you would solder.
Try and tighten it a LITTLE, then back it off. Work it back and forth like that.
Hit the bolt head with a hammer repeatedly. Don't hit it like you're trying to drive it deeper. Just some good, solid tapping to try and break up the rust.
 
The goal is to expand the nut, but obiously it's in pretty close proximity to the bolt. Heat the nut as much as you can. Are you using big enough wrench (like at least a 1/2" drive breaker bar with a 6 point socket), that you are worried about breaking it off? No point in struggling with too small a wrench. The good news is that it is a nut and bolt, not a stud, so if you break it, you can easily get a new one. Worst case, you should be able to saw it off with a sawsall. With a torch, your PB blaster and rubber bushing will no doubt start to burn, so you'll need a rag and water handy.
 
sawzall with good metal cutting blades, or cutoff wheel or angle grinder!
then buy new bolts/washers/nylock nuts and use anti seize on the threads and body of the bolt that is inside the sleeve.
bolt is 14mmx2.0x120mm. they were $5.29 a piece at my local hardware store, the dealer wanted ~$13 each.:nono:
 
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Also i forgot to mention that this is the upper bolt....the one with the welded nut...

The local supply shop told me to use ZEP 45 but its like 25 bucks a can....i was also told i would need to take the rear bumper off to get to the welded nut.

-PJ-
 
Breaker bar, long pipe, and a buddy?
 
do you NEED to remove the upper bolt? If your removing the shackle and replacing, it might be best to go balls deep and snap the bolt and drill it out. Not easy to get to by any means, but if it's that important to get it out, then you're going to have to remove the bumper and possibly the gas tank as well. if the head is stripped grab the sawzall and go to town... i did, and enjoyed evey second....
 
1/2 breaker bar or bigger
6 point socket
hit it with pb plaster, then torch(i use propane for a few mins, pb blaster just burns off) then smack it with a hammer.
do this ten or twenty times, it may take a while to do, its ok, its what i do for all seized bolts
now use a breaker bar with a 6 point socket, not a 12 point
should come off very easy, get heat and pb balster in there, ill also throw some grease in there while i heat so it gets in there real good
 
wim hoppenbrouwers said:
Hallo. You can cut a access hole in the trunkfloor. :laugh2:
Click to expand...


Funny enough, I drilled holes in my rear quarters so I could get an impact on my upper shackle bolts.

Worked great, took heat, pb, and lots of back and forth and it still bent the tar out of the shackle box getting it out...But both came out in an afternoon, and I drove home that night on my new tall shackles... Drilled to the same size as the floor drains so I could use drain plugs to plug the holes. I figured its a common frozen fastener area so why not make it accessible?

Vortex, is it frozen, or seized to the metal sleeve inside the bushing? Mine were rotating semi freely but not threading out due to corrosion between the sleeve and bolt. I broke it free with the 3/4" drive set then started working back and forth 2-3 threads at a time with impact, heat, and PB blaster. Don't be afraid to cut though, your time is likely more expensive than a couple of new grade 8 bolts...
 
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IIRC, when i installed jks shackles, i removed the rear bumper to get access to the welded nut for the shackle bolt. no cutting of the floor.
 
You need to get it to the nut to do any good. The engaged threads between the nut and bolt are what needs to let loose. From what it sounds like, unless you cut holes or remove the bumper, you're not getting the PB Blaster or heat where it needs to go.
 
Well thanks for all the input guys.
Today i put my jeep on the hoist and fired up the cutting torch heated the bolt head and then used a breaker bar and it broke free.

thanks'

-PJ-
 
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