Stuck Shock Bolt!!!!

[fxeditor]

Hi All,
I have been trying to get the rear lower shock bolts off my car for the better part of the day and I am out of ideas! I've tried PB Blast (applied last night), impact wrench, big a$$ breaker bar, and even using a jack to press up on a flare-nut wrench! The only thing that all this has accomplished is starting to round off one of the corners of the bolt! I haven't tried heat yet because I don't have a propane torch but I think I might pop down to Home Depot and pick one up. The other thing I was going to try was to get a higher end impact gun. Can anyone else think of something to try?




Thanks for any advice you can give,

Michael

[rusnak]

I'm going to wait awhile until I recommend another pipe wrench approach. I don't want it to get old.

[holtjv]

Looks like it's already pretty rounded off.

I'd go the route of the dremel and be done with it in 10 minutes.

[HarryD]

I do not which impact wrench you used.

short story. To do my wheels, I bought one of the those 250 ft-lb Harbor Freight units. All it did was make noise and use air. It couldn't loosen a 94 ft-lb lug nut off the stud. I got their 625 ft-lb unit and a quick tap and off it comes.

Try a better Torque wrench.

[wdfifteen]

Originally Posted by fxeditor

Hi All,
I have been trying to get the rear lower shock bolts off my car for the better part of the day and I am out of ideas! I've tried PB Blast (applied last night), impact wrench, big a$$ breaker bar, and even using a jack to press up on a flare-nut wrench! The only thing that all this has accomplished is starting to round off one of the corners of the bolt! I haven't tried heat yet because I don't have a propane torch but I think I might pop down to Home Depot and pick one up. The other thing I was going to try was to get a higher end impact gun. Can anyone else think of something to try?




Thanks for any advice you can give,

Michael

I feel your pain. You really need to preserve the hex on the end of that bolt. Given the state of the bolt head at this point, I would make sure I had a good 6 point impact socket and go at it with an impact wrench. Even if you have to buy the tools, it's the best way to go. Once the head of that bolt it toast you are in a world of hurt and you'll be wishing you'd spent the $200 or whatever.
I hate to bring it up at this point, but PB Blaster and other penetrating oils work on the threads. You should have been shooting it at the joint between the shock and the casting that the bolt threads into. Not that it would have done you much good...

[vulcan300]

Hey there, I had a lot of fun last night doing the same thing you're doing. I higher torque impact gun is a must for this kind of thing, although it should move if you use a straight bar with a 4 or 5 foot pipe extension. To make things far easier, and to minimize damage to the thread of the bolt and the trailing arm, and reduce the amount of force you need to use to remove the bolt, use a jack under the brake disk to compress the shock and remove pressure on the bottom bolt (this assumes you haven't already removed the top bolt). Good luck.

J

[rbuswell]

Michael, keep using the PB Blaster (over and over and over again) perhaps over a couple day's time without trying to break it loose. File down the parts of the bolt head you've rounded and then get a really good six point socket (at least 1/2 and maybe even 3/4 inch drive). Put the longest breaker bar you can find or borrow on it and THEN put about a 36" to 48" steel pipe (about $3-4) from Home Depot over the shaft of the bar. BTW, use a socket and breaker bar that will be replaced if you break it/them (Craftsman, etc.) and wear really good protective clothing and eye protection. Also make sure you have it really secure on the jack stands. It will break loose! But it's a bugger especially if it has never been off.

The bolts aren't that expensive or hard to get so try not to worry too much about them.

[175K911]

Heat may be your friend. When I tried to get the shock bolts out of my current '86, they wouldn't budge. Tried everything else and finally put head to the control arm. About a minute into the heating process there was a puff of smoke and out the bolt came.
Apparently somewhere in the history of the car before I owned it someone put Loctite on the bolt and it needed heat to melt before the bolt would turn. But be careful, the last thing you want to do is damage the threads in the control arm.

[Dutchie]

I'm going to wait awhile until I recommend another pipe wrench approach. I don't want it to get old.

Bingo ! but did you use the correct size when trying to get it off yourself ? looks like you used the wrong size to begin with ...

[rbuswell]

Originally Posted by 175K911

Heat may be your friend. When I tried to get the shock bolts out of my current '86, they wouldn't budge. Tried everything else and finally put head to the control arm. About a minute into the heating process there was a puff of smoke and out the bolt came.
Apparently somewhere in the history of the car before I owned it someone put Loctite on the bolt and it needed heat to melt before the bolt would turn. But be careful, the last thing you want to do is damage the threads in the control arm.

I think I used a little heat too but I didn't get a puff of smoke or anything. I doubt the Loctite theory since I don't believe even really good Loctite will stand up to that much torque ... they just get rusted and set in and they don't want to let go. The best thing I can tell you is what I told you before and that is that they will come loose. It is soooooo scary when they won't budge but with enough force and PB Blaster they will eventually give up. You will hear a really funny sound like a door creaking and then they will slowly get looser and looser. The bolts are really hard so they can stand some abuse.

[HarryD]

Originally Posted by rbuswell

...
The bolts aren't that expensive or hard to get so try not to worry too much about them.

FWIW,Per the PET (http://www.porsche.com/all/media/pdf/originalparts/en/E_911_89_KATALOG.pdf), the bolts may be an unusual size M14x1.5 85 mm. Per Pelican they are NLA. I looked in the McMaster Carr Catalog (http://www.mcmaster.com). They offer a 80 and a 90 mm version.

In my 73, the lower shock is mounted by a nut and bolt. I think you car is the same.

[rusnak]

Originally Posted by Dutchie

Bingo ! but did you use the correct size when trying to get it off yourself ? looks like you used the wrong size to begin with ...

The Ingersoll Rand impact wrenches are terrific, to keep in mind for the next time you buy one.

For now, you can heat the thread area of the trailing arm for a few minutes with a mapp gas torch (two tanks, including the oxygen). This will expand the thread area, and loosen the bolt. Then try with a 6-point socket, as already noted.

Once the hex shaped edges are damaged or start to get rounded, you can either cut the bolt head off with a dye grinder (why people always use Dremels is sort of ??), or some other cutting tool, then take the bolt off with a pipe wrench, or you can go straight to a pipe wrench now.

Get a big azz pipe wrench, not a teeny tiny one. One that is about 3' long and made out of steel. You will use this thing for the rest of your life, so buy a good one. It will take that bolt right out, so be ready.

Always always wrench downward. Do not loosen this bolt upward unless you want to knock yourself silly right on the forehead. Forget about re-using that bolt. It's gone.

[rbuswell]

Originally Posted by HarryD

FWIW,Per the PET (http://www.porsche.com/all/media/pdf/originalparts/en/E_911_89_KATALOG.pdf), the bolts may be an unusual size M14x1.5 85 mm. Per Pelican they are NLA. I looked in the McMaster Carr Catalog (McMaster-Carr). They offer a 80 and a 90 mm version.

In my 73, the lower shock is mounted by a nut and bolt. I think you car is the same.

I hope it doesn't come to this but one or both of these places should have them:

AAA Metric Supply Inc.

MARYLAND METRICS 'HOME PAGE'

I believe Michael's car doesn't have a nut, only a bolt into the trailing arm.

[rusnak]

He should be able to find a good used one at a wrecking yard.

[rbuswell]

Originally Posted by rusnak

For now, you can heat the thread area of the trailing arm for a few minutes with a mapp gas torch (two tanks, including the oxygen). This will expand the thread area, and loosen the bolt. Then try with a 6-point socket, as already noted.

Once the hex shaped edges are damaged or start to get rounded, you can either cut the bolt head off with a dye grinder (why people always use Dremels is sort of ??), or some other cutting tool, then take the bolt off with a pipe wrench, or you can go straight to a pipe wrench now.

Get a big azz pipe wrench, not a teeny tiny one. One that is about 3' long and made out of steel. You will use this thing for the rest of your life, so buy a good one. It will take that bolt right out, so be ready.

Always always wrench downward. Do not loosen this bolt upward unless you want to knock yourself silly right on the forehead. Forget about re-using that bolt. It's gone.

Originally Posted by rusnak

He should be able to find a good used one at a wrecking yard.

You won't have to torque it back on that much (60 lbs. if memory serves) so if you can save the bolt you should. It'll be fine going back on if you can get a decent purchase on the hex head and you've cleaned the threads in the trailing arm. If you use a monkey wrench the bolts a goner.

+1 on pushing the wrench down. Not only can you whack your forehead pretty good but you can actually lift the car off the jack stands (especially since you have the engine out).

+1 on the junkyard bolt except you'll have to get it off the junker too. Best bet is to not make the bolt worse and just get it off with a little patience. That's my $.02 anyway.

[rusnak]

I guess one could pad the jaws of the pipe wrench, but that would make it more prone to slipping.

The large, well made pipe wrench will hold tension much better than the small Harbor Freight ones. This will make the jaws much kinder to the metal, and less likely to bite down. It's the floppy, clanky small pipe wrenches that do harm to the subject metal, not the larger or better made ones.

[fxeditor]

Hooray they're out! Getting the high-end impact gun did the trick. Thanks to everyone for your help.

Michael

[fxeditor]

Hooray they're out! Getting the high-end impact gun did the trick. Thanks to everyone for your help.

Michael

[HarryD]

Originally Posted by fxeditor

Hooray they're out! Getting the high-end impact gun did the trick. Thanks to everyone for your help.

Michael

Great!!!

Will you be able to reuse the bolt?

[gsxrken]

Glad to hear you got it out. Sometimes temporarily maxing out the limits are your compressor's pressure switch can do the trick too. Some cut out around 90PSI but the pressure relief valve can withstand up to 125 or so. They're all different.