How do I remove the cross shaft bushings?
 

I'm in the middle of a clutch replacement on my '80 SC and one of the while-your-in-there things that have me scratching my head is how to best remove the old cross shaft bushings.

I've done the middle one, but that took me about 3-4 hours and was not fun at all. Luckily, I didn't do any damage to the gearbox itself while trying but there must be an easier way to do this. The one I'm most concerned about it the top one as you cannot tap on it from “behind” but have to “drag” it out.

Can anyone please explain how to do this properly?

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1429080409.jpg

Since these bushings are now holding me back time wise, how important are they to replace? Do they make a big impact on the feel of the clutch? I'm thinking I might just clean them up and put some fresh grease on... :confused:

I didn't take the bushing out that it looks like you did. I just greased up the fork shaft/long arm and replaced the 3 rubber seals. Working very well now.

Evaluate the bushings you have by seeing how tight they fit with the shaft.

Thank you for your replies. I will have a closer look at the old bushings to see how much play there is with the shaft.

What I find strange is that replacing the bushings are mentioned as a good while-you-are-in-there item but there is almost no information on how to actually do it.

This may seem weird but if you can source a piece of rod that just fits the inside diameter of the bushing then you can pack the hole where the bushing is with bearing grease and then insert the rod into the bushing and then whack it with a hammer and it will come out via hydraulic pressure. I hope this makes sense!

You may need to do it a couple times but trust me, it WILL come out!

EDIT: You could/may be able to use the rod that you removed for this only use a soft head hammer.

Thats a great hack, mentally noted for future bearing removals.

It does sound a bit weird, but definitely worth a shot. Just to clarify, am I supposed to hammer the rod/shaft into the hole?

Thanks for the tip! SmileWavy

That is correct! I worked on cars for many years and that is how it is done! Personally I would just use the shaft that belongs in the hole since it is the correct size. Please choose a tool that is of softer material than the shaft so you don't damage it. If you have a tube of grease, fill the hole from the bottom first so you don't trap any air. Trust me, this works!

I gave this a shot today, unfortunately the bushing wouldn't come out. As I couldn't turn the gearbox upside down I had to pack the grease upwards and therefore I think I never got it fully air-free which I guess is why it didn't work.

It's a good trick nonetheless, I'll be sure to remember it when I need to get some other bushing out in the future.

yeah, you gotta give a good whack! Can't go upside down??? It's outa the car isn't it?

Another way might be to carefully use a dremel (if you can get it in there) and grind a line away so the bushing collapses. Even if you happen to score the bore a tad, it shouldn't hurt anything.

Yes, it's out of the car. However, if I turn the gearbox upside down it will leak oil from the thing on the top (whatever that is for) and I'd rather not mess with that right now as I want the car back on the road asap. Also, the top bushing does feel like it is in pretty good shape so I don't think it will matter much if I don't change it.

I did manage to get the lower bushing out by tapping the upper edge down into the hole and then tapping on that area to drive it out. It was the one that was in the worst shape by far so I'm glad I could get it out.

Derek, I very appreciate your input, thank you for taking time to help out! I had a look at your build thread, your car looks great!

No problem Mr.! And thanks!