Help - Rear Camber Strut Rods

[Bob Chadwick]

I bought the VBP rear camber strut rods today and was able to get the right one in.

I have everything off the car on the left except the stud that goes through the bottom of the trailing arm and holds the shock. I WD-40ed to deat, beat the heck out of it and tried to pry it out all to no avail.

Anybody have a secret for getting 25 year old bolts out?

Bob

 

[Bullitt]

I'm assuming that you're talking about the L-shaped piece that runs through the strut rod. What I did for Russ was take the L-piece out of the shock mount. Then take a pickle fork and place it on the exposed smooth part avoiding the threads. Then just beat the hell out of it with a large hammer, preferably a small sledge. You'll be beating it out towards the front of the car. It's easier with someone helping you to balance the pickle fork just right. This is all about brute force here, so be patient with it. The passenger side was the toughest for us, but it finally broke loose.

--Bullitt

 

[Bob Chadwick]

Bullitt,

I am talking about the l shaped piece that has the castle nut on the end that has to be driven through the t-arm, the outside end rear camber strut rod between two pieces of the t-arm and the shock mount on the other end.

I'm a little confused about what you are saying but I think you took the shock off the L end and then drove the bolt from back to front.

I got some better penetrating oil. We'll see what that does.

I guess I need to get a bigger hammer. I was able to get the passenger side out with a small ball peen. When you were hammering, did you have the spring out at this point? Is it ok to jack the spring up, remove the bolt and then release the spring down controlled but still hanging from the car?

Thanks Bullitt.

Bob

 

[72Slydog]

Apply plenty of penetrating oil on the shock mount several times over several days before you intend to remove it. Use a brass hammer to beat it out. If that doesn't work use a small gear puller (Pitman arm tool or tie rod puller to push it out. There are serrations around the diameter of the shaft closest to the shock. These dig in to the bore and tend to rust. When reinstalling the mount, apply anti-seize lubricate around the area of the shaft that fits the bore. This will prevent part from seizing again.

Just finished doing the same thing on my 72. Good Luck.

 

[Bob Chadwick]

I got it out but destroyed the castle nut in the process. Are these things graded or can I just pretty much go into Home Depot or Lowes and get a new one?

Bob

 

[Bullitt]

I have a digital camera, but my computer sucks. So it's a no-go for pics right now. For future reference though, I'll answer your questions. Yes, it is perfectly fine to remove the spring from the outer end bolts and just let it be supported by the four bolts to the underside of the differential. Once you remove the shock, you'll expose a smooth metal piece on the L-shaped mount. This is where you put the pickle fork at. Then hammer on the fork, causing the L-shaped mount out towards the front of the vehicle. The hammer I use on the fork is about 15-20lb. sledge.

A lot of Corvette vendors have told me that you should be able to find a replacement castelated nut at any hardware store. They just said to buy something of quality, which means made in the U.S.A. I had a problem finding the correct size without the nylon insert. I don't know if that makes much difference really.

--Bullitt

 

[Bob Chadwick]

Thanks Bullitt. I stopped at Lowes this morning and didn't have much luck. It appears to be a 5/8 inch bolt with fine threads. I looked in the grade 8 bins and they didn't have any with fine threads. The grade 5 nuts had fine threads, though I didn't really look to see if they had this size. I'm going to go to an Ace Hardware on the way back from work. They have consistently had a better selection of nuts and bolts than the big box stores.

With any luck, I'll finish it today and be ready to get a complete alignment when I get back from vacation.

Bob

By the way, is this the part of the story where Russ whacked you on the hand with the sledge?:bang :bash

 

[77-4speed]

Yes it is!

Sorry again about that Bullitt

 

[Bob Chadwick]

Got it the rest of the way out. Got a new 5/8 inch castle nut but it is about 1/8 inch thicker than the stock and I can't get the cotter pin in. There is a hardware store here that stocks all of this kind of stuff and I'll stop there tomorrow. One of the alignment shops also told me to check at Chevy as this is probably a nut they have in a bin in their parts department.

Bob

 

[sac001]

Bob, if you're talking about the castellated nut that goes on the back (rear of the car) of the shock mount, I think I have the old ones from when I did mine this past winter, (not damaged, just replaced them because I replaced the shock mounts) . I'll check tonight, and if you like, I'll mail them to you. Just let me know.

Steve

 

[Bob Chadwick]

Thanks Steve. Sent you an IM with my address.

Bob

 

[Bullitt]

My hand feels a lot better. Russ caught me on the outer part of my hand below my pinkie finger. The hammer pinched my skin against the pickle fork handle and sliced it open. I'm always amazed of the stark contrast between filthy, greasy hands and fresh, warm blood.

--Bullitt