Just trying to find out If there is some trick to getting this bolt out. I've wailed on it with a hammer, hit it with an impact wrench, and cussed at it. None of which proved productive. Any help is appreciated.
Thanks!
Just trying to find out If there is some trick to getting this bolt out. I've wailed on it with a hammer, hit it with an impact wrench, and cussed at it. None of which proved productive. Any help is appreciated.
Thanks!
I've got it out with a sawzall....
It might come to that, it's really stuck in there. This is for my locost so I'm not overly concerned with the integrity of the bolt or rear a-arms.
Fire wrench? That or a sawzall. they get corroded in there, and I have yet to find an easy, non-destructive removal method.
Yeah, they get rusty inside the sleeves. If the bolt will actually turn inside the sleeve, hit the gaps with penetrant while turning it with he impact gun. Sometimes the sleeves just spin inside the bushing material. You may need to press it out with a ball joint tool or a big c-clamp and an over sized socket. If not, melt the bushing with the torch.
It's a PITA when they get stuck.
Silly question, where exactly should I cut from?
I only have a hack saw ... Tool budget is sadly overtaxed presently, I hope that works ...
The only place to cut is between the inside of the arm and the upright. I'm not sure if you will even have room for the thickness of the blade. It won't be an easy cut. And you'd need to do it twice.
That one looks particularly nasty. Get the torch.
If the suspension is at full droop, it can put more pressure on the bolt so you may want to put a jack under it and relieve the pressure then tap it out. In 18yrs of wrenching on miata, I have never had to cut one out.
Note to everyone: Lots of antiseize on those things when you reassemble. Anytime a bolt passes through a sleeve, it has to move freely.
It's just the bare subframe, not attached to a car. It makes it difficult to really do anything to it that doesn't involve an impact wrench (Boooo, needs more breaker bar). Sadly my only available impact wrench is an electric one. It does a good job, but it doesn't have enough torque for this particular case.
No clue how I'm going to get this bolt out.....
Torque isn't really the problem here. The sleeves are bonded to the bushing material and now the rusty bolt is is fused to the rusty sleeve. The impact is being absorbed by the flex of the bushing. If you use a big breaker, you're just going to twist the sleeve free of the bushing, but that's not going to get it out.
I'm not sure you can even cut safely at this point without ruining either the arm or the upright.
You need to turn those bushings into smoke first and then you may still have to cut the bolt.
It's for this:
I'm ok with ruining the arm, I just need the upright/spindle assembly. I'm not sure how I would even get that part out without a sawzall. I guess I will give it a go with the hacksaw for a while and report back. Thanks for the help.
But it's patina! Don't ruin it! 
Penetrating oil, followed by some more penetrating oil. Or that's what you would do if you were keeping the arm. Once it's turning in the bushing sleeve, spin it with an impact as you apply some pressure on the end.
In this case, go straight to the sawzall and have at it.
I think they get stuck partly because the exposed center section corrodes and grows, then it won't fit through the bushings or upright anymore.
I was thinking of re-bushing the suspension in my Miata and ran into the same issue. That cross bolt in corroded in place in the upright and isn't budging.
Keith Tanner wrote: I think they get stuck partly because the exposed center section corrodes and grows, then it won't fit through the bushings or upright anymore.
Ahhh...I forgot about that part. It's been a while since I've done one of these. Can you access the bolt from the backside and cut it with a Dremel wheel?
I've had similar experiences with such bolts. The last time, heat, penetrating oil, and a 20ton shop press all proved fruitless.
I had to buy new hubs.
Swank Force One wrote: I've had similar experiences with such bolts. The last time, heat, penetrating oil, and a 20ton shop press all proved fruitless. I had to buy new hubs.
That would be sad since I got the subframe for those pieces :(
No airtools, I don't even actually have a garage, I'm building the locost in my basement.
Maybe youhave a neighbor or friend that has a sawzall you can borrow?
Sadly all my friends are computer-centric and all my neighbors think I'm crazy :)
If I get really desperate I might pick up a Sawzall when the budget allows, I'm probably done for today.
It looks impossible to get a hacksaw into the confines of where you need to cut. Even if you turn the blade over.
Tomorrow is another day.
And remember, yard sales and flea markets can be your friend for low buck tools... Lotsa junk there too...
You can probably rent a sawzall from a local tool rental place for $20.
Drill down the length of the bolt? Sounds like a PITA, but if you drill down to the point where it starts to go into the hub, you might be able to weaken it enough enough that you can snap it by hitting the bottom of the hub with a BFH.
BTW, is the hammer in the picture the biggest one you've got? :)
Sawzall won't reach due to shape of hub and probably won't solve the reason why the bolt is stuck in the first place. Heat and a shop press is about what needs to happen.
Hey, if you don't need to save the arm, the Sawzall will work just fine. I'll bet you can buy one at a pawn shop for $20. I can't imagine building a Locost without one - they're not just a blunt instrument.
Is that portion on the hub that the bolt passes through open, is that not curved around the bolt at all? That would be fortuitous. 
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