By Slider on Sunday, July 29, 2001 - 02:10 pm: Edit

OK...here we go...95 disco...

The other night on the trail, I bent the "drag link" (This is the bar from steering box drop arm to right wheel)
No big deal..steering wheel was a little kicked to the right, but the truck rode fine.

I picked up one off a junked truck with over 100K miles. Mine only has 80K...so I wanted to swap the tie rod ends(ball joints)

I CAN'T REMOVE THESE FREAK'N THINGS!! NIETHER the ones from MINE or the JUNK truck's...They don't seem to be rusted...and I tried the VICE and PIPE WRENCH method...and all the PB spray I could...nothing..

SO for now...I just greased them best I could and put in the one w/100k...steering wheel is a little kicked the other way...SO, sooner or later, I will have to break them loose and adjust, just to make the steering wheel straight!!

SHOULD I HEAT THEM???

By Alex Schubow (Alex) on Sunday, July 29, 2001 - 04:34 pm: Edit

These are a bitch to get off (as you are finding out). I got mine loose by treating them with penetrating oil for several days, putting them in a large vice, and then jumping up and down (LITERALLY) on a 2 foot long pipe wrench (I weigh over 250lbs). If all that fails, heat them real good with an oxy-acetylene torch (forget propane, not hot enough for this job) and whale on the pipe wrench. If that fails, nail the fkn thing to your garage wall and replace it with a HD drag link and new rod ends. Put the rod ends back on with a ridiculous amount of anti seize.

Alex

By Kyle Van Tassel (Kyle) on Sunday, July 29, 2001 - 04:50 pm: Edit

LOL , just grind or split with a cut off tool the final 4-5" of the thing being carefull not to go so deep as to screw up the threads on the tie rod end itself. You just want the sleeve real thin on opossing sides. After getting it real thin it will come right out. or you can just peal the remaining sleeve out of the threads.

Kyle

By Alex Schubow (Alex) on Sunday, July 29, 2001 - 05:16 pm: Edit

Hey, good idea... Just don't try it if you're planning on reusing the steering linkage

Alex

By Robert Mann (Oldscout) on Sunday, July 29, 2001 - 05:54 pm: Edit

Anyone know what the thread pitch and size is on the drag link? I have been making my own drag links and tie rods for years for my Scouts. There very easy to make and Thick and Beefy DOM tubing or Cro mo is the way to go.

By Slider on Monday, July 30, 2001 - 12:56 am: Edit

How bout GREASING...anyone put grease fittings here???...Maybe I should just get NEW rod ends?


Thanks Alex...I'll try heating them again...and HOTTER

By Milan on Monday, July 30, 2001 - 05:44 am: Edit

When you put the new ones together, use some anti-sieze.

By gtx on Monday, July 30, 2001 - 09:13 am: Edit

just done my drop bar track rod end last week,
boy they are a bitch to shift but got there,
the wheel is slightly out now, anyone now how to track it up again?
Gary

By ben gott on Monday, July 30, 2001 - 09:27 am: Edit

you can do it by hand by screwing in or out the front track rod.. start the car so the ps pump is on and that will take the pressure off spinning the front track rod.. before doing this make sure you wheels are dead straight forward and thenjust screw in or out the front track rod until your steering wheel is straight.. drop me an email if that doesnt make sense..

bengott@peo.com

By Blue Gill (Bluegill) on Monday, July 30, 2001 - 09:39 am: Edit

too much time on my hands today:

By gtx on Thursday, August 02, 2001 - 01:07 pm: Edit

bloody hell chaps thats really great, Bens text was very infomative and just so i've got no excuses to undertake the job,There are pictures as well from Bluegill,
what can i say except cheers chaps, going to tackle it at the weekend, let you know how it goes.
All the best Gary

By slider on Friday, August 03, 2001 - 02:57 am: Edit

YEA...Good luck!!! If you guys think you can actually break both ends loose like in the above pictured details (and they've never been touched from the factory) you got another thing com'n!

I've removed this bar and did the "vise/pipe wrench-thing" on just ONE end and couldn't break it...I added heat too...nothing!

I'm still driving around with a crooked steering wheel.

By Blue Gill (Bluegill) on Friday, August 03, 2001 - 05:45 am: Edit

Hmmm, Slider...that sucks! I just sprayed a little WD-40 on the ends and used my amazing muscles to break it free (OK, I had to ask my wife to provide the muscle). One nice thing about AZ is little moisture and no road salt to accelerate corrosion. I also payed extra for the "super oily underside anti-corrosion" feature on my Disco. I assume you've used the BFH to no avail?

By John on Saturday, August 04, 2001 - 04:38 am: Edit

Sometimes you can place the threaded end on an anvil, or something solid/heavy and hammer on the link with a dead blow hammer rotating the link slowly. This will "stretch" the thread and help brek corrosion loose...of course it doesnt work every time.

By Blue Gill (Bluegill) on Monday, August 06, 2001 - 07:22 am: Edit

yeah, the BFH approach (Big Frickin Hammer)

By pk on Monday, August 06, 2001 - 09:53 am: Edit

-Don't use a little heat, us a lot.

-Don't hit it a little, put it on an anvil and lay a few good ones on to break it loose.

-Don't use a little Anti-Seize... use a ton of that sticky shit! Then it will be easy next time.

pk

By gtx on Monday, August 06, 2001 - 03:10 pm: Edit

nah tried to loosen the track rod at the we and zilch,what i really need is a pit and a 3 ft long scafold pole attached to the pipe wrench and an oxy acetaline torch on it
it will next we ,if not theres always the local LR dealer,[cant believe i said that]
Gary looking forward to more aerobics at the weekend

By Bill Bettridge (Billb) on Tuesday, August 07, 2001 - 02:46 am: Edit

Why don't you take the whole thing - tie rod ends and all off the truck - get them freed up on the bench and then put it back on? Seems alot easier than wrestling under the truck

By gtx on Tuesday, August 07, 2001 - 01:23 pm: Edit

I dont want to damage the track rod end rubbers,
Is it possible to remove the TRE without doing so?.
when i removed the other one last wek i had to beat ten bags of sh*t out of it to remove it.
Gary

By Alex Schubow (Alex) on Tuesday, August 07, 2001 - 03:22 pm: Edit

Sure, remove the cotter pins and castle nuts. Give each knuckle a few HARD raps with a hammer (not waffle end, please). They will pop right out.

Toss the tie rod end separator in the trash where it belongs.

Alex

By Bill Bettridge (Billb) on Wednesday, August 08, 2001 - 05:23 am: Edit

Alex is dead on - that is the ONLY good way to remove tie rod ends. Pickle forks just tear things up!!