Welcome Visitor! Please take a few seconds and Duane867
Well-Known Member
After doing my buddies I decided it was time to take a look at mine.
Boy where they fubar !
Completely broken in two at the shackle AND the hanger.
Went to Smythe Automotive ( local chain ) picked up a set of each for just under $100.
Raised the rear by the frame just behind the dip in the frame as high as my jack stands would allow. Removed the wheels, ( left the bed on because to me it makes no sense to remove it. Its just several more steps and more labor to remove the bed. It all can be done..including the front hangers and rear cab mounts with the bed in position. Nothing is in your way.) used my saws all to cut the shackles down as close to the eye on the leaf as possible. Then did the same to the hanger as close to the frame as possible. Used the same angle grinder to cut off the nut side of the eye bushing. Used a propane torch to heat the eye until the bushing caught on fire. Let her burn a little, blew it out.
The reason I did this is because those rubber bushing expand when heated. With extreme heat they will split and push them selves right out. I concentrated the heat on the middle of the eye and they split where the hottest point was and pushed them selves out. Then all I had to do was push the bolt through with a long flat head while every thing was still hold and smoldering. Then I cleaned inside the Leaf eye really good scraping it with an old saws all blade, and sand paper. Bout 10 minutes each side and the new bushing slipped right in with a few smack of a hammer ( striking the head of an old bolt I had stuck through the new bushing.).
Then I used the angle grinder to grind down the rivets. Ground them flush with the frame and knocked them out with a hammer. Pounded them in to submission with the head then tapped them out with the claw end after I saw they had broken free ( you'll visually see this. You'll know it via the faint circle around the rivet after they break free.).
It was all fairly fast and easy save for the grinding. It plain sucks. But its the fastest way shy of a cutting torch ( which I don't recommend for this particular for many reasons. Brake lines, gas lines, electrical connections. etc etc etc...) All in all it took me about 6 hours this after noon. BUT that is because I was extremely lucky and some one had welded 3 rivets in place that I reckon had loosened at one time or another. ( more then likely the genius engineer that worked on it for his daughter whom I bought it from.).
Now I have to do the rear cab mounts, and the front leaf hangers.
The cab mounts are plain shot but the front leaf hangers have some time left I reckon. I'll do the cab mounts in a couple weeks then in another couple weeks the front leaf hangers. and a ball joint I have driving me nuts and making here track and jerk a little around corners.
OHH.. and a cat delete and full exhaust replacement..
After those things the cancer will be eradicated completely from Pepe my little mule.
Boy where they fubar !
Completely broken in two at the shackle AND the hanger.
Went to Smythe Automotive ( local chain ) picked up a set of each for just under $100.
Raised the rear by the frame just behind the dip in the frame as high as my jack stands would allow. Removed the wheels, ( left the bed on because to me it makes no sense to remove it. Its just several more steps and more labor to remove the bed. It all can be done..including the front hangers and rear cab mounts with the bed in position. Nothing is in your way.) used my saws all to cut the shackles down as close to the eye on the leaf as possible. Then did the same to the hanger as close to the frame as possible. Used the same angle grinder to cut off the nut side of the eye bushing. Used a propane torch to heat the eye until the bushing caught on fire. Let her burn a little, blew it out.
The reason I did this is because those rubber bushing expand when heated. With extreme heat they will split and push them selves right out. I concentrated the heat on the middle of the eye and they split where the hottest point was and pushed them selves out. Then all I had to do was push the bolt through with a long flat head while every thing was still hold and smoldering. Then I cleaned inside the Leaf eye really good scraping it with an old saws all blade, and sand paper. Bout 10 minutes each side and the new bushing slipped right in with a few smack of a hammer ( striking the head of an old bolt I had stuck through the new bushing.).
Then I used the angle grinder to grind down the rivets. Ground them flush with the frame and knocked them out with a hammer. Pounded them in to submission with the head then tapped them out with the claw end after I saw they had broken free ( you'll visually see this. You'll know it via the faint circle around the rivet after they break free.).
It was all fairly fast and easy save for the grinding. It plain sucks. But its the fastest way shy of a cutting torch ( which I don't recommend for this particular for many reasons. Brake lines, gas lines, electrical connections. etc etc etc...) All in all it took me about 6 hours this after noon. BUT that is because I was extremely lucky and some one had welded 3 rivets in place that I reckon had loosened at one time or another. ( more then likely the genius engineer that worked on it for his daughter whom I bought it from.).
Now I have to do the rear cab mounts, and the front leaf hangers.
The cab mounts are plain shot but the front leaf hangers have some time left I reckon. I'll do the cab mounts in a couple weeks then in another couple weeks the front leaf hangers. and a ball joint I have driving me nuts and making here track and jerk a little around corners.
OHH.. and a cat delete and full exhaust replacement..
After those things the cancer will be eradicated completely from Pepe my little mule.
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