Changing Front shocks on RR

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K

Kilted

Guest
Hi,
Can anyone tell me how to remove that pesky nut on the bottom of the
front shocks . I just don't seem to be able to loosen it. The shock
absorber follows it around.I've tried to hold it with stillsons without
success.There's not much room in there and the manual is devoid of tips.
Any tips will be helpful
Cheers....David :) (I'm relativly new to car maintainance so need some
guidance)

--
Using Opera's revolutionary e-mail client: http://www.opera.com/mail/
 
In message <[email protected]>
Kilted <[email protected]> wrote:

> Hi,
> Can anyone tell me how to remove that pesky nut on the bottom of the
> front shocks . I just don't seem to be able to loosen it. The shock
> absorber follows it around.I've tried to hold it with stillsons without
> success.There's not much room in there and the manual is devoid of tips.
> Any tips will be helpful
> Cheers....David :) (I'm relativly new to car maintainance so need some
> guidance)
>

Plan A : Grip the buttom half of the shock absorber with some
pipe grips (large plummbers pliers type things).

Plan B : Weld a bar to the bottom half of the shock absorber
(make sure the oil doesn't boil)

Plan C : You may be able to get a hacksaw blade in to cut it off.
Takes ages though!

Plan D : Cut it off with an oxy-acetelene torch.

Plan E : Split the nut with a chiesel - takes a long time and
is often painful though! (the rubber bushes make it very
bouncy)

Richard

--
www.beamends-lrspares.co.uk [email protected]
RISC-OS - Where have all the good guys gone?
Lib Dems - Townies keeping comedy alive
 
On or around Sun, 06 Aug 2006 09:57:09 +0200, Kilted <[email protected]>
enlightened us thusly:

>Hi,
> Can anyone tell me how to remove that pesky nut on the bottom of the
>front shocks . I just don't seem to be able to loosen it. The shock
>absorber follows it around.I've tried to hold it with stillsons without
>success.There's not much room in there and the manual is devoid of tips.
>Any tips will be helpful
>Cheers....David :) (I'm relativly new to car maintainance so need some
>guidance)

big stilsons. 's the only way. try to wedge the stilsons (and make sure
it's on the right way round!) and lean on the nut. Failing that, you have
to cut it, which is a pain, or get a nut-splitter on it if there's room. If
all else fails, take it to someone with a gas-axe (oxy-acetylene cutting
torch) and get it burnt off.

They normally come by holding the damper casing with stillsons and undoing
the nut though.
--
Austin Shackles. www.ddol-las.net my opinions are just that
Satisfying: Satisfy your inner child by eating ten tubes of Smarties
from the Little Book of Complete B***ocks by Alistair Beaton.
 
Austin Shackles wrote:

|| big stilsons. 's the only way. try to wedge the stilsons (and make
|| sure it's on the right way round!) and lean on the nut. Failing
|| that, you have to cut it, which is a pain, or get a nut-splitter on
|| it if there's room. If all else fails, take it to someone with a
|| gas-axe (oxy-acetylene cutting torch) and get it burnt off.
||
|| They normally come by holding the damper casing with stillsons and
|| undoing the nut though.

Raising the vehicle by the chassis rather than the suspension so that the
spring is fully extended helps - you probably wouldn't get a decent-sized
pair of Stilsons in if the spring was compressed. Someone large and
immoveable (or a clever arrangement of straps and ties) to hold the Stilsons
while you spanner away at the nut is almost essential IME.

Whatever you do, don't use a ratchet spanner to undo the nut. If you get it
half off and then it won't turn any further, you are stuffed big time, as
you can't wind the nut back the way it came, or get the spanner off the nut.
Use an open-ended one.

--
Rich
==============================

I don't approve of signatures, so I don't have one.


 
It helps if you can heat the nut up before attempting to loosen it, but if
its stripped and you have access to a welder, try welding a small bar onto
the remains of the nut (sometimes just the welding heats the nut enough to
loosen it). Another method is to use a nut splitter if you can get one that
fits into the gap, it is tight but i have one i bought out of machine mart
that does the trick. There's also the old favourite persuader and chisel.
Some shocks have key slots in them too but you obviously need the correct
key for this. I've also drilled a shock (it was leaky and thus empty!!) and
put a bar through it but i can't advise anyone doing this, it was a last
resort for me.
 
Thanks for all the tips. I'll get a bigger pair of stilsons
If only the front were as easy as the rear....
David
On Sun, 06 Aug 2006 11:57:57 +0200, Richard Brookman
<[email protected]> wrote:

> Austin Shackles wrote:
>
> || big stilsons. 's the only way. try to wedge the stilsons (and make
> || sure it's on the right way round!) and lean on the nut. Failing
> || that, you have to cut it, which is a pain, or get a nut-splitter on
> || it if there's room. If all else fails, take it to someone with a
> || gas-axe (oxy-acetylene cutting torch) and get it burnt off.
> ||
> || They normally come by holding the damper casing with stillsons and
> || undoing the nut though.
>
> Raising the vehicle by the chassis rather than the suspension so that the
> spring is fully extended helps - you probably wouldn't get a decent-sized
> pair of Stilsons in if the spring was compressed. Someone large and
> immoveable (or a clever arrangement of straps and ties) to hold the
> Stilsons
> while you spanner away at the nut is almost essential IME.
>
> Whatever you do, don't use a ratchet spanner to undo the nut. If you
> get it
> half off and then it won't turn any further, you are stuffed big time, as
> you can't wind the nut back the way it came, or get the spanner off the
> nut.
> Use an open-ended one.
>



--
Using Opera's revolutionary e-mail client: http://www.opera.com/mail/
 

"Kilted" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:eek:[email protected]...
> Hi,
> Can anyone tell me how to remove that pesky nut on the bottom of the
> front shocks . I just don't seem to be able to loosen it. The shock
> absorber follows it around.I've tried to hold it with stillsons without
> success.There's not much room in there and the manual is devoid of tips.
> Any tips will be helpful
> Cheers....David :) (I'm relativly new to car maintainance so need some
> guidance)
>
>

Oxy/acetylene is by far the easiest and quickest, but if you don't have
access to burning equipment then the next easiest, quickest and safest way
is to hold the shocker to stop it from turning whilst drilling a small hole
(say 1/8") through one flat of the nut and straight through the other side,
then fit a larger drill (say 5/16" or 8mm) and enlarge the hole with this.
You will find it will practically fall off now if you hit it with a small
chisel or try to turn it with a ring spanner. Any problems enlarge the hole
until it *does* fall off. If you haven't got a steady hand and can't drill
through the centre then turn the shocker through 180 degrees and drill the
opposite side of the nut independently.

HTH Martin


 
In message <[email protected]>
Kilted <[email protected]> wrote:

> Hi,
> Can anyone tell me how to remove that pesky nut on the bottom of the
> front shocks . I just don't seem to be able to loosen it. The shock
> absorber follows it around.I've tried to hold it with stillsons without
> success.There's not much room in there and the manual is devoid of tips.
> Any tips will be helpful
> Cheers....David :) (I'm relativly new to car maintainance so need some
> guidance)
>

Plan A : Grip the buttom half of the shock absorber with some
pipe grips (large plummbers pliers type things).

Plan B : Weld a bar to the bottom half of the shock absorber
(make sure the oil doesn't boil)

Plan C : You may be able to get a hacksaw blade in to cut it off.
Takes ages though!

Plan D : Cut it off with an oxy-acetelene torch.

Plan E : Split the nut with a chiesel - takes a long time and
is often painful though! (the rubber bushes make it very
bouncy)

Richard

--
www.beamends-lrspares.co.uk [email protected]
RISC-OS - Where have all the good guys gone?
Lib Dems - Townies keeping comedy alive
 
On or around Sun, 06 Aug 2006 09:57:09 +0200, Kilted <[email protected]>
enlightened us thusly:

>Hi,
> Can anyone tell me how to remove that pesky nut on the bottom of the
>front shocks . I just don't seem to be able to loosen it. The shock
>absorber follows it around.I've tried to hold it with stillsons without
>success.There's not much room in there and the manual is devoid of tips.
>Any tips will be helpful
>Cheers....David :) (I'm relativly new to car maintainance so need some
>guidance)

big stilsons. 's the only way. try to wedge the stilsons (and make sure
it's on the right way round!) and lean on the nut. Failing that, you have
to cut it, which is a pain, or get a nut-splitter on it if there's room. If
all else fails, take it to someone with a gas-axe (oxy-acetylene cutting
torch) and get it burnt off.

They normally come by holding the damper casing with stillsons and undoing
the nut though.
--
Austin Shackles. www.ddol-las.net my opinions are just that
Satisfying: Satisfy your inner child by eating ten tubes of Smarties
from the Little Book of Complete B***ocks by Alistair Beaton.
 
Austin Shackles wrote:

|| big stilsons. 's the only way. try to wedge the stilsons (and make
|| sure it's on the right way round!) and lean on the nut. Failing
|| that, you have to cut it, which is a pain, or get a nut-splitter on
|| it if there's room. If all else fails, take it to someone with a
|| gas-axe (oxy-acetylene cutting torch) and get it burnt off.
||
|| They normally come by holding the damper casing with stillsons and
|| undoing the nut though.

Raising the vehicle by the chassis rather than the suspension so that the
spring is fully extended helps - you probably wouldn't get a decent-sized
pair of Stilsons in if the spring was compressed. Someone large and
immoveable (or a clever arrangement of straps and ties) to hold the Stilsons
while you spanner away at the nut is almost essential IME.

Whatever you do, don't use a ratchet spanner to undo the nut. If you get it
half off and then it won't turn any further, you are stuffed big time, as
you can't wind the nut back the way it came, or get the spanner off the nut.
Use an open-ended one.

--
Rich
==============================

I don't approve of signatures, so I don't have one.


 
It helps if you can heat the nut up before attempting to loosen it, but if
its stripped and you have access to a welder, try welding a small bar onto
the remains of the nut (sometimes just the welding heats the nut enough to
loosen it). Another method is to use a nut splitter if you can get one that
fits into the gap, it is tight but i have one i bought out of machine mart
that does the trick. There's also the old favourite persuader and chisel.
Some shocks have key slots in them too but you obviously need the correct
key for this. I've also drilled a shock (it was leaky and thus empty!!) and
put a bar through it but i can't advise anyone doing this, it was a last
resort for me.
 
Thanks for all the tips. I'll get a bigger pair of stilsons
If only the front were as easy as the rear....
David
On Sun, 06 Aug 2006 11:57:57 +0200, Richard Brookman
<[email protected]> wrote:

> Austin Shackles wrote:
>
> || big stilsons. 's the only way. try to wedge the stilsons (and make
> || sure it's on the right way round!) and lean on the nut. Failing
> || that, you have to cut it, which is a pain, or get a nut-splitter on
> || it if there's room. If all else fails, take it to someone with a
> || gas-axe (oxy-acetylene cutting torch) and get it burnt off.
> ||
> || They normally come by holding the damper casing with stillsons and
> || undoing the nut though.
>
> Raising the vehicle by the chassis rather than the suspension so that the
> spring is fully extended helps - you probably wouldn't get a decent-sized
> pair of Stilsons in if the spring was compressed. Someone large and
> immoveable (or a clever arrangement of straps and ties) to hold the
> Stilsons
> while you spanner away at the nut is almost essential IME.
>
> Whatever you do, don't use a ratchet spanner to undo the nut. If you
> get it
> half off and then it won't turn any further, you are stuffed big time, as
> you can't wind the nut back the way it came, or get the spanner off the
> nut.
> Use an open-ended one.
>



--
Using Opera's revolutionary e-mail client: http://www.opera.com/mail/
 
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