Jonathan Posted April 5, 2022 Author Share Posted April 5, 2022 Another day again... This time I had half success. The passenger side I got removed after using a slide hammer puller I fashioned up from a 2ft long threaded rod from my McMaster-Carr order that I cut down to fit under the truck. I ordered a bunch if different crap to handle all kinds of methods of removal. The final winning method was more slide hammering and grinding out the crimp. I left the weight of the slide hammer resting whilst I grinded away. Finally it broke free! It damaged the threads a little but I cleaned it up with a tap and filed the damage on the outside of the bushing so it will slide back in easy. As for the drivers side I moved the fuel tank out of the way by disconnecting the filler neck from the door area to slide it over. Then tried the "correct" method first and all I ended up doing was strip out the threads after switching out my battery to the biggest one I had. Between the strong battery and the super strong bolt it took the threads right off. So I went back to the grinding method to remove the crimp and hammered down from the top with a brass drift. It finally came out! Now I need to order a Heli Coil kit to replace the threads. For extra safety I will double nut it since there is enough bolt sticking out to accommodate an extra nut. I would just weld on a new nut but I don't have a welder and don't know how to weld yet. I also got some new bolts and washers. I couldn't find a washer thick enough for the front cab mount so I will just double them up. I prepped the truck for lifting. All the bushing bolts are loose or removed. I also removed the radiator fan shroud since the body will lift but the fan blade won't. Here you can see the stripped out bushing end and the Heli Coil kit I got to fix it. I dug the broken threads out of the bolt to show the damage. The drill press is back together again since I need it to drill out the large hole for the thread replacement. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted April 5, 2022 Share Posted April 5, 2022 I prepped the truck for lifting. All the bushing bolts are loose or removed. I also removed the radiator fan shroud since the body will lift but the fan blade won't. Here you can see the stripped out bushing end and the Heli Coil kit I got to fix it. I dug the broken threads out of the bolt to show the damage. The drill press is back together again since I need it to drill out the large hole for the thread replacement. Man, you are having LOTS of "fun" on this quest. But you seem to be getting right along with it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonathan Posted April 5, 2022 Author Share Posted April 5, 2022 Man, you are having LOTS of "fun" on this quest. But you seem to be getting right along with it. It is a big learning experience. I am savoring every moment of the project. It is like eating a delicious desert slowly. Man, you are having LOTS of "fun" on this quest. But you seem to be getting right along with it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonathan Posted April 5, 2022 Author Share Posted April 5, 2022 I prepped the truck for lifting. All the bushing bolts are loose or removed. I also removed the radiator fan shroud since the body will lift but the fan blade won't. Here you can see the stripped out bushing end and the Heli Coil kit I got to fix it. I dug the broken threads out of the bolt to show the damage. The drill press is back together again since I need it to drill out the large hole for the thread replacement. Okay, lets get some new mounts in. Lifting the body makes me nervous. And I found being on a hill does not help. The whole cab slides back and was scraping on the truck bed on the way back down. After it was back down the bolt holes do not line up with the cab. I ordered some inflatable air bags to help me line up the cab by inflating them in the gap between the cab and the truck bed. I tried using a piece of wood but it kept deforming the metal. So I think a large air bag will be more gentle. So I lowered it back down with the new bushings but the bolts are not in it yet. Getting everything line up right will be interesting and a dance going back and forth. I may try to find a wood rod that fits the complete front cab mount hole all the way so it stays lined up while I get the rear cab bolts in. One bushing was very bent so I fixed it with my vise and a hammer before installing it again. I asked the manufacture why it is shorter and this is what they said. "The factory rubber is designed to allow more compression. The polyurethane will not compress the same so its compensating for that." One thing I can't figure out is why the power steering pump started leaking after lifting the cab? It made a big mess and wouldn't stop leaking. I can't tell exactly where it is coming from. The frame of the truck didn't move so it does not make sense to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted April 5, 2022 Share Posted April 5, 2022 Okay, lets get some new mounts in. Lifting the body makes me nervous. And I found being on a hill does not help. The whole cab slides back and was scraping on the truck bed on the way back down. After it was back down the bolt holes do not line up with the cab. I ordered some inflatable air bags to help me line up the cab by inflating them in the gap between the cab and the truck bed. I tried using a piece of wood but it kept deforming the metal. So I think a large air bag will be more gentle. So I lowered it back down with the new bushings but the bolts are not in it yet. Getting everything line up right will be interesting and a dance going back and forth. I may try to find a wood rod that fits the complete front cab mount hole all the way so it stays lined up while I get the rear cab bolts in. One bushing was very bent so I fixed it with my vise and a hammer before installing it again. I asked the manufacture why it is shorter and this is what they said. "The factory rubber is designed to allow more compression. The polyurethane will not compress the same so its compensating for that." One thing I can't figure out is why the power steering pump started leaking after lifting the cab? It made a big mess and wouldn't stop leaking. I can't tell exactly where it is coming from. The frame of the truck didn't move so it does not make sense to me. Did you take all 4 body mount bolts out at the same time? I'd leave one side in and do like you show in one pic - raise one side up with a 4x4 under it. That way it is less likely to shift. Anyway, glad you are having fun. I get frustrated when things don't unbolt and bolt back on nicely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonathan Posted April 5, 2022 Author Share Posted April 5, 2022 Did you take all 4 body mount bolts out at the same time? I'd leave one side in and do like you show in one pic - raise one side up with a 4x4 under it. That way it is less likely to shift. Anyway, glad you are having fun. I get frustrated when things don't unbolt and bolt back on nicely. I left one side of the bolts in and loose. And completely removed the side I am working on. I guess it shifted so much because my driveway has a slight incline. There is a lot of play in the bolt holes also. Did you take all 4 body mount bolts out at the same time? I'd leave one side in and do like you show in one pic - raise one side up with a 4x4 under it. That way it is less likely to shift. Anyway, glad you are having fun. I get frustrated when things don't unbolt and bolt back on nicely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted April 5, 2022 Share Posted April 5, 2022 I left one side of the bolts in and loose. And completely removed the side I am working on. I guess it shifted so much because my driveway has a slight incline. There is a lot of play in the bolt holes also. Did you take all 4 body mount bolts out at the same time? I'd leave one side in and do like you show in one pic - raise one side up with a 4x4 under it. That way it is less likely to shift. Anyway, glad you are having fun. I get frustrated when things don't unbolt and bolt back on nicely. Yep, that's how I would have done it. And I'll bet you are right that the driveway's slant caused it to shift. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonathan Posted April 8, 2022 Author Share Posted April 8, 2022 Okay, lets get some new mounts in. Lifting the body makes me nervous. And I found being on a hill does not help. The whole cab slides back and was scraping on the truck bed on the way back down. After it was back down the bolt holes do not line up with the cab. I ordered some inflatable air bags to help me line up the cab by inflating them in the gap between the cab and the truck bed. I tried using a piece of wood but it kept deforming the metal. So I think a large air bag will be more gentle. So I lowered it back down with the new bushings but the bolts are not in it yet. Getting everything line up right will be interesting and a dance going back and forth. I may try to find a wood rod that fits the complete front cab mount hole all the way so it stays lined up while I get the rear cab bolts in. One bushing was very bent so I fixed it with my vise and a hammer before installing it again. I asked the manufacture why it is shorter and this is what they said. "The factory rubber is designed to allow more compression. The polyurethane will not compress the same so its compensating for that." One thing I can't figure out is why the power steering pump started leaking after lifting the cab? It made a big mess and wouldn't stop leaking. I can't tell exactly where it is coming from. The frame of the truck didn't move so it does not make sense to me. The air bag shims arrived and worked good. I was able to gently nudge the cab forward to line up the holes to insert a place card consisting of 1/2" ratchet extensions. After test fitting I covered them in grease so they can slide easy when I lift up the other side. After I install the other side bushings what is the best way to line up the cab? Is there a body repair manual someone has with how to line up? The whole thing moves around a lot in the bolt holes so I need some kind of reference. I never really did body work before so I don't know what is the best method. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonathan Posted April 8, 2022 Author Share Posted April 8, 2022 The air bag shims arrived and worked good. I was able to gently nudge the cab forward to line up the holes to insert a place card consisting of 1/2" ratchet extensions. After test fitting I covered them in grease so they can slide easy when I lift up the other side. After I install the other side bushings what is the best way to line up the cab? Is there a body repair manual someone has with how to line up? The whole thing moves around a lot in the bolt holes so I need some kind of reference. I never really did body work before so I don't know what is the best method. I figured out why my chuck came out last time. I turned up the speed for a different project and forgot to change it back down. I had it running at the fastest speed which I guess won't work on a big bit in metal. Before I drilled out the bushing hardware I turned down the speed. I purchased an adjustable spring tensioned tap guide to help get it in straight but my drill press vice kept slipping so I finished it up on my bench vise. It was my first time using a heli coil but it went well and seems okay. There should be enough bolt sticking out to add an extra nut after I tighten it down to be safe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted April 8, 2022 Share Posted April 8, 2022 I figured out why my chuck came out last time. I turned up the speed for a different project and forgot to change it back down. I had it running at the fastest speed which I guess won't work on a big bit in metal. Before I drilled out the bushing hardware I turned down the speed. I purchased an adjustable spring tensioned tap guide to help get it in straight but my drill press vice kept slipping so I finished it up on my bench vise. It was my first time using a heli coil but it went well and seems okay. There should be enough bolt sticking out to add an extra nut after I tighten it down to be safe. Glad the air bag worked. As for alignment, I've been told that you work from the back to the front. The bed is bolted to the frame so is the reference and you align the cab to it. Get the gap the same on both sides and when you tighten the mount bolts down you use them to get the creases aligned so that when you sight down them they continue from the front of the cab to the rear of the bed. Then you adjust the fenders to the cab, aligning the creases there. As for the helicoil, did you stake it or put it in with red Loctite? That makes sure it won't turn w/in the washer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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