Stubborn Pitman arm

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friesza

friesza

The Machinist
Joined
Dec 22, 2009
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Sweet Home, Or
What is the easiest way to get the pitman arm off the spline? I bought a pitman arm puller and the threads stripped out as soon as I put the impact wrench to it....maybe by a better puller but I dont want to put alot of money in a tool I will only use once for now
 
return tool, get new one,get better one if they have it, clean threads, oil threads, heat piman arm (careful dont heat seals in steering box) PUT DOWN IMPACT! use slow even force with large breaker bar, when you think you have enough force on it, go a little further, then give the bolt going through the puller pressing on the shaft a GOOD SOLID HIT with a B.F.H. (big $#@%&*^ hammer) then repeat, tighten, hit, tighten, hit, before you go return the old puller soak the pitman arm and shaft down with liquid wrench or the like
 
What caferacerx said is the way I do it too. What I also do is index the old arm with the pitman shaft with a small punch and then mark the new arm in the same spot so the new arm goes on the same way the old one was. Also thread the nut on the end of the shaft so that when it finally pops off it won't damage anything. Also a good puller will last for years. Mine is 35 years old and removed many pitman arms.
 
SOAK it down with PBlaster. Then take a big ball peen hammer and SMACK it about three good licks on the side of the pitman arm where the steering shaft comes through. This will momentarily elongate the hole in the pitman arm and it will pop loose when you put the puller back on it. But as mentioned, don't use air on the puller.
 
Randy72's giving good advice about leaving the nut on, ask me how I broke my nose when I was 17.... :lol:
 
...........R u needing to save this 1 or r u replacing it..............if replacing.......p/m me i'll tell u how to get it off in less than 2 minutes........kim.............
 
PM sent....does the pitman not have a master spline.....I will mark tomorrow then. Thanks for the advice...now if someone will answer my brake question....
 
You could do what I did in my drinking days in my early 20's. Take nut off, try heat, prying to get it off, refuse to buy/borrow a pitman arm puller and just say forget it, I do it later and leave the nut off.

I did that, drove the heck out of the car for a week and like forgot about it. Was with some teenage kid, friends with his dad, and we decide to get a bite to eat. I go flying in to the dirt parking lot and almost is at a stop when the steering just started to spin away freely. I knew right then what happen.

That was over 20 years ago and still shakes me up thinking what would have happen if it did it jumping R&R tracks at speed.

The kid refused to tell anybody what happen, said if his dad found out he never could ride with me again, lol He was with me a week earlier trying to get the arm off in his dad's garage. We both had nobody to blame but ourselves.

Not sure how I survived to middle age but I did.:iconbigg:
 
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