Yoke removal help

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BullsIgt

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Hi all,

I have a 1964 Dodge Dart GT. It has 7.25 rear end. I need to remove the pinion yoke to extract a sheared U-Joint strap bolt but am having a hard time removing the yoke and have a few questions I hope you guys can help me with. What is the easiest way to remove the yolk? Do I need any special tools? Is there a crush sleeve or something similar that needs to be replaced? How do I go about reinstalling? i.e. checking pinion nut torque, etc. Any help or suggestions are very much appreciated. Also, if I need to replace the yolk and or crush sleeves/bearings where is a good place to buy these parts from? Sorry for the newbie questions.
 
BullsIgt said:
Hi all,

I have a 1964 Dodge Dart GT. It has 7.25 rear end. I need to remove the pinion yoke to extract a sheared U-Joint strap bolt but am having a hard time removing the yoke and have a few questions I hope you guys can help me with. What is the easiest way to remove the yolk? Do I need any special tools? Is there a crush sleeve or something similar that needs to be replaced? How do I go about reinstalling? i.e. checking pinion nut torque, etc. Any help or suggestions are very much appreciated. Also, if I need to replace the yolk and or crush sleeves/bearings where is a good place to buy these parts from? Sorry for the newbie questions.
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Bull, pictures would, help immensely. Pulling that yoke, gets expensive quickly.
 
Those litte bolts are grade 8.. When they snap,, I've found they leave a little burr on the stub,, and because the bolt broke because it was stretched too far,, and not bottomed out,, they often easily back out with a sharp cape chisel,, and small hammer,, just tap it couter-clockwidse till you can get pliers on it..

hope it helps
 
The bolt is sheared below the surface of the threaded hole so it is hard to get anything in there. I am trying to avoid damaging the threads because I think re-tapping the hole will difficult in itself.
At this point if I can get the yoke off and just replace it for under 200 bucks then I'd be happy.
I can get some pictures up this evening. Its not the sheared bolt I'm worried about but actually removing and reinstalling the yoke correctly.
 
I think before I spent that kind of money and the headache of rebuilding the center, I would just get the car up high enough to work comfortably on it and extract the broken bolt.

Have you tried to drill a small hole in it and use a small easy out. I would certainly give it a valiant effort, you can't make matters worse by doing so at this point.

I'll ask you this, did the bolt break when you put it in, or were you trying to take it out and it was seized up?
 
Mark the pinion nut before removal as a reference. Use a harmonic balance puller if you want to remove the yoke.
 
I still say it's sitting there loose,, poke it with a sharp pointy thing while carefully watching it,,, it'll wobble,, and undo with a little patience,,,./. sheesh $200

If it is a stock grade 8 bolt,, you'll likely have trouble drilling it..
 
inertia said:
I still say it's sitting there loose,, poke it with a sharp pointy thing while carefully watching it,,, it'll wobble,, and undo with a little patience,,,./. sheesh $200

If it is a stock grade 8 bolt,, you'll likely have trouble drilling it..
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That's why I asked if it broke putting it in, if so, your suggestion is the best.

If it broke trying to remove it because it's seized, then if it were me, I would try anything including drilling before I spent that kind of jingle.

Of coarse I'm a stubborn son of a gun. :D
 
I had one break off decades ago. I didn't have the proper tools at the time, so I just drilled it all the way through, and used a bolt and nut. Lasted till I got rid of the car.
No way would I spend any kind of money on a 7 1/4 rear.
 
I'll ask you this, did the bolt break when you put it in, or were you trying to take it out and it was seized up?
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The bolt broke while I was driving. I left the house to go for a little Sunday cruise and heard a loud popping as I accelerated and immediately turned around. Before I could get back to the house I heard a loud bang and clatter, pulled over and the driveshaft was on the ground. What happened was the other bolt on the strap backed out and the popping noise I heard was I assume the bolt shearing.

I guess from the responses I should be a little more diligent in my attempts.

Mark the pinion nut before removal as a reference. Use a harmonic balance puller if you want to remove the yoke.
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I have already removed the pinion nut so I assume there is a process to putting it back on without a mark?
I think before I spent that kind of money and the headache of rebuilding the center, I would just get the car up high enough to work comfortably on it and extract the broken bolt.

Have you tried to drill a small hole in it and use a small easy out. I would certainly give it a valiant effort, you can't make matters worse by doing so at this point.

I'll ask you this, did the bolt break when you put it in, or were you trying to take it out and it was seized up?
Click to expand...

I have tried drilling it and using extractor bits but the smallest one I can find is still a little too big and it is hard to get square on the bolt laying on my back under the car. I guess if I maul the threads, is re-tapping it a good option or should I do what furyus2 did and drill it through and put a nut on the back of it?

One thing I was worried about is if there is a crush washer/sleeve that needs to be replaced?

Thank you for any and all responses
 
BullsIgt said:
I have tried drilling it and using extractor bits but the smallest one I can find is still a little too big and it is hard to get square on the bolt laying on my back under the car. I guess if I maul the threads, is re-tapping it a good option or should I do what furyus2 did and drill it through and put a nut on the back of it?

Either/Or -- It's a small bolt I know, but me, being as stubborn as I am will give it all I can before I relent and spend money, lol.

One thing I was worried about is if there is a crush washer/sleeve that needs to be replaced?

Well, I would put it back on a torque it to spec and just a smidge more, you should be fine.

Thank you for any and all responses
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Have you actually tried what Inertia suggested and see if by chance it's a little loose?

One other thing you might try is a left hand drill bit, it might catch it and spin it right out.
 
Have you actually tried what Inertia suggested and see if by chance it's a little loose?
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I tried to use pliers on it before I drilled it to no avail. If there was play in it, it wasn't noticeable. What kills me is that I used to be a machine assembler so I'm not new to broken bolts but this one has been a real PIA.
One other thing you might try is a left hand drill bit, it might catch it and spin it right out.
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I used extractor bits but wasn't able to get one to bite. I will this as well.
 
If you need to reinstall the pinion nut the idea is to restore the preload to the pinion bearing with out crushing the collar further. What I usually will do is torque the pinion nut to 200ftlbs. This will definitely seat the yoke and not be enough to crush the collar any more and cause premature bearing failure. Yokes are removed and reinstalled to replace a pinion seal all the time with out replacing any other parts. Use a puller to remove the yoke if it does not just slide off by hand. Once it is off you will have a better shot of getting the bolt out.
 
You might consider posting a wanted add here for a used yoke and could probably get one cheap. Most guys just scrap them and may send you one for the cost of shipping.
 
I would try left handed drill bits....I have had a very good success rate with them over the years getting out broken bolts and I am mechanic for a living
 
If you have an air powered engraver you could try that also. Its like using a mini air hammer on those small broken bolts. I've not tried an electric engraver.
 
If you've got the nut off,, a coupla sharp raps with a small hammer should persuade it off..

I assumed ( I hate that word) that it had been broken while tightening,, my apology,, having sheared off it very likely could be binding on the threads..

The reverse drill bits are an excellent choice if you have access to one,, if easy outs won't bite.. -

This is not a "recommended service proceedure",, but you could use a hacksaw or similar to cut a slot right thru the yoke and screw, sufficient to get a screwdriver to bite,, then clean up the mating surfaces with a file,, the small saw mark in the yoke shouldn't affect performance....

hope it helps..
 
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