Matt_S3_RX7

Hi guys.

How do you remove the locknut that sits inside the front strut mounting bracket?

Ive tried a ring spanner but i cant get it in far enough to grab. Do i need a special tool for this?

Matt.

FirebirdSlayer666

iTrader: (3)

You'll need an impact or something to grip the shock so it won't rotate and give her hell

Matt_S3_RX7

So a pipe wrench on the actual shock piston? wow that seems fairly extreme. wouldnt the reverse assembly ruin the piston?

I dont have any air tools so i was thinking there was like a hollow wrench that could do it or something?

Matt_S3_RX7

Dam i feel defeated on this on. Ive had a good go at it but to save any damage im going to have to walk them into a shop to remove the nuts.

Dam that sux.

grandgarson

You might try making a rubber strap wrench (like the ones that they make for removing oil filters). I can't say for sure if this will work, but don't see why it wouldn't. If you could put together a strong strip of rubber that you could tighten around it by pulling on one end then you might be able to hold it tight enough with that to be able to loosen the nut. Something like that is going to be much less likely to cause damage than a wrench.

Glazedham42

iTrader: (4)

Just use an impact gun, and be done with it. It will literally take 10-15 seconds with an impact, versus 2-3 days of you breaking stuff and getting frustrated. And at the end you're going to come to the conclusion that you should've used an impact gun in the first place. I've tried the pipe wrench trick before and it doesn't work. The shafts on the strut inserts are hardened, and it keeps the pipe wrench from biting in when you try to turn it. Plus you CANNOT use a pipe wrench when you put the new inserts in. It will ruin the shafts, and ALSO void the warranty. It's a lose lose situation that way....

Matt_S3_RX7

haha I like where your heads at. where there's a will.

I assume that it was designed to prevent tampering, therfore a special tool or tools are ususally used.

Im going to have to bow out gracefully this time until i can get the correct tools. (impact gun = $200 shop = $20)

I was thinking of fashioning a cut 21mm socket with a welded helper bar sort of like a hollow wrench? ill have a go and see what happens.

Thanks for all your input guys. If i can figure this out ill certainly post it.

Matt_S3_RX7

100% agree with you, a pipe wrench aint gunna do it. more harm than good.

Would love to figure out something cheap for all us newbs though.

orion84gsl

iTrader: (5)

There are electric impact guns available. Get yourself one of those and hit it. Works well, I've seen it.

NomadS

If you can find a box end wrench big enough ( Is that a Ring Spanner?) ... the ones with the bend at the end like brake line wrenches you find everywhere, and use an 8mm open end wrench to grab the notched bit at the top of the rod it will come apart pretty easy. Though finding that wrench can be a pain. I just did my struts last weekend, and it took all day to find the tools to get it done. walking it to the shop would have been much faster. I did find a sleeved wrench bolt thing at Car Quest but it was a standard set for Ford. I couldn't find one for a metric set.

Matt_S3_RX7

yeah i went looking today and couldnt find anything that was suitable. i found a 21mm ring spanner which was bent at the end but it just wasnt bent enough.

FirebirdSlayer666

iTrader: (3)

Yeah, I always say work smart, not hard. If you can get it done in the easiest way possible without over exerting yourself then do it. When my dad and I were putting on my Eichach springs we used a pipe wrench to stabilize the shock(tough as **** of course) and somehow we managed to break it loose on both the front struts. Now if we had the impact tools at the time it would have bee soooo much easier

Rogue_Wulff

Sometimes even an impact doesn't always do the job, by itself. Most of those nuts are the "Nylock" type that have the nylon locking ring on top. Often times, the impact will just spin the shaft. When that happens, use a torch to GENTLY apply a little heat to the nut. This will soften the plastic and allow the nut to spin off the shaft.

Matt_S3_RX7

well i took the struts and the new cartridges into a shop and the guy did it for free in minutes.

So yeah if you wanna get it done cheap (and dont have an impact gun) then remove them and walk them in lol, its an easy job for them.

As soon as he hit the top with the impact gun it came straight off in seconds. Had some issues with a spacer when assembling but i think it was just they type of shocks i was replacing it with. he just ground down the spacers and put it all back together no charge.

I still feel defeated not being able to do it myself, but hopefully newbs can learn from my mistakes.

Now i have to try to figure out how to get the ball joint off the control arm and replace them?

Matt_S3_RX7

Just finished installing the new shocks.

I think its fairly noticeable that the previous shocks had really had it by the ride heights.

im interested to see how it handles now. But Still working on some steering issues.

Glazedham42

iTrader: (4)

Rent the ball joint press from Autozone and you can press out the old ball joints from the control arms. I used this on mine and it worked good. Just make sure that you wire brush all the crap away that is around the edges of the ball joints. Then after you have cleared away all the rusty stuff, spray some penetrating oil down in around the edges of the ball joints. Do this 2-3 times and let it sit for several days and soak. THEN, use the ball joint press to pop them out. I had no problems doing it this way. Worked like a charm.

Matt_S3_RX7

lol, im an Ozzy mate. But ill certainly have a look around and see if i can rent one.

They dont look too bad but ive bought new ones anyway so might as well change them, the old ones look original and will persish soon enough.

Chees mate.

Glazedham42

iTrader: (4)

Ahh sorry! Didn't even see that! At any rate, if you can buy, borrow, or steal one of those universal c-clamp style presses, they work pretty good. Nevermind Autozone though, that would be quite a trip for you.

Matt_S3_RX7

Yeah I like the US forum, you guys have a superior knowledge base.

Will source the clamp. Thanks for your help fellas