For those who have used a spindle pin removal tool, I have a few questions. First, did the tool work, and if so, how hard was it to get the pin out? Please give tool details as well. What worked well, and what could be improved? Did the tool have a bearing, greased washers, or ??? The reason I ask is that I'm about to make my own removal tool, but I want to build a better mouse trap, so to speak. Rather than using hardware store all-thread, I was considering buying acme thread rod to make the tool. I figure that 3/4" - 6 acme rod will make the tool much more efficient than standard threaded rod. A friend just loaned me a tool he bought online and it worked for him, but he said it was a real pain and the rod twisted under load. With a nice fat acme thread and a thrust bearing, the tool *should* be better and make pin removal a breeze.

I have only done the pin removal the hard way. After heating and beating, I cut the pins off and used a huge shop press to extract the center of the pins from the knuckles. It was a horrible job and rather dangerous. That was all long before anybody came up with the puller tool and I haven't had to remove any since, until now. I have two sets that I need to remove and I want to make it as easy as possible on myself. I like good quality tools that work well and last forever. I will try the tool I borrowed to do one set, but I am not impressed with the design and want to improve it for the future.

So, does the tool NEED to be better, or am I wasting my time? I figure that if I buy 6 feet of acme rod, acme nuts and some pipe, and I can make at least 5 tools and sell them to pay for my materials. The acme thread rod isn't cheap, but at about $25 per tool, I could make it work. I can get the standard threaded rod for only a few bucks, but if acme is the way to go, I want to do it right.

If I do decide to go this route, is there any interest in a ~ $25 removal tool?

Damn, those are some serious spindle pin pullers! Definitely sturdier than the one I have.

As an update, we used the prototype puller on a set of spindle pins on corroded suspension strut and A-arm assemblies that had been in storage for 15 or more years. Removal of the keys took place the day before removal of the pins. It took about 30 minutes to remove the keys due to corrosion. Pre-application of penetrating oil to the keys prior to attempting to the removal did not occur. I'm sure it would have helped to presoak the keys.

Once the keys were removed, the spindle pins were sprayed with penetrating oil and left to sit overnight. After 24 hours, we removed the both pins in less than 30 minutes. While this may not represent all pin removal attempts, we used the following procedure:

- we removed the nuts on the end of the pins;

- the pin treads were chased with cutting dies;

- the pins were sprayed with penetrating oil at the joints of the strut/A-arm and the key access point;

- a lug nut was attached to one end of the pin using antiseize on the threads;

- the puller was attached to the other side to the pin after applying antiseize to the threads;

- the pin was placed into tension with several turns of the 1.5" nut;

- several blows with a 6 lb sledge were applied to the lug nut to break the corrosion bond while the pin was in tension;

- the 1.5" nut was turned to confirm the pin was moving;

- additional penetrating oil was applied as the pin was being removed;

- the spindle pin was removed from the extraction stud.

I was amazed at how easy it was to remove the pin with this process. As stated, this may not represent all pin removal attempts, but this has been the easiest removal to date and first using this methodology. In my opinion, breaking the corrosion adhesive bond is the key to making the whole process easy. Heating the pin housing has been the traditional method to break the corrosion bond, but I think that using the stud material properties (elastic energy) to your advantage with a force multiplier (love taps with the sledge) and plenty of lubrication can make the job a snap. Placing the pin in tension also makes it a tad bit thinner allowing the penetrating oil to access more pin surface area in turn reducing the overall friction of the removal process.

With the next attempt, we will use an impact wrench on the lug nut to try to spin the pin in place prior to removal. The pin will be lubricated with penetrating oil for 24 hours or more prior to starting this process. The sudden short burst of rotational force may be enough to break the corrosion bond and allow easy pin removal. Too long a burst may twist the end off the pin or torque/twist the pin. Use extreme caution with this process unless you like to use heat or a machine shop on your projects. I do have a favorite machine shop to address theory that does not translate into finished product very well.

Edited May 18, 201212 yr by Z-Engineer

Thanks for the report Steve. Was there any sign of mushrooming from the wedge key? I think that can be as bad as the corrosion issue.

It will be interesting to see how the threads hold up after 20 pins compared to the softer 3/4" rod.

Hey Steve I forgot to ask, but do you have a 45° taper in the threaded end of your rod to match the taper on the spindle pin where the threads transition to the smooth section?

Thanks for the report Steve. Was there any sign of mushrooming from the wedge key? I think that can be as bad as the corrosion issue.

There was little deformation on the pin where the key makes contact. At first I thought it was going to be an issue due to the amount of time it took to get the keys to release, but they pulled out just fine.

In addition, we did not try to match the taper of the pin with the stud. Each stud was drilled to an inch in depth and tapped. I have two studs that have not been drilled and tapped and two that have one end drilled and tapped. I may see what it will cost to taper the stud to match the pin to see if it makes a difference.

On the pro-side, you get more surface area contact to provide a more solid connection. On the con-side, it will take more force to separate the pin from the stud once extracted.

On a side note, a previous owner of the parts tried to remove one of the spindle pins. One end of one pin had been rethreaded and had a smaller nut. It just happend to be the first end we tried to attach the puller. I was about to have words with the machine shop. Knowing that over time parts get changed/modified, we tried the other end of the pin and everything was as it should be.

It will be interesting to see how the threads hold up after 20 pins compared to the softer 3/4" rod.

Lee,

The softer stud was also 1". That's why were able to use the same tube, nuts, bearing and washers that we were using before.

I have always wondered if the lock wedge serves any purpose at all. The nuts at each end hold the pin from moving lengthwise and I don't see the harm in allowing it to rotate as long as the nuts are installed with threadlock. One of two thins will happen It will either continue to rotate and will likely never get stuck again, or it will soon find a spot it likes and stay put just like the wedge would have done. When I installed new pins in my '78, I did install the wedge, but I was tempted to leave it out and simply RTV the holes closed to prevent moisture from entering the knuckle.

Jeff,

I’ve really been thinking about this. Each corner of the suspension supports about 25% of the car’s weight. For basic calculations, let’s say about 550 lbs or so. That weight is split between the A-arm and the strut. I don’t know the weight distribution so let’s just say 275 lbs apiece. A force of about 275 lbs placed at a distance of approximately 1.25 feet (length of A-arm) generates about 344 ft-lbs of torque every time the car moves. So the issue comes down to whether or not thread-lock can with stand this type of repeated force and not break free over time. That may also explain the size of the key. I always thought it was rather large for what it does until I did the math.

Too bad the spindle pin was not designed with crown nuts! That would have taken care of the situation. The down side is that should a pin settle in one position and corrodes in place, a pin puller may just pull the ends of the pin due to the reduced amount of cross-sectional material.

I guess my key goes back into place as well.

The description of how to construct the spindle pin puller and the associated parts list have been posted at www.czot.org on the home page.

Is anybody making these in bulk for sale?

Is anybody making these in bulk for sale?

There was a "rental/borrowing" program going around for awhile but I am not sure what happened to it. You can build a puller for about $15 worth of pieces from the hardware store. Keep in mind' date=' getting a pin to come out with just a puller is a 50/50 proposition. Many times the pin is rusted in to place and must be pushed out with a press. Many of us have posted threads on the agony associated with getting these pins out. Mine is below if you care to check it out. The best thing you do is mix up a 50/50 mix of auto. trans. fluid and Acetone. Take your mix and apply it to each end of the pin and in the middle hole. You may have to use a spoon, eye dropper, or something of the sort. Do this several times over the course of a a day or two before even attempting to pull the pin out. All of us have had great success in using this mix as a penetrate to aid in getting the pin out.

[url']http://www.classiczcars.com/forums/suspension-steering-s30/48583-spindle-pin-woes.html

Is anybody making these in bulk for sale?

I am not aware of the pullers being made in bulk. They are not cheap to produce and with the size of the nuts, large open end wrenches are needed to operate the puller. I expended between $150 and $200 for the wrenches and puller when it was all said and done. However, we have quite a few first generation Zs in our club and pull pins several times a year. These pullers were designed to last.

Steve