DIY Gland Nut Socket - With PICS!

[EuroDat]

Guy,

I would try a piece of 1" pipe or maybe 1-1/4" pipe, weld a socket on one end for a socket wrench and tack weld it to the glad nut.

1" should be small enough to give you room to tack weld it in a V weld fashion and still slide over the shock. 6 to 8 good tack welds should be enough and maybe a little heat to the strut.

Good luck with it. Its a pita when something like that happens.

[240260280]

Grinder is your friend. 

 

1. Pull out the rod as far as it will go then cut it off with the grinder.

2.  Make a stop to reduce grinding into the tube top:
    - Build up around the end of the tube (under the nut) with wood or metal (small piece of plywood with a 2" hole then sliced in half to fit the end) or some metal strap wound around the end  and a 2-1/2" water hose worm gear clamp to hold it.

3. Start grinding away from the top to cut away the top of the nut.  Once the top is free the strut can come out then you can heat and cool the remaining threads until free.

 

REMEMBER THAT HEAT AND STRUT INSERTS ARE DANGEROUS.. BE CAREFUL.

 

FYI My dad had me cut used oil well casing pipe when I was a teenager so I like the grinder as a last resort when parts don't budge.  With the casings, if there was mud inside it often trapped gas so the pipes would blow out some times.... good fun!

Edited March 13, 2017 by 240260280

[grannyknot]

This one wasn't even that rusted, did the wd40 and a torch 6-7 times but only had a pipe wrench for removal.

Maybe hacksaw the top of the gland nut off, remove the shock then with a dremel type tool grind or cut the bulk of the the threaded band until it loses its strength then peel it inward. Just thinking out loud. Good luck

[JSM]

2 hours ago, grannyknot said:

This one wasn't even that rusted, did the wd40 and a torch 6-7 times but only had a pipe wrench for removal.

Maybe hacksaw the top of the gland nut off, remove the shock then with a dremel type tool grind or cut the bulk of the the threaded band until it loses its strength then peel it inward. Just thinking out loud. Good luck

That was my thinking too.  I don't really know how else he's going to get that out without damaging the strut tube.

Also wondering if cutting the strut itself off would be good so he can push it down out of the way to better.

 

I say it's Giggity, giggity now!

After Quagmire realizes there is internet porn:

 

Edited March 13, 2017 by JSM

[Jeff G 78]

The easiest solution would be to CNC plasma cut a "stop sign" shaped hole into 1/4" thick steel and weld it to a 6" long 3/4" pipe with a 3/4" flange nut on top.

The whole thing would take very little time to make and cost less than $10 in materials.  Once set up, they could be made in bulk and sold for $20 or so.  Is there really a market for them?  If so, I can look into it.  I have access to everything I need.

[Diseazd]

Do it Jeff....If it works you could probably retire! I think my next step is the machine shop....those guys can do anything......certainly don't want to damage any threads. BTW......I ordered a piece of the square angle iron....have my doubt it will work, but will give it a try......shipping was more than the steel.

[Jeff G 78]

Can somebody send me good dimensions of a gland nut?  Are they all the same, or do they vary from brand to brand?

[SteveJ]

2 hours ago, Jeff G 78 said:

Can somebody send me good dimensions of a gland nut?  Are they all the same, or do they vary from brand to brand?

2 inches across on the flats...at least for the KYB struts.

[SteveJ]

On 3/10/2017 at 6:22 PM, SteveJ said:

I took a chance on a used 8 point on ebay. I will report back the results.

Okay, the 2 inch 8 point is too big for the gland nut. Too tired to take a photo.

[Hardway]

The pictures posted above and on the previous page are some real carnage.  Sorry to see it all happen.  Regarding the use of a 12-point 2" socket like I did, if some of the space at the points needed to be taken up, a thin strip of aluminum or steel, bent at the angle of the of the point in the socket would do it.  Probably wouldn't have to do all 8 points either.  Just would need something to hold it in place, even temporarily.  A dab of axle grease comes to mind.

[Careless]

These gland nuts can be a pain for sure.

I bought a 2" wrench for 8 dollars when it was on sale at Princess Auto (Canadian Harbour Freight)... regularly 32 dollars.

I like using the wrench because both the socket and the wrench have a bit too much play and can sometimes damage the finish or edges on the nuts. but with the wrench I found that sliding a 1/16 steel shim between the open end and the gland nut made it as snug as it should be- something that is a little more frustrating to do with a socket.

IMHO, cheaper, less time consuming, and overall the same result as modifying a socket.

I have spare sockets now, so my next version will be a socket "tube" that is long enough to go passed the threaded strut with a square drive welded onto the other end so I can use a 1/2" impact gun, but the wrench has been good on the last 4 or 5 sets I've done. No heat required.

Edited March 14, 2017 by Careless

[Hardway]

I like your idea Careless.  You are right, a box end wrench with a shim would be perfect.  My new AST strut inserts are on the way.  I will be interested to see what size the gland nuts are that come with them.