Earth1 Posted February 24, 2005 Share Posted February 24, 2005 I just installed my new centerlink and idler arm brace, and new tie rods. (pics coming soon) That new centerlink is awesome, I had no idea how wild my steering was. I still have some wobble issues, but that will have to wait for the new UCA's. While I was checking all the bolts I discovered the front UCA spindle bolt that goes into the frame is either broken or stripped. I assume it's stripped because it hasn't fallen out. I'm going to try to get an easy-out to pick it out with, but does anyone have any other ideas? I haven't actually taken the UCA off yet, cause I'm gonna get new ones soon. Once I get the bolt out I have a feeling the hole will be stripped. Is it possible to re-thread the frame hole? I was also considering drilling through the frame (backside of the box), and using a long bolt and nut from the back, but I wasn't sure if that extra hole would weaken the frame or not. Any thoughts? E1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Precise1 Posted February 24, 2005 Share Posted February 24, 2005 Arg, my manual is at work so I cant look at an exploded view, but something does not sound right... If it is broken/stripped, a pair of vice grips and some rotating/tugging will pull it out (if it is not preloaded). Sorry if it's insulting, but are you sure it is not a thru bolt/nut and is just spinning ? Otherwise, I would suggest roll tapping the hole with the same thread; you may be able to reform them sufficiently.... I've guessed enough, will look at manual tomorrow... Bernard Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Pickles Posted February 24, 2005 Share Posted February 24, 2005 Mine stripped and it came apart after the idiot at Les Schwab screwed it up working on it. I ended up taking it to a mechanic who cleaned up the mess, and fixed it with a heli-coil kit to repair/replace the threads. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MaritimeMan Posted February 24, 2005 Share Posted February 24, 2005 (edited) /\ what he said. Try to clean it up with a tap. If there is too much damage inside, a helicoil works wonders. How they work is you drill the existing hole to the next side up and tap it. The helicoil is just that, a coil where the outter diameter matches your new hole and threads into it, and the inside diameter and pitch is what the hole used to be. Very strong and reliable. M.M. Edited February 24, 2005 by MaritimeMan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Earth1 Posted February 24, 2005 Author Share Posted February 24, 2005 Good suggestions guys. I've never used a tap or helicoil. I know you can get those tap sets just about anywhere, but what about the helicoil? Would that be something I could rent, or what's one of those cost? Thanks for the info. This place is great. Before I started working on my Pathy, I'd hardly done any work on cars. With the help of all the cats here and all the archived posts, I've become a lot more confident with working on my rig myself, and I've been saving a lot of dough. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Precise1 Posted February 24, 2005 Share Posted February 24, 2005 Glad you are getting milage out of the forum, not to mention developing skills and confidence. The Tap trick can work, but it needs to be specifically a roll (thread forming) tap. It's basically a tapered screw that is lobed around the diameter. It picks up the existing thread (if any) and forces displaced material back to thread form. This is always my first try with a stripped hole. Anyone know what size thread we are talking about ? I may have one in my tool box. If not, I can find a good place to order them from. Helicoils work very well, and are Mil Spec FYI. A good place to go and check things out (and their prices are usually pretty good) is MSC industrial supply. http://www1.mscdirect.com/cgi/nnsrhm Anyway, someone let me know what size thread it is and I'll go from there... Bernard Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88pathoffroad Posted February 25, 2005 Share Posted February 25, 2005 While I was checking all the bolts I discovered the front UCA spindle bolt that goes into the frame is either broken or stripped. I assume it's stripped because it hasn't fallen out. I'm going to try to get an easy-out to pick it out with, but does anyone have any other ideas? Once I get the bolt out I have a feeling the hole will be stripped. Um, if the bolt is still in the hole, how do you know it's broken or stripped out? Does it rotate without much force, or are you unable to rotate it at all, or does it have a broken-off head, or what? More detail, please. A pic would be nice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MaritimeMan Posted February 25, 2005 Share Posted February 25, 2005 Helicoils work very well, and are Mil Spec FYI. Whoa, didn't know that, learn somethin new every day here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Earth1 Posted February 25, 2005 Author Share Posted February 25, 2005 Yeah, the bolt just spins with a little bit of torque, the heads still there. I can't pull it out with a pair of vice grips. I'd include a pic, but there is no visual damage, just looks normal. Thanks for the MSC link Bernard. That will be handy. BTW, what's MIL Spec.? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jj big shoe Posted February 25, 2005 Share Posted February 25, 2005 Drill and tap shouldn't be a problem if you decide to go that route. I can't remember the thread size, but the directions for Superlift A-arms said you could drill and tap the holes if you ended up stripping them during the install. good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88pathoffroad Posted February 25, 2005 Share Posted February 25, 2005 Military Specifications are the standards by which the US Army goes by as minimum ratings for anything they use. Yeah, sounds like it may be stripped out. Hopefully it stays put and doesn't come flying out when you hit a pothole...I'm sure you can imagine what'd happen to your UCA if that bolt left it's hole while you were driving...At the very least, you'd need a tow truck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Pickles Posted February 26, 2005 Share Posted February 26, 2005 (edited) It sucks bad when it pops out! :furious: When the Les Schwab clown stripped mine, I made it about 2 miles, then it popped out a couple blocks from the freeway onramp that I was about to get on. Luckily, it came out at slower speeds while making a left in the middle of an intersection. The whole front driver's side dropped down a few inches, pulled hard to the side, and made a nice bit of noise. I actually limped it up the street like 2 blocks to another Les Schwab, only to find they claimed no fault and couldn't fix it. Stupidsunovamutha(&*%^&$#'ers!!! Oh, moral of the story: DON'T DRIVE IT until you get it fixed. Edited February 26, 2005 by Mr. Pickles Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jj big shoe Posted March 6, 2005 Share Posted March 6, 2005 I need to replace the ones on the driver's side. Any chance that I could do the job without unloading the t-bars and just take the weight off the wheel and replace them one at a time or will the whole steering knuckle go PWANNG and smack me in the eye? It took me a few tries and some borrowed tools to get the correct ride height when I installed the new A-arms and if I could do the job w/o going through that again it would be schweet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88pathoffroad Posted March 6, 2005 Share Posted March 6, 2005 You can take 'em off one at a time. It's easiest to support the LCA with a jack, remove the wheel and go from there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glenn Posted March 9, 2006 Share Posted March 9, 2006 so guys help me out-I was wheeling in Joshua Tree and blew out bolt for spindle. -I limped into town and got someone to retap hole but he said it was temporary and wouldn't hold. So now I'm going back to Nissan dealer where I had truck aligned [they're ones who strpped hole when doing alignment] and get them to fix it. QUESTION : what is best/acceptable -- welding new nut to stripped hole/helicoil/retap and then redrill control arm for larger bolt ? THANKS --glenn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Earth1 Posted March 9, 2006 Author Share Posted March 9, 2006 I actually ended up just tapping the hole with the same thread as the stock bolt and it has worked fine for me since then. I suppose a proper fix if it is really bad would be to weld the hole with extra material, drill/tap it out to use the stock thread pitch. If I ever have problems with mine again that's what I'll do. Good luck. Ask the people doing your alignment to keep the impact wrench off those bolts from now on. They have a fairly fine thread. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88pathoffroad Posted March 10, 2006 Share Posted March 10, 2006 Welding a nut full of bead isn't a good way to get a tappable surface...I'd go with the helicoil if mine stripped out. I suppose you could remove the UCA, then cut the bolt hole out with an appropriate tool and weld in a new nut along with the new steel for the piece you cut out... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glenn Posted March 11, 2006 Share Posted March 11, 2006 has anyone heard of /used a "time-sert" ?--glenn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mws Posted March 13, 2006 Share Posted March 13, 2006 Haven't tried them but wouldn't hesitate to use them if they were cheaper than a helicoil. They are based on the same concept, but different enough to avoid patent infringement. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88pathoffroad Posted March 14, 2006 Share Posted March 14, 2006 By the way, tractor/farm supply stores carry metric bolts of that size and length if you can find one near you. If not, let me know...I can get 14mm bolts from a place near me. They're about $3 each, IIRC. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sw Posted March 15, 2006 Share Posted March 15, 2006 glenn helicoil is the way to go. aaron do you remeber the thread pitch. i know the bolts are m14 and i have a feeling that they are 1.5 pitch. which was supprising. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedPath88 Posted April 4, 2007 Share Posted April 4, 2007 ***BUMP*** Here you go SuperSon, this sould help some Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest SuperSon Posted April 4, 2007 Share Posted April 4, 2007 Thanks a lot Red. Im going to try tapping it first with the same thread size and use new bolts. M14 at 1.5 pitch tapper should be available at auto zone Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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