Easier to do with the truck sitting on the ground and not jacked up. The
pressure of the shock being compressed helps to hold the shaft while you are
trying to turn the nut. IIRC when I did mine on my '99 R/T, I use a
pneumatic impact to break the nut loose with the weight of the truck keeping
the shock compressed.
brian cropp
-----Original Message-----
From: owner-dakota-truck@bent.twistedbits.net
[mailto:owner-dakota-truck@bent.twistedbits.net] On Behalf Of Eric
Sent: Saturday, July 11, 2009 9:46 PM
To: dakota-truck@dakota-truck.net
Subject: Re: DML: removing upper shock nut on 99 Dak 2wd
This one is just 2 flats (like they smashed the stud to get them),
so no regular socket fits it. And all 5 of my vice grips wouldn't
catch properly (either too big of a curve, or wouldn't fit in the
space).
According to a service guy i talked to today, the manufacturers
stopped using those years ago in favor of hex shaped studs (like
yours). He also said he hasn't seen the tool at regular shops in a
while, either. Had to get his tool from snap on.
I wish the replacement shocks had a hex: i would have just split
the nut to get the old ones out.
Anyway, I just decided to let them change them (it's pretty
cheap). I just don't have time to wait for an online tool order to
get here, and i don't want to mangle the new ones to get them in
there.
Thanks for the tip: that's a good way to do it for the other kind.
Eric
> If it's anything like a Neon (and it looks like it), just buy a
> big enough 1/2" drive deep well socket to fit the nut, then use a
> grinder to grind some wrench flats on the side of the socket
> body. Then you put the socket that fits the top of the shaft of
> the shock on, then you slide the big socket over the top of that,
> and slide a proper extension through the hole in the large
> socket. Then you use the inner socket to keep the shaft from
> spinning while using your freshly ground wrench flats to turn the
> socket and thus the nut. Works removing and installing.
>
> MattB
> Eric wrote:
> > So, is the upper shock stud tool needed ?
> >
> > Here's an example:
> >
> > http://media.popularmechanics.com/images/tb_lg_tb_9912AUSMC.jpg
> >
> > I have so far not been able to get the shock nut off w/o this
> > tool. I tried vice grips, etc, but can't get them to stay,
> > partly because of not having enough space.
> >
> > There isn't a rust issue or anything like that.
> >
> > Either i am being a doofus or this is actually harder than it
> > should be.
> >
> > No one here has it, and the store guys say "just grab the shaft
> > below the mount". But there is no way to get anything to the
> > shaft since it is buried in the coil spring up in the control
> > arm "dome".
> >
> > And i don't want to do that to the new one, anyway.
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