Steering wheel stuck, seriously. (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter Maestro
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- Thread starter
- #42
Absolutely not. I wouldn't use any of these options in anything but moderation. I'm desperate, but I am going to go about it all correctly. I admit, I did crank on the puller too much the first time. i should have known as soon as the bolts were bending and the puller was twisting, that it was no good to keep trying. But I've never done this before, so I followed what everyone was saying on the internet. I know, that's not the best advice source, but lots of people say that a few good whacks with a hammer make a stuck wheel pop off, so I whacked it. They also said crank on it hard and it will just pop off. Anyway, none of that worked in my case, so I'll try to tap the holes, if there is any doubt about the threads being big enough, I'll helicoil before pulling on it. I'm going to try pulling and only do additional steps if the previous one fails. Not gonna just go all out and start tearing things up. My goal is to remove and reuse all these parts, not destroy them. That's why I finally came here to post and ask for help, because I know y'all here would appreciate why I want to preserve my parts and also know the little details about cruisers the folks on the other auto forums don't. I think my plan is sound, I just gotta get that puller milled out to fit my wheel and tap the puller holes before I can even try anything again. Ah, the joys of owning a 50 years old truck!
Well spoken. First , keep the faith. Next , use good judgment. Be patient. Use Kroil and remember 50 years is not turned around in a week. Get the correct puller , as you know what is needed, and take your time. Rewards will follow.
- Thread starter
- #44
I got a Craftsman now. The HF one actually looks like it would work really well, but this Craftsman is a steering wheel puller, not a universal puller like the HF harmonic balancer puller. This one is thick, straight and meant only for pulling steering wheels, so it's the right tool. Only problem is that I have to machine it to get it to work. I'm going to take only the bare minimum of steel off for the bolts to go in straight, with an endmill that is very close to the size of the M8 bolts. This way the bolts will also have extra support to keep them straight. I don't think I can get a better setup than that. I'll upload some photos tomorrow of the parts as I get things accomplished. Again, thanks for the moral support. I don't want to admit it, but I kinda needed it!
Maestro, I have the craftsman as well and used it on my 1969 wheel to change the turn signal indicator. Keep the faith and be patient and I believe that will win for you.
- Thread starter
- #46
Did the Craftsman have enough clearance for your puller bolt holes out of the box? This is my second tool that wouldn't fit the wheel properly. I took a square with me to Sears to double check the center bolt on the puller in case there were many options. I did check it with the square before purchasing, but it turned out that it was the only one they had in stock. I didn't think to take a scale to check the clearance of the puller bolts because I knew I could just machine it if necessary. I was still surprised that two pullers purchased didn't work out of the box for me. Maybe some time between '66 and '69, they changed the distance between the holes?
thebigredrocker
SILVER Star
Geez... no beer
no whiskey until the wheel is off
You could slice a cheap double walled steel coffee mug.
no whiskey until the wheel is off
You could slice a cheap double walled steel coffee mug.
Well, yes, my puller is fine for my 1969. However, I got my tools in the early 1990s and my steering wheel was removed about 1997. So, if all is the same , you should be fine . Keep looking forward and the past is just memory and learning.
MOTOV8R
SILVER Star
The purpose of the chisel is to vibrate it in order to break it loose. The impact driver would be trying to turn the center bolt and seems like it could do some damage.
morganism
SunkCostFallacy
If Kroil can't get in there, nothing else will.
If you have a regular hammer drill, put in the socket attachment, and TIGHTEN the bolt back on, to try and get some breathing room for the Kroil.
If you have a regular hammer drill, put in the socket attachment, and TIGHTEN the bolt back on, to try and get some breathing room for the Kroil.
- Thread starter
- #51
Well...
I got on making a reverse chaser for the shaft to fix the first damaged thread today. I have a thread chaser kit, but the chaser just wouldn't start on the shaft. So this little guy turned out really well, actually. I bought a wheel nut, cut the whole tapered top half off so I had basically a hex nut left. Drilled four holes through the threads and cut the thing in half. My plan was to just wrap them around the base of the shaft, grip em with an adjustable box wrench and thread it off the shaft. I was excited until I put them on the shaft and saw that the nut was too small. I bought a M12x1.5 wheel nut for sure. I checked it with a known M12x1.5 and it is the right nut, but the shaft is bigger. Now I know why the chaser wouldn't start, it wasn't because the shaft is too damaged, it's just the wrong darn size. And I measured the OD of the shaft, but the wheel made it really hard to get a mic in there. My readings were just over 12mm, but the mic wasn't really that straight, so I figured 0.3mm was just because I wasn't perfectly straight. Today I got an OD caliper on there real carefully, and it looks a lot more like 12.4mm or so, which makes sense for a worn 12.5mm thread.
I checked the shaft with a gauge and it was definitely 1.5. So I ran it up the shaft anyway. Since the pitch was right, it made a little contact and did clean up the first thread a lot, but the original nut still won't go on because it was messed up to begin with. Now I'm searching for anything that uses a m12.5x1.5. Found some links claiming to be 12.5x1.5 wheel studs and nuts, but when I look up the vehicles they go on, the specs are m12x1.5. I'm stumped. Has anyone else come across this size fastener? I know it exists, because I can find taps for it, but it's real specialty type of stuff. I guess all I can do now is call Toyota in the morning and see if they have this retaining nut and buy one and an extra to make another chaser out of if I need to. But if this steering shaft is supposed to be m12x1.5, maybe the PO could have gotten this shaft off something else? And how would Toyota find the part if this isn't to spec? Like I said, I'm stumped. I could probably get the original nut on there, but it doesn't feel good, so I'm not gonna force it.
I got on making a reverse chaser for the shaft to fix the first damaged thread today. I have a thread chaser kit, but the chaser just wouldn't start on the shaft. So this little guy turned out really well, actually. I bought a wheel nut, cut the whole tapered top half off so I had basically a hex nut left. Drilled four holes through the threads and cut the thing in half. My plan was to just wrap them around the base of the shaft, grip em with an adjustable box wrench and thread it off the shaft. I was excited until I put them on the shaft and saw that the nut was too small. I bought a M12x1.5 wheel nut for sure. I checked it with a known M12x1.5 and it is the right nut, but the shaft is bigger. Now I know why the chaser wouldn't start, it wasn't because the shaft is too damaged, it's just the wrong darn size. And I measured the OD of the shaft, but the wheel made it really hard to get a mic in there. My readings were just over 12mm, but the mic wasn't really that straight, so I figured 0.3mm was just because I wasn't perfectly straight. Today I got an OD caliper on there real carefully, and it looks a lot more like 12.4mm or so, which makes sense for a worn 12.5mm thread.
I checked the shaft with a gauge and it was definitely 1.5. So I ran it up the shaft anyway. Since the pitch was right, it made a little contact and did clean up the first thread a lot, but the original nut still won't go on because it was messed up to begin with. Now I'm searching for anything that uses a m12.5x1.5. Found some links claiming to be 12.5x1.5 wheel studs and nuts, but when I look up the vehicles they go on, the specs are m12x1.5. I'm stumped. Has anyone else come across this size fastener? I know it exists, because I can find taps for it, but it's real specialty type of stuff. I guess all I can do now is call Toyota in the morning and see if they have this retaining nut and buy one and an extra to make another chaser out of if I need to. But if this steering shaft is supposed to be m12x1.5, maybe the PO could have gotten this shaft off something else? And how would Toyota find the part if this isn't to spec? Like I said, I'm stumped. I could probably get the original nut on there, but it doesn't feel good, so I'm not gonna force it.
- Thread starter
- #53
Yes, that's totally posible, and precisely what I thought happened, especially after the original nut was really tough to get off the last couple threads. So I took an OD caliper to the lowest section of the threads, and it's over 12mm, not much, but over. Fasteners can't be anything over the nominal size, so the fact that it's over, it can't be 12mm. I can't imagine anyone whacked it hard enough to get the lower part to get larger. I initially ran a a 12x1.5 chaser through the original nut before i bouggt the wheel nut, and it was really sloppy. I assumed it was just damaged from PO.
- Thread starter
- #54
Not to mention, the pic of the chaser shows it at the bottom of the shaft. I cut it with a hacksaw, so that gap should be almost touching between the two halves, especially on a worn thread. When I put it on the chaser, it has only the thickness of the hacksaw blade between them. It's clearly bigger to me.
rkymtnflyfisher
Trout Bum
That distance certainly could expand the metal. I believe your shaft is a taper from abuse.
- Thread starter
- #58
More precise numbers... At the very end of the shaft, it measures around 12.7mm. At the bottom, it's around 12.45mm. To me, it seems more like a 12.5mm thread, lightly damaged at the bottom, but still in spec, and 0.25mm mushroomed at the very top. I might have access to a 12.5x1.5 tap and die tomorrow, won't know until lunch time.
I whacked it with a lightweight hammer pretty good a handful of times, but in the awkward position I was in on the ground reaching up into the truck, I didn't have any way to hit it very hard with only about 1ft windup. The only way I could imagine the PO deformed it that badly is if he used serious tools, like an impact wrench or maybe a jackhammer it he took the top off! And honestly, I knew him well, I could actually picture him doing either of those two things. But 0.45mm at the bottom of the shaft is serious squishing. I should mention that my thread gauge matches up perfectly with the threads everywhere except the very top thread, maybe thread and a half. That much squishing of metal should have crunched up the threads too, so that makes me think deformation is unlikely. However, I must admit I have never inspected a shaft end that was definitely deformed like that, so I am not one to provide any sort of professional opinion. I do work on machines for a living, but nothing that would be subjected to that kind of treatment.
Edit to add: Getting those measurements was really hard. The end of my digital calipers hits the wheel. Using a traditional OD caliper, I took the diameter and measured it. I don't think my tolerances were very good, so my numbers could be skewed, but that's the best I could get. If the shaft is really deformed that badly, it's quite possible the wheel is so tight it will never come off in one piece.
I whacked it with a lightweight hammer pretty good a handful of times, but in the awkward position I was in on the ground reaching up into the truck, I didn't have any way to hit it very hard with only about 1ft windup. The only way I could imagine the PO deformed it that badly is if he used serious tools, like an impact wrench or maybe a jackhammer it he took the top off! And honestly, I knew him well, I could actually picture him doing either of those two things. But 0.45mm at the bottom of the shaft is serious squishing. I should mention that my thread gauge matches up perfectly with the threads everywhere except the very top thread, maybe thread and a half. That much squishing of metal should have crunched up the threads too, so that makes me think deformation is unlikely. However, I must admit I have never inspected a shaft end that was definitely deformed like that, so I am not one to provide any sort of professional opinion. I do work on machines for a living, but nothing that would be subjected to that kind of treatment.
Edit to add: Getting those measurements was really hard. The end of my digital calipers hits the wheel. Using a traditional OD caliper, I took the diameter and measured it. I don't think my tolerances were very good, so my numbers could be skewed, but that's the best I could get. If the shaft is really deformed that badly, it's quite possible the wheel is so tight it will never come off in one piece.
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- Thread starter
- #59
Maybe tomorrow I will call Toyota and ask for the retaining nut. I can see how many different part numbers they have for different years and take the one that is supposed to be right. Then, just go ahead and rethread the shaft with a die. I got the puller hole cleaned up today, the bolt will thread all the way in, almost perfectly straight, with a slight angle outward. I'm talking like 0.25mm wider at the end of a 4 inch bolt. I think that's gotta be good enough. So all that's left is to get a nut on the shaft and try pulling. Oddly enough, I had to kroil and heat a part on a machine shaft yesterday to get it off at work. So I had a little practice that "warmed" me up to pull this thing.
Hi, This happens to all of us ,getting parts apart, my 40 year old Craftsman puller has never failed me. Get it on straight ,soak the wheel every day morning and night . Try to turn even a little bit each time you soak it , don't rush . I've had bolts and nuts take 2 weeks to remove. Yes it's slow but easier than sourcing new parts. Find something else on the cruiser to work on at the same time , you know something else needs fixing ! One day when your about to give up it will just pop loose. Mike
