Removing rear strut rods

[Steve G.]

Am in the process of doing a frame off resto on my 1970.

I took the whole rear end assembly out from under the frame. I am looking for advice as to how to remove the rear strut rods. Is the lower shock mount threaded onto the bolt that holds the strut at the end near the wheel? How do I remove that end? I got the nut off of the end near the pumpkin. I had no luck turning the head of the bolt to try to walk the bolt out of that end. In fact, the bolt is very difficult to turn, even though the nut is off. Should I hit the end of the bolt with hammer to get it free or am I going about it wrong?

Couple other questions... Are the trailing arm bushings pressed in? Any advice for getting them out?

The cross member that holds the pumpkin is shock isolated from the frame - I removed one bolt from each end of the cross member. But the cross member won't budge. Is there a trick to removing it and replacing the large rubber spacers, or should I just leave that cross member be and tape off / bead blast around the bushings? Steve

[Jim T.]

Re: Removing rear strut rods

Steve there are lots of posts in the archives on how to remove the crossmember you are asking about. Good information from members who have done it and mistakes you don't want to make.

Look at the bottom of your original post for strut rod removal and in the archives.

[Edward J.]

Re: Removing rear strut rods

Steve, The Rear Shock Requires A Special Tool To Hammer Out The Mount, It Threads Onto The Mount, Sometimes After A Few Years Of Rust They Can Be Stuborn, The Upper Mounts That Attach To Frame Are Something I Would Leave In Place If There In Good Shape And Clean Up Around Them. The Next Thing -to Remove The Rear Diff. Cross Member Will Require A Pry Bar They Also Tend To Rust To The Frame. Steve Where In Mass. Are You I Do Have The Tool If Your Close Enough To Me You Could Borrow It. Otherwise Its Only About 15-20 Bucks

[Steve G.]

Re: Removing rear strut rods

Thanks Ed. I just sent you a PM. Steve