I used PB Blaster over and over on the bolts holding the axles on. I tried heat and a hammer to try and get the bolts holding the axle loose. None of my efforts got them to budge even slightly. It was time to get creative or Medieval, the present course of action was not working.
So out comes the Sawzall and off come the bolts. With the Milwaukee brand blade called "The Torch" the bolts came off in about forty five seconds each. I should have just gone this route right from the start. I had a floor jack under the axle, but it did not drop. I proceeded to pound on it with my biggest hammer until finally it dropped out.
At this point one axle has been removed. Now if I can make some time, I will put the new one on and next do the back axle. That should go much faster, for I will know exactly what needs to be done. I probably could have gotten the front axle on, but I hit a little snag.
Now that the old running gear is out of the way, I can clearly see that this is not going to be a direct change out. None of the bolt holes line up with any of the holes in the bracket. I will have to drill four new holes per axle. I had better buy a good quality drill bit. Good thing I saved about $800, I feel I can easily afford even one bit per hole.
Unfortunately the axle swap will have to wait a couple days now. I am off first thing sunday morning to help a good friend move and the bring back my other trailer, the 1954 Safari. I am also going to bring back some bathroom wardrobes for a 1961 Ambassador. They need to be worked on and veneered. You can read about that project on my Frank's Trailer Works Blog in a couple of days.
2 comments:
"I feel I can easily afford even one bit per hole."
Frank,
You may recall that I had to drill holes to mount my axles. FWIW, one 5/8" drill bit was sufficient for the whole task. I did, however, drill smaller starter holes at each location. 1/4" IIRC.
Tom
No way Tom, you must have a 5/8" hammer drill to perform such a task!
;-)
-Marcus
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