Strut Removal...

[rwhjr]

Ok long story short....

Ive moved and don’t have a bunch of tools at the house still. So someone’s going to come over with some to help.

just wanna make sure I don’t miss anything and have to make a run out to get something specific.

I’ve done them before but I don’t remember specific socket lengths and which ones needed to be deep sockets etc......just need some insight from the guys who are smarter than me on stuff like:

Upper ball joint - 3/4” deep socket
Sway bar end link - 5/16” standard depth
Etc.

Any help is greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!

 

[hodge-xj]

So I know for sure

21mm deep is bj and tre
I think 10mm-13mm is sway link
15mm shallow or box wrench is strut top mounts
I wanna say 1 1/8" is the lower strut bolt. I use a 12" crescent to hold bolt side.

I've changed from oem on most things so sizes are within a mm +/-

 

[rwhjr]

So I know for sure

21mm deep is bj and tre
I think 10mm-13mm is sway link
15mm shallow or box wrench is strut top mounts
I wanna say 1 1/8" is the lower strut bolt. I use a 12" crescent to hold bolt side.

I've changed from oem on most things so sizes are within a mm +/-

Thanks. We grabbed a bunch of sizes +/- the specs you gave and everything worked out.

only hurdle is re-tightening the BJ bc It’s spinning the BJ and I have to use an open end for the nut and a 10mm socket to hold the BJ stem I guess?

 

[hodge-xj]

Thanks. We grabbed a bunch of sizes +/- the specs you gave and everything worked out.

only hurdle is re-tightening the BJ bc It’s spinning the BJ and I have to use an open end for the nut and a 10mm socket to hold the BJ stem I guess?

The bj is tapered, use a long pry bar and stick it into the coil, pry down on the bj as hard as you can and tighten. It should press into the taper enough to keep it from spinning.

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[rwhjr]

Gotcha. Which explains why it could come off without spin...but back on it needs pressed back in. Thanks again.

 

[hodge-xj]

Not a problem bud!

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[Gary2]

Sometime a BFH to thump the side of the spindle to get the upper BJ to come loose and to get the TRE to drop. It don't take much .

 

[rwhjr]

Sometime a BFH to thump the side of the spindle to get the upper BJ to come loose and to get the TRE to drop. It don't take much .

Yeah it took a little convincing to drop down. But the hard part was getting it back on without the BJ itself spinning.

Then once I did what HodgeXJ said....it went back on like a breeze. Just didn’t think to do that at first.

 

[rwhjr]

The goal was to get a little more of the rake out of the trucks stance. I’ve had a 6” lift with the Bils at .7” forever now and decided to put the Bils up higher and it turned out great.

Next step is to actually get the wheels tucked in a little more. Right now it’s got spacers on the wheels (used to have flares). My goal is to get a set of wheels that have the tires just barely sticking out further than the fenders w/o flares.

but getting the Bils adjusted was a lot easier than it’s been to find wheels I want unfortunately.

 

[hodge-xj]

Yeah it took a little convincing to drop down. But the hard part was getting it back on without the BJ itself spinning.

Then once I did what HodgeXJ said....it went back on like a breeze. Just didn’t think to do that at first.

Sometimes it's the stupid tricks that are obvious in hindsight.

Truck looks great!

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[olyelr]

Why not just take the spacers out if you want the tires lined up with the fenders?

 

[Gary2]

If you jack up the lower control arm some and stick a pry bar into the spring and put a little down pressure on the top of the upper control arm the BJ won't spin and can tighten the nut easily. Using an impact gun you can easily remove and install it in less than an hour if the OE spring needs to be swapped. Dont tighten the lower strut until you have the weight of the vehicle on it like any of the components with the clevite type bushings in it . It don't hurt to coat that bolt with synthetic brake lube to help prevent the botl from seizing to the sleeve before hand also .

 

[rwhjr]

Why not just take the spacers out if you want the tires lined up with the fenders?

The oem wheel’s backspacing with the tire won’t let that be the case or else I’d do that. The tires rub the knuckles.

I need appropriately basckspaced wheels to get them where I want them at this point. Which is no big deal if I could fine a set I like. I’m getting closer now that I’ve determined I like the “less wheel-more tire” look.

 

[rwhjr]

Do you guys think 75-100miles will hurt anything before alignment after this Bilstein adjustment?

I wouldn’t think it would...but I’ve typically aligned the truck right after mods and never had to wonder.

Monday’s the soonest I can get it aligned and might have to use it today. Then obviously I’d have the mikes driving to the shop Monday.

 

[olyelr]

The oem wheel’s backspacing with the tire won’t let that be the case or else I’d do that. The tires rub the knuckles.

Ah, I figured such.

Do you guys think 75-100miles will hurt anything before alignment after this Bilstein adjustment?

I wouldn’t think it would...but I’ve typically aligned the truck right after mods and never had to wonder.

Monday’s the soonest I can get it aligned and might have to use it today. Then obviously I’d have the mikes driving to the shop Monday.

Nah. I adjusted the fox struts I put on my wifes denali about 5k miles ago and have yet to get it realigned yet lol. Its way out of alignment, but still drives straight. Cupping the tires a bit now, but they were soon due for replacement anyway so it wasnt a big concern to me. A few hundred miles wont be a huge deal.

 

[GIJoe2010]

For wheels with a more flush fitment, you should be looking at a +0 offset, and that’s running a 11.5 to 12.5” wide tire.

You might still want flares, something like the 1“ wide 2500 style flares just in case as you still may chuck rocks/dirt/mud up the side of the truck, but it’s your call.