help! broken center bolt in carrier

[rojizostang]

okay....i know there was a thread about this a while ago, but i can't find it. that little 5/16 bolt that holds the center pin in the carrier...it's broken off and i can't get the center pin out. it doesn't appear to be very tight, but i can't get it out nonetheless...

what's the best course of action?

i got a bad feeling about this

 

[Black Baby II]

Any way to drill and get an easy out in there ?

 

[rojizostang]

i would have to have a drill bit about 12 inches long. there's too much interference with the housing to get a drill motor in there straight enough to drill a hole in the broken piece.

i was thinking of using a sledge hammer and try to shear the bolt off by driving the pin out....but that doesn't seem like a very good idea either

 

[Black Baby II]

RU talking about the small 8 or 9 mm shaft locking bolt ?

Damn, that is going to be a bitch getting at this. What state are you in right now. Are you reassembling or still dis-assembling ?

Do you have access to a 90 deg. drill head unit ?

 

[rojizostang]

yes, it's 5/16. i can put it all back together if i have to and go to a shop, but i'm thinking now about taking the whole housing from under the car.

my plan is to add extra clutches in the lsd

 

[Black Baby II]

If you can't get a hold of it some how on the broken part or get a 90 deg drill into it to then run an easy out I don't know ?

Did it snap below the surface or do you have something to work with ?

 

[Natural1]

Damn, you might need a right angle drill and a left handed drill bit. That way you can run the drill in reverse and it will extract the bolt. The right angle drill will give you room to drill it out. If you need a long bit (around 12" or more), it's called an aircraft extension bit.

 

[rojizostang]

let me ask this...if i can pry the s spring up enough, is there enough room for the c clips to fall out and then remove the axles? if i can get the axles out, then i can just remove the carrier and then it would be simple to remove the broken piece.

 

[Natural1]

No, the center pin must come out. Then you push the axles in toward the carrier and pull the c-clips off. You must remove the center pin.

 

[Natural1]

Do you know anyone who is a Machinist, by trade. I am/was, but I am 250mi away.

 

[rojizostang]

Do you know anyone who is a Machinist, by trade. I am/was, but I am 250mi away.

no...i just really can't come up with an idea for drilling out the bolt, at least not with the tools i have. i suppose i'll make a trip to lowe's or home depot to find a right angle drill. at least it's not my dd so i'm not panicking..

 

[ArtQ]

If it's just the bolt head try this.

If the pin end of the bolt has sheared in the pin. You may be able to tap the pin out.

 

[Natural1]

Dude, go have a cold one, and I will pm you later.

 

[rojizostang]

it appears to be broken just like the picture in the link. i suppose i'll be ordering one....thanks for the link...unless natural1 has another idea

 

[bushmasterbob]

I cant really picture how the bolt is situated in there, but anyway of mig welding a nut on whats left of the bolt? I used to do this alot when I was a marine mechanic...Hope that helps

 

[rojizostang]

I cant really picture how the bolt is situated in there, but anyway of mig welding a nut on whats left of the bolt? I used to do this alot when I was a marine mechanic...Hope that helps

no, it's recessed about 1/2" inside the carrier housing. the other end of the bolt/pin is enclosed by the center pin.

 

[rojizostang]

okay i think i have this deal figured out. after viewing the link from rench (thanks bro) i made my own extractor. i took the old bolt that was broken off and ground the broken part down flat. i center punched the very end of the bolt and then drilled an 1/8'' hole length wise from one end of the bolt to the other. then i went to home depot and found a drill bit (1/8) about 12'' long and the matching easy out. the metal the bolt is made out of is really soft and drilled out easily. i believe that there will be no problem threading my home made guide in to the bolt hole and then drilling out the remainder of the broken bolt and then backing it out with an easy out.

i just didn't want to wait for 3 or 4 days for the kit to be delivered. i would like to finish the clutch pack install on saturday....

 

[ArtQ]

That's pretty much the kit....Nice work.

 

[Natural1]

Nice work! I was at the Houston Rodeo waiting on friends. Basically, I was going to send you the same thing as the extractor kit by sending you a bit, bronze sleeve and small extractor. I have all that crap laying around the shop anyway.

 

[rojizostang]

hey, thanks for the help!