So, I'm sure many are familiar with the hood latch on these trucks getting stuck in limbo between open and closed.. well, it has struck me now. Soooo to save everyone from asking all the standard tricks I'll list what I've done:

prelim: cable works, lever working, hood jammed in the twilight zone of open-closed position.
1. tried working the latch inside simultaneously with the outside. nada
2. tried bouncing on the hood to pop it loose.. nada
3. tried prying the hood.. nada
4. tried pulling the main latch hook.. and did get it to pull and release but still nada.
5. tried swearing at it a lot, many different combinations .. nada
6. tried saying a prayer and walking away.. nada

Now I am at the point of taking the latch off through the razor sharp grill openings.. 10mm socket fits on the bolt but there is not room for ratchet.. even a baby 1/4" drive... every combo of swivels in north america hasn't yielded any benefit. My next attempt will be a gear wrench, though it doesn't feel like there is room to swing it in there.. we shall see.

Any other tricks to removing this badboy? I looked over my '97 that isn't stuck for a reference, on the '97 it looks like theres only 2 10mm bolts holding on the latch setup, I assume that this would be that same for 92-97, correct?

Any tips are better than none, thanks!

 

It has been reported the 2 latch bolts can be reached with a socket and long extension, threw the grill. A swivel joint may be needed also.

 

Wobble extension?

Gear-wrench from underneath?

 

I tried many different wobbly's but the angles are crazy in there so tonight I try a gear wrench.

 

You can use a piece of 3/4 By 3or 4" wood & pry the grill slightly down ,you have nearly a straight shot at the latch bolts . Have a look .

 

if you have a long screw driver you should be able to access a small hook visible to the right side of the latch that you can push to the right and pop the hood. guess I should learn to read I missed you already did that on mine I have to push down on the hood slightly to get the secondary latch to release just a though for what its worth.

 

Thanks for all the replys, turns out a 10mm gear wrench is the way to go. I've seen these get stuck before but never had one this jammed up. Only took about 20 minutes to get the bolts out, if you have burly forearms that seems to be the biggest road block because the grill openings are small so you can't get in there far enough.

 

My 94 f350 got stuck, so I pulled the latch got under wit a piece of steel pipe and a hammer and hit the latch until it popped open.... The truck has 47's on her so it makes it a lil easier haha

 

How did we ever get along before GearWrenches? I remember those clunky old ratcheting box wrenches from the '70s-'80s, real coarse-tooth ratcheting, action wasn't at all smooth, box heads way too big to be useful most places. Current generation of GearWrenches are a godsend.

 

That's no Joke! I have a set just like you're talking about and they are pretty close to pointless unless you're working on nuts and bolts on the bench.