problems pulling bed off
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problems pulling bed off
hey..im pulling the bed off my 87 f-150 4x4 standard cab longbed and ive got a problem.....all the bolts are so rusted that i had to get the breaker bar out, and i get them to spin but the rivets in the bed are spinning too. what is the easiest way to remove them....i was thinking an air cutter and try to cut the heads off the rivets, rather than the nuts at the bottom...??? thanks
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okay...just got back from harbor tools with an air cutter....i dont have a torch so ill try the cutter after the carolina vs. fla gators game.....ill check back later for any more ideas and post back later if and how i got them off...thanks...................................... .go *****!.......
Post Fiend
Joined: Oct 2003
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From: New Jersey
If the bed it shot and being replaced, you can use a 1" or 1-1/8" diameter hole saw to bore around the bolt head into the softer, thinner steel of the bed rather than trying to drill and grind the bolt out. Take the centering bit out of the hole saw and use the edges of the bed bolt to guide the hole saw.
An air grinder with a carbide bit makes easy work of this too, from above or underneath. Though a 4-1/2" angle grinder works too. A friend and I removed his F150's bed that way... all the bolts spun, so we ground the nuts and the bottom of the bolts off. Took a while, as the bolts/nuts are grade 5 or 8.
An air grinder with a carbide bit makes easy work of this too, from above or underneath. Though a 4-1/2" angle grinder works too. A friend and I removed his F150's bed that way... all the bolts spun, so we ground the nuts and the bottom of the bolts off. Took a while, as the bolts/nuts are grade 5 or 8.
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From: MN - NW of Twin Cities
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ok guys...thanks for all the replys.....i got three of the six out with an impact...the other 3 spun....so i just cut the bolt heads into a little square and took a hammer to them. they then fell down into the softer metal as fredric said aout 4 or 5 inches. I was then able to hop underneath and cut the bottoms off above the nut, got the cherry picker and a tow strap, hooked the strap on two corners of the bed, lifted up(from the side of the bed), spun the cherry picker out 90 degrees, and set the bed down sideways on the bed of my little nissan pickup. Backed the pickup into the backyard, and slid the bed off....didnt even need a hand to get this done.(when i lifted the bed, i did have to jack the rear of the truck and slide it over a foot or two so the legs of the picker would swing clear of the rear tire)
now the frames got pretty bad surface rust...so im looking into wirebrushing it, and getting some eastwood rust encapsulator (black)
i wonder if ill need to buy the gallon they sell, or if a quart will do?? thanks
now the frames got pretty bad surface rust...so im looking into wirebrushing it, and getting some eastwood rust encapsulator (black)
i wonder if ill need to buy the gallon they sell, or if a quart will do?? thanks
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From: nevada
All of the above mentioned will work, I once took the bed off of a '57 Apache with rusty bolts too. Just used a drill bit to drill the heads off. Start with a small one to keep a larger drill bit in the center. then you just knock the threaded part thru the bed and frame.
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well...ive got the frame painted with eastwood rust encapsulator , and i think it looks really great! ive got before and after pictures on my computer, but i cant figure out how to post them...if i can get some guidence on this issue i will post the pictures for those interested...thanks
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From: North Central Rural Sask.
I had a propane tank in the back of my 91 ford, and had two rusty bolts, the way I got them out was I took a plasma and cut the bolts off from underneath. It worked pretty good, not quite as good as a torch, but I didnt have access to one.
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hey all....i know this is an old post but i finally got some pictures of the project on the computer....just click on the picture by my name and ive got a gallery set up....thanks (yes it took me this long to figure out how to get some pictures on here)
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