hey guys,i got a tuff country 3 inch lift about a week ago. today i went to install the lift when i ran into a problem. when i tried removing the control arms to install the new ones, i could not remove the bolts in the upper control arms. the nuts came off fairly tough, but the bolts would not come out completely. why not? long story short i had to reassemble everything back to stock, and save it for another day.
my friends dad said to put some heat on it,spin the bolt with an impact while beating it will a hammer. if i had to destroy the bolts to get them out i would. i pry could pick some up at my dodge dealer.
any suggestions?

 

About a week before you decide to do this again start spaying all of the bolts with penetrating lube everyday! Heat never hurts either with and impact to spin them. Just be careful if you hammer on them so you don't mushroom the end out. Just be sure to leave the nut on the end so thats what your hitting. Extra bolts to have on hand won't be a bad idea either, you can always take them back. Also if you have a coil compressor have that handy too even thought the directions say you WON'T need one! It deff. made my life easier when I did all 3 of my trucks over the years! Good luck you'll love the look when its done.

 

Pickle fork, or some kind of puller. Go to your local parts store and they should have a rent-a-tool section. Most places will require a deposit, but you get it back after you return the tool. Click here to check out this video

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nevermind what i just said, when i heard control arm I figured it was 2wd. I would unscrew the nut till' the head is flush with the end of the bolt then get someone on the other side with the impact and start the process of beating and spinning. make sure the nut is fully threaded on the bolt and sitting flush, or you will mess up the threads. Make sure all tension weight is off of the control arms also. you may need a punch to get the bolt all the way out

 

thanks for the input guys. the weight should be off the control arms. i did as the directions said.
i had my truck off the ground on jack stands and two floor jacks under the axles when i took the shocks out.
i dont think ill have problems removing the springs because i never even lowered on any of the jacks and the springs were like wobbling and almost wanted to come out before i even lowered the axle the 4 inches.
my buddys dad told me for my truck being a 96 that the bolts are probably bonded with the rubber bushings and thats why they are giving me problems.
thanks the im gunna try some pb blaster, heat, impact,and hammer and i should probably get them out.
thanks!

 

Will close this for now, you can reopen it again if you need to. Good Luck Dan.