Anyone know of the best way to replace the inner CV bolts? See circled in the picture?
I'm in the middle of installing a Blazeland kit in the front and this is the first time I have ever had to pull the CV axles. Those bolts seemed to be pressed in and if they were removable it would make replacing them a whole lot easier, especially on the trail if I ever need to.

Was hoping someone knows of an easy way to get them out. If I can i would just replace them with some grade 8 bolts that would slide in and out.

 

Knock em out with a brass punch.

If you grind the retaining splines that are on them a little, you can reuse the original bolts.

 

Thank you!!

 

Or use a large (12"), quality C-clamp and a socket to slowly "press" them out. Lots of PB Blaster will be your friend, and eye protection (just in case).

 

I just screwed the nut partially on the ends to protect the threads, then gave them a whack with a hammer. After they were out I ever so slightly ground down the splines so they are more easily removable in the future.

 

I cheated I popped them out with the Air Hammer and put new bolts with metal lock nuts

 

They are studs not bolts. Same concept as the studs that hold your wheels on with lug nuts. You should be able to leave the studs in place and loosen the nuts to remove the CVs. The CV has a bit of plunge at the inner tripod / barrel that you should be able to push or compress the plunge enough to clear the studs.

However the steeper the angle you set your control arms, or the more you crank in the lift, the more you collapse the plunge of the CV the less likely they will clear the studs. When the control arms are flat and the cams pushing the LCAs out for negative camber you should be clearing the studs / CVs.

For trail fixes and ease of access removing the studs and modification as described will make it access easier. I know a lot of folks do it but you do compromise the connection. Think it through, would you want to modify the wheel studs for holding the wheels on? Probably not the best idea.

If your having trouble getting the CVs in or out, I think its better to spend a little extra effort to shim a block of wood under the droop stop then jack the truck pop off the (4) bolts at the lower BJ and swing the spindle out enough so the CV flange clears the studs. Yeah I know this is a whole lot more work and on the trail may be an issue.

 

Seriously? Just how often have you replaced a half-shaft "on the trail" so far? How many spare half-shafts (and drive-shafts and lower control arms and relay rods ....) do you plan to carry with you?

Actually, they're more than studs, they're shoulder bolts. The "smooth" part that contacts the flange is precision ground to fit very closely and keep the flange from twisting back and forth. Replacing these shoulder bolts would be more like replacing the wheel nuts with plain-ole hardware-store nuts. Would you do that?

I suspect that the usual candidate for "removing" these shoulder bolts is someone who couldn't figure out how to remove the half-shaft, got really impatient, and took a sledge hammer to his truck. You don't want to be that guy.

 

I removed them without taking the bolts out but there is no doubt they would be easier to remove especially out on the trail if they were removable.

 

Mine were all buggered up from the last owner

Think I should order a bunch of the studs and change them all.??

Then I have been known to use bolts instead of studs in my younger days

 

Scope103, Thanks for the clarification on terms. I was not sure if stud was the correct term but shoulder bolts makes sense since its like a stud but instead of a round head it has a hex head. I know when I am tightening the nuts I use the hex head on the bolt as a wrench contact point to counter act the turning force to the nut.

I personally never did a trail repair on a CV. I broke one but it was at the end of the day near the trail head so I unlocked the hubs and drove home in 2wd. Then I fixed it a couple of days later in the comfort of the garage.

If your a trail junkie and have manual hubs and frequently breaking CVs maybe its an option? If you break a CV in a hairy point of the trail it may be a god send to have a spare to swap out. Anyway, I think from here on out you can make up your own mind on what to do. Best of luck!

 

I don't want to get too tied up on terms. The point I was trying to make is that the outer diameter of the "shoulder bolt" or "stud" is precise, and replacing it with a hardware-store bolt means the flange will instead be resting on threads: an imprecise fit. Then, the only thing keeping the flanges from twisting against each other is friction, and twisting at that point very likely could break a half-shaft.

BlazeN8 does make a good point; if you DO break a half-shaft on the trail, mostly it's a matter of driving home in 2wd. Think of everything else that could break; you're not going to drive home with a hole in the gas tank. How many spares DO you carry?

 

Yeah think I'll leave them alone. lol

 

Wow..... grinding the splines down is just a bad idea. you can go back and forth on the merits, but at the end of the day, they are designed to seat as hard as they do fora reason. I've replaced plenty because of loose splines, so I don't see the point. 4# hammer isn't big at all, and should swap them out even on the trail. I just think grinding to let the studs slip is just a bad idea. once you've replaced the studs I have, these are a piece of cake.