I had read how many people had difficulty removing the drain plug so I approached the task with a bit of trepidation. I noticed that the drain plug was a bit shallow and didn't offer much surface area for the allen head to grip, hence making it easy to strip. I scored an allen head socket set (from Harbor Freight for about $18) since I wanted something I could get a 1/2" drive breaker bar on. To gain the maximum amount of bit contact/grip surface, I ground down the face of the bit to remove the taper that allows easier insertion. This pic shows the ground bit along side an unmodified bit:



Note that the taper costs you around 1/32" of grip along the side of the bit and about 3/16" at the corners. Not good. After throughly cleaning the inside of the drain plug (oil and dirt are the enemy of grip), I inserted the tool and gave a healthy shove on the breaker bar. A resounding "snap" and that puppy was loose. I breathed a sigh of relief.

You could easily make your own bit by sawing off the tip of a 12mm allen head wrench and inserting it into a socket (preferably a 6 point). The shorter the bit the better since length makes the bit want to tilt and not remain square in the drain plug.

 

good idea

 

Not a bad idea......but I'm just not going to grind any pieces in my snap-on allen socket set. As long as you clean the head on the fill plug out well so the bit doesn't bottom out prematurely, you shouldn't have any trouble getting it to come out. Mine was pretty rusted and it still came out fine with a little muscle. Once you do get it out, drain/refill and reinstall the plug, gob a bunch of bearing grease in the head so you don't get any more rusting (if that is an issue where you live).

 

i thought the plug was 10mm? i've got em in 1/2" and 3/4" drive...so braking it should be a problem...

good tip on filling the head with grease though..

 

out of curiosity...why not?

 

On 3rd gens from 1996-1998, the front diff plugs use a 10mm and 12mm for the drain and fill plugs.
For 1999-2002, the drain and fill plugs are both 10mm.

 

I don't blame MTL_4Runner for not wanting to grind up his good tools. That is why I had no guilt at all about grinding up Taiwan-made Harbor Freight tools. I was concerned that if the bit slipped just a little once, it would round off the plug enough to doom any subsequent attempts. I sought maximum grip the first try.

 

i can see not wanting to grind up expensive tools, they have some kinda of aura about them...however, griding down that one key so its flat doesnt make it unusable for everything else, it still works the same for everything else. however, i'd be the same way

 

I actually don't blame you because all the harbor freight stuff I've bought has been pretty subpar when you compare it to other brands like IR, Mac, Snap-on, etc. I bought a HF set of air hammer chisels that deform as soon as you use them. Same thing with as set of punches from them. I could go on and on with those type of stories. They are good if you need a one time tool though......and they're so dirt cheap who cares if you mess up a set.

 

I have a couple of "use specific" tools. Just consider it to be a smart investment and buy another.

 

My socket allens are Craftsman. Stole them at an after Xmas sale for like half the normal price. I am about to do my diffs oil changes to MT90. Good tip.

(reminder to self to buy a 12mm socket allen because Craftsman set does not go that hi)

 

careful with the craftsman allen sockets, i find i have twisted quite a few of them, i finally broke down and bought snap-on

 

NAPA sells a pretty good set of allen sockets as well (they have the 12mm individually too).

 

Good idea

 

I don't blame you on that. The grinding can heat the metal to the point it loses the heat treatment.

If you just have a cheap set though, who cares. I doubt the HF tools even have any heat treatment.

 

All joking aside, they don't at all, that's why the chisels and punches deform like butter when impacted vs better tools. I've contemplated trying to re-heat-treat them myself and see if they improved but it's alot of work and it's probably just easier for me to go out and buy better tools.

 

Yeah a good set of tools pay for them selves in the long run when you don't have to replace parts that get ruined by cheap tools. A walmart tool set can have a lifetime warranty but that does not cover the cost of your time when you round that bolt or ruin a expensive part and spend your whole weekend making up for the damage.