Spinnin, spinnin, spinnin...

I'm trying to get these front shocks out and I'm completely stumped.

1. Remove top nut on swaybar end link.
2. Lift truck and place floor jack under the LCA to compress the spring.
3. Remove ball joint.
4. Attempt to remove the top shock nut from under the hood, ain't happenin.

I've tried putting more lift on the jack and less lift neither makes a difference. I'm fairly certain there's nowhere to place a wrench to hold the shaft steady. What the hell am I missing here???

 

are you using an impact

 

The center one stays. It's the three outer ones that need to come off.

 

...

 

No impact, that would be too easy I'm trying to get as much of my 230 lbs on it. I've got less than 1/8" to go. I'd try taking the 3 upper mount bolts out, but I'm not certain that's the right move. Trying to separate the spring from the shocks and I'm pretty certain that top nut must come off first to relieve the spring compression. I also think the damn AS is screwing me a bit here, with it on it lowers that top bolt down a good bit. Well far enough I can't put an open end wrench and vise grips in there. Back to the sweatshop...

 

Your trying to do it the trucks way without a spring compresser right? The only way to do it really is either an impact or a wrench and an allen in the center ti hold the shaft.

 

OK, disregard my previous statement. I didn't fully understand exactly what you were doing.

 

Yep, the trucks ways, figured it didn't look too hard. Off to the store...gf is out so maybe I can sneak an impact driver home

 

Get a spring compressor, a good one, before you kill yourself.

 

X2!! The reason you can't get the nut off is because there's still too much pressure from the spring.

 

Your way is fine the reason the shaft is spinning is its a lock nut. Just make sure the weight is on the spring when you undo it and then slowly jack the truck up by the frame to take the tension off slowly. if you watched the trucks show youll be fine. Honestly if you havnt done it dont comment telling him not to, not everyone in this world is a dumb as a rock, Ill bet he can handle it. Honestly there isnt that much tension on the spring anyways when I unbolted mine for the like 5th time I didnt even compress the spring at all I just put the shock in a vice and made sure everything was clear just incase sideways and hit the top nut with an impact and when the nut came off the spring just poped off not even with that much force. Dumb I know but I had them apart so many times that I knew what kind of tension was on them and I stood to the side and losely held the impact so I wouldnt break my wrist.

 

With all due respect, I'm not taking a TV show host's words when there's hundreds of pounds of spring pressure with one lock nut seperating my face from that spring.

I don't think you should either, but hey, you're hundreds of miles away from me so I won't get hurt if things go bad.

 

it cant pop at him? it cant go though the coilbucket? I dont think you know what he is trying to do have you seen the show? As long as the bottom bolt is still attached there insnt anywhere for the spring to go but up into the coilbucket, it cant shoot out sideways its still attached to the LCA and anyways I have taken them off first hand and there was no "hundereds of pounds of spring pressure"

 

You can still rent a spring compressor for next to nothing, and it would be safer. But you also won't know until you've tried it.

 

No impact driver so it ain't gonna happen. Took the AS spacer off and reinstalled the coiler, still can't get it. So I'm gonna drop both out and get a compressor or take em somewhere and be done with it.

As for which way is better, you say tomatoe he says tomata, whatever. I respect Quintin opinion and also extrememeethan's. So lessons learned here, don't attempt the trucks way if you don't have an impact driver or the AS installed. Ok, the rain has quit and I'm starvin, thanks everyone for the insights, they were ALL appreciated!