Pilot bushing removal is no fun

[PanhandleShantyman]

Recent bad noises while changing gears convinced me it was time to replace my clutch, and I decided as long as I had the drivetrain out of my '69 i6 250 3OTT, I'd replace the pilot bushing as everybody recommends because "it's only a $10 part" and you might as well do the extra few minutes of work to replace the bushing.

Well so far this dang bushing from Hades has cost me over a day of messing with it and I still don't have it out. I first bought the pilot bushing puller from Harbor Freight , but it slips out and doesn't catch it the back of the bushing. I then went to 2 different Autozones to try a different puller, but their pilot bushing puller turns out to be the same tool HF sells, under a different brand name and in a different case. So I try the "grease and bread" method from YouTube, which accomplishes nothing but getting grease and bread all over my garage floor when I try to drive it in with a socket extension and it leaks all around the tool. Then I figure I need a nice tight drive fit on the drive tool to give this the best possible chance, so I then spent an hour sanding down an oak dowel to get the snuggest possible fit to make the hydraulic method work. Still no good. So I went back to HF and bought their slide hammer/bearing puller set. This fits great but makes absolutely no progress on moving the dang bushing. I've given it 1000 hits from the slide hammer and that sucker is not going anywhere. So now between running around from store to store buying tools, and lying on my back under the truck failing to use them effectively, I've spent the better of part of two days on this problem.

At this point I'm considering just giving up, leaving the old bushing, and replacing the clutch etc and getting back to driving my truck. But, I'm worried the HF bushing puller definitely scraped up the inside of the old bushing, and I don't even know what bad things might happen if I leave traces of remnant greasy bread in there... If I just say "to hell with it" and hook everything back up, am I going to have new problems?

Conversely, does anybody have any pro tips on the process of chiseling these bushings out? I've read through all the threads discussing alternative ways of getting these out and clearly that's what I'm down to at this point, if I'm going to get that sucker out of there.

[1970 CST Short Wide]

I’ve used the Bread method a few times with success every time. Not easy just keep at it

You might get a nice sharp bushing spitting chisel and hack away at it. Eventually you’ll get it out

Good Luck

[weq92f]

Originally Posted by PanhandleShantyman

I don't even know what bad things might happen if I leave traces of remnant greasy bread in there

.

That is hilarious.

-Kevin

[RustyPile]

I've been using the following method for over 60 years, and it hasn't failed me yet..

Forget the bread and extension pieces.. My method works better using a metal alignment tool rather the plastic one that now comes with most clutch kits.. Fill the pilot hole with grease. The pilot tool has to fit as snuggly in the bushing as the input shaft of the transmission. Drive the pilot tool into the old bushing. As you drive it in, the bushing will "walk" out. The hydraulic force created by the grease will push the bushing right out. Periodically add more grease to the hole.

[Luke87gt]

I thoroughly enjoyed reading that, why? Because we’ve all been there!

Hang in there, be persistent, and you will get it.

I’ve only done one of these before. I too struggled with the cheap slide hammers not working and I resorted to chiseling it out. It’s been about 20yrs (on a foxbody Mustang) so I can’t quite remember the details but be very careful if you decide to chisel as to not damage the seating surfaces. Good luck and let us know how it turns out.

I’m laughing about fresh baked bread scented burnouts lol

[RichardJ]

I've used grease to remove the bushing for years.

The last bushing I removed was by far the easiest. Just run a tap into the bushing and when it bottoms out, the bushing just slides out with a few more easy turns.