Knuckle busting tranny bolts

[joeymarkgraf]

I've had a hell of a time getting the upper two tranny bolts out of my 81 c-10. Anyone have any input on what is the best way to get to them?

Thanks!

[krue]

I don't know about an 81, but on my 70 I let the rear of the tranny drop enough to get a socket on a couple of feet of extensions on them to the top two bolts.
Be careful not to let your dizzy bind on the firewall, in fact I usually remove the cap to prevent breakage.

[82c10]

get them out from on top of the motor with a wrench, it is what i found was the easiest way

[krue]

May be a good place for a ratchet wrench.

[Col Clank]

1 24" ext + 1 universal + socket = good combo to get it off...

[84slopwaggin]

Hey there mr beaverman. I had the same trouble you have when I did my engine swap. This is one of the reasons people say pull engine and tranny together. My buddy who has vast experience doing auto work gave me one of those specific mechanics tools. Sears has them as well as harborfrieght tools and others as well. Here is a link so you know what to look for. These will save you time, money, bolts, and knuckles. One of these will get the job complete. I'm ordering a set out of Sears Catalog tomorrow. The ones made by Craftsman sell for $70.00. It's a seven piece set. This price is only good though using the catalog or online purchasing. You only need one. The one I used was a six point socket, but I'm sure the twelve point will work just as well. These are a must have when working in very tight places, and when you need to get a good amount of torque on a bolt to loosen it.

http://www.sears.com/sr/javasr/produ...seBVCookie=Yes

[N2TRUX]

Originally Posted by krue;

I don't know about an 81, but on my 70 I let the rear of the tranny drop enough to get a socket on a couple of feet of extensions on them to the top two bolts......

That's how I did it too...

[us111]

same here,enough extension to reach past end of tranny,you can lay back there and eyeball bolt's..

[edman87]

wobble extension bars or the flex head gearwrench. Dropping the rear of the tranny helps a lot also.

[piecesparts]

There are two ways, the first is to climb on top of the motor and use a box end wrench for the two top ones. The second (My choice as of late) is to get a few extensions that will put you at the tailshaft of the tranny, with at ratchet and loosen them from there. It works fine that way and there really is no need for a wobble joint if you are long enough on your extensions. I don't even have to take the rear cross member loose.

As for supporting your tranny while the motor is out, I took a 1 1/4" X 3/8" flat bar and C-clamped it to the frame on both sides of the truck (it runs under the tranny oil pan), to which I drilled and then welded two nuts in the areas just below the tranny pan lips. I then ran about 12" of 3/8" " ALL-THREAD bolting through the nuts and now i can adjust the tranny up or down to meet the motor and hold it while the motor is out. The all-thread has two nuts (double notted together) on the outer end to make a bolt head.

When it is time to lower the motor into the truck, I raise the tranny and that allows for mating the pins in the bck to the tranny easier. This is better than wood blocks or chains around the frame. It also allows me to move the truck around in the shop.

[krue]

Another tip if you pull the tranny and leave the engine and are reinstalling the tranny. Take two 6" long starter bolts and cut the heads off with a cutoff wheel. Flatten the sides on the head end of the bolt so you can turn it with pliers or a crescent wrench. Thread the bolts into the two bellhousing holes above the bottom hole on either side and use them to align and hold your tranny in place while you start a bolt on both sides.

[piecesparts]

I cheat, I have a two-post lift and a tranny jack to lift my stuff up. It hurts to crawl around when you get old. The bolts are a great tip, though.

[84slopwaggin]

I tried the box end wrench myself and it wasn't enough clearance between the bolt head and bellhousing or the firewall. Those Open-end/Socket-end flex wrenches are perfect for this job. I spent a painful hour or so laying on top of the engine trying to remove those top bolts with a standard wrench. I also layed underneath the truck and tried removing them that way with extensions, but I guess I didn't have the patience or steady enough hands to remove them that way niether. I was trying to keep from destroying the head of the bolt. As soon as my buddy lent me this special wrench those top bolts came off less than five minutes. Thats why I'm buying my own set, because they are a proven tool to have in the tool chest.

[84slopwaggin]

Peicesparts you don't have to be old to feel the pain your talking about. I'm 31 and I felt it a few days after installing the engine by myself. What made it especially hard for me was the fact I was alone and it was the first swap I ever tried. I've had doubts about attempting another swap without any help. Oh, I found out why they invented the creeper. When I get a shop to work in I will invest in one of those, as well.

[magnethead]

Originally Posted by 84slopwaggin

Peicesparts you don't have to be old to feel the pain your talking about. I'm 31 and I felt it a few days after installing the engine by myself. What made it especially hard for me was the fact I was alone and it was the first swap I ever tried. I've had doubts about attempting another swap without any help. Oh, I found out why they invented the creeper. When I get a shop to work in I will invest in one of those, as well.

I have 3.

MY advise: get a ABS hardened plastic one with 6 rollers. Wooden ones aren't good for much except rotting and getting splinters in your arm while working.

[joeymarkgraf]

Well thanks everybody! Two 12" extentions worked great. Got the thing back on in 45 minutes. Much to my dismay, on the last flexplate to torque converter bolt, at about 20 ft/lbs, the threads stripped out in the new torque converter. Needless to say, I'm not a happy camper.

[krue]

That sucks!