Stuck bolts... Now what?!

[Skandocious]

Been doing a brake job on my mom's 2000 Lexus GS300, pads and rotors on all 4 wheels.

Yesterday I spent the better portion of the day doing the rears... Had a rotor that would NOT come off. With a little assistance from Andym over the phone, we finally figured out that the e-brake had made a groove on the inside of the rotor and it was stuck on that groove; so I adjusted the star wheel and she came off with a few more whacks of the hammer.

Rear is done



So today I'm doing the fronts. I got as far as the caliper bolts and now I'm stuck. The damned bolts are on there SUPER tight. Here's what I've tried so far...

1) Wrench (yeah right)
2) Wrench + hammer (impact gun wouldn't fit in there)
3) Go to Tom's and get angled sockets -- use angled socket with air impact gun at 110psi -- no beans, didn't budge.
4) Heat + impact gun... Put a blow torch on the bolt and then hit it with impact + angle socket again--- no beans.
5) Soak with WD40 (yeah I know I should be using somethin else but its the only penetrant I've got and I don't feel like driving 20 minutes to the parts store). Soak + impact = no beans...

What the hell can I do now?! Seems like I've tried everything Not one but BOTH of the caliper bolts are on this tight, neither will budge

 

[Skandocious]

Nobody? I'm stuck guys! Any bright ideas?

 

[smokey]

Heat and calipers don't mix well. when you say torch is it oxy/act or just a propane? if it is propane your wasting your time.
I would get a small breaker bar and get a 6 point socket on it and use a BFH on it, it will break loose or twist the bolt off. If you were closer I have a air gun that would bring it off or twist the heads off.

 

[Skandocious]

Propane torch, its all I got and I figure it's better than nothin. And the heat aint near the caliper pistons so I'm not too worried about it.

 

[john112deere]

They probably lock-tited the bolt...

Had a similar problem on my truck once; got my buddy to come out and look. He realized that if I turned the wheel hard over, we could get a better angle on the wrench...and then he just reefed on the thing 'til it moved...

(And buy some better penetrant next time you're out. WD-40 isn't hardly worth opening the toolbox for in cases like that.)

 

[Skandocious]

Had a similar problem on my truck once; got my buddy to come out and look. He realized that if I turned the wheel hard over, we could get a better angle on the wrench...and then he just reefed on the thing 'til it moved..

Oooo good call!

 

[F150]

Just keep soakin' it with the WD40 and working it with the wrench and hammer deal (got a bigger hammer?). And keep a can of PBblaster in your box.

 

[lenny1carl]

Mapp gas is better heat but i'd suggest CRC656 as a penetrant. let it soak. better to give stuff a day than wreck stuff.

 

[TexasNomad]

Have you tired getting that sucker really cool, have you ever tried Freeze off?

 

[89frankenford]

you know im just going to throw this out there and tell ya that the 4 wheel brake job on that car calls for like 2 1/2 hours - 3

 

[89frankenford]

also try using a very long pipe on the end of the wrench/ rachet. leverage is your FRIEND

 

[john112deere]

also try using a very long pipe on the end of the wrench/ rachet. leverage is your FRIEND

Yeah...I'll take a cheater bar over a hammer if I've got the room for it.

Just make sure you've got the right size 6 pt socket on there before you give 'er hell, because if you round it off you're really gonna have a headache.

 

[O'Rattlecan]

reverse thread...?

Ryan

 

[89frankenford]

no those bolts aren't reverse thread. im assuming he is stuck on the caliper bracket bolts that hold the bracket over the rotor. chris, your not using a very good impact gun if they don't come off. mine would zip those right off. you can get more room by turning the wheel to which ever side you are working on .

 

[Skandocious]

Travis, eat me I ain't no mechanic so 2-3 hours is moolarky

Anyways... Ian! Ian ohh Ian.. I owe you big time buddy. Dunno why I didn't think to turn the danged wheels But once I did that there was plenty of room for the impact WITHOUT an angle socket, and that gave her room enough to spin the bolt right out, both sides (1 side without any WD40 at all).

So the job is done! Brakes work great. Big-O wanted $900 for the brake job; I did it for $300 (parts only). Thanks a bunch y'all; once again I'd have been stuck (no pun intended) without you.

 

[john112deere]

Dunno why I didn't think to turn the danged wheels

I'd make fun of you, but I had to drag my buddy down to the parking lot to point it out to me...

*Doesn't work on rear discs, of course. I've still got a kind of funny colored scar from when I tore the brakes down on my sister's car in July.

 

[Skandocious]

Well I think it has to do with the fact that when doing auto work you're used to everything being completely stationary... So when you get to working on a part that actually MOVES, you forget about it

 

[Skandocious]

So umm, weird question...

Is there any better place to put the old rotors than in the trash can? Seems like kind of a waste to throw all that metal away... Is it worth taking to a scrap yard or something?

 

[lenny1carl]

here Auto Zone-Advance-NAPA takes 'em. get nothing for them but they aren't in a landfill. Damn I'm tree huggin' again!

 

[89frankenford]

when you go to the dump drop it in the metal section