Shackle Replacement - old bushings stuck! -help-

Hi everyone. Getting frustrated on this project. I bought some heavy duty greasable shackles from 4wd hardware. I love the way they look, and would love to have them on some day. I removed the old shackles and bushings. Only thing is that the bronze bushings on the new set seem to be a bit too big for the holes on the spring hanger and leaf springs. It appears that the old bushings that fell apart as I pushed them out may have left the outer sleaves are still ceased in there. Atleast thats my suspicion. If these are sleeves for the old bushings, are they made of steel, brass? Could I cut them out with a deburring wheel or hacksaw? Ive included some pictures. The sleeve im talking about is clearer in the leaf spring, and theres also another one on the spring hanger. Are these parts of the vehicle, or are they part of the old bushings?

Ive tried banging them off with punches and impact sockets.


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The catalog said the HD Shackles I bought would fit...!

 

the old bushing would have been made up of the inner sleeve, the rubber, then the outer shell; if you didn't get three pieces out of each hole, then the outer shell most likley is still in there.
From the pics, the best route may be the hacksaw blade; take the blade out of the saw and cut 90* into the outer shell; you then can use a punch to collapse it and pull it out of there.

 

JPFlat, thank you so much for the tip. I hacked it for about a min. And with a few taps of the ballpeen and a punch it slid right out. I owe you a cold one dude, thank you so much. 3 shackles to go.. Thanks again!!!

 

Sawzall in place of the hacksaw will make very short work of removing the outer sleeves, should you have one handy. I found the hacksaw method unduly tedious, but it'll work. I made two cuts with the sawzall about 3/4" apart, made it really easy to colapse the sleeve wih a hammer and a screwdriver. YMMV.

 

Got one of them on! The second kit is incomplete. Missing the bronze bushings... gonna have to call the seller. Thats two things messed up on my order. I have been wanting a sawsall for the longest, but everytime I go buy it, I see another tool I like and get it instead, thinking I wont be needing the sawsall again for a long time. I would send a pic, but the website is 'failing' the upload. Thanks again for all your help.

 

Now I see what im in for with my shackles. YEEEA!!!! R)

 

just for future reference: to remove the old bushing, take a propane torch and heat it till rubber catches fire. the heat expands the rubber so quickly that it pushes it out. after it's burned a minute or 2, one tap with a punch and hammer and its done. keep in mind you are starting a pretty good fire on your jeep so take the necessary precautions. its probably not the correct way but it works well and very fast

 

three in one tool from Harbor Freight: you can also use it to change u-joints.....

 

Patchy I have the same problem with my front bushings. They are stuck to no end. I spent an entire weekend trying to press them out to no evail. I'll have to try the hack saw method, thanks for the tip. I'll let you know how it goes. You can get new bushings for $2 at Krages.

 

Use a sawzall, I promise

I wrote this because I thought I had found the most efficient way to change a bushing. Went from struggling all day with one to changing them all very quickly.

 

http://www.earlycj5.com/forums/showthread.php?t=47795&highlight=bushings

 

Ive been wanting to try that tool. Cheap alternative to a hydraulic press for u-joints.

 

Boy, am I old. I've changed ujoints in a vice since ... umm, forever.

 

Hey everybody. I tried the hacksaw trick at lunch today. It took me 10 min to press out the center, hack the outer sleeve and pop it out! Piece of cake! Wish I knew about this trick a couple of months ago. Thanks for the tip

 

My way: knock out the inner steel with bfh/punch. use a torch with smallest cutting tip you have and cut a slot in the outer. work fast and just the bushing will be cut. the using a punch tap out the remains with the bfh/punch. will take about 5 min with some practice.

when you install the new bushing coat the outer shell with never-sieze to make it easier to remove next time.