Days before I had used my pressure washer to clean off any old rust, mud, jujumagumbo, etc. around the top and bottom bolts. I allowed everything to dry, then I saturated the nuts, bolts, and threaded studs with penetrating oil once each day for three days.
The passenger side top nut was frozen and I ended up shearing off the threaded stud. That's one way to get the shock off!
It took me just over two hours to complete the job including rotating the tires. I was drenched with sweat. I was also beat.
I have no clue what a single tire and wheel weighs, but it's got to be close to 80 pounds. I have to use a spade under the tire to lever it up onto the wheel studs.
I do have a wonderful cordless impact tool made for removing bolts and tightening them. That makes getting the wheel lug nuts off and on so much easier.
But torquing the 32 lug nuts by hand with the factory wrench and my 1-inch black-iron pipe that I slide over the wrench handle for a lever is a tough job for someone who's going to be 70 in just a few days!
You may wonder, "Tim, why don't you have a repair shop do the job?" That's a great question.
For starters, it takes 30 minutes to get to the repair shop. If they'd agree to do the job while I wait and get right on it as soon as I arrive - there's always a 15-minute wait period, I'm sure the tech would have an hour invested in doing what took me two hours. The total time door-to-door after paying the bill would be just under three hours based on past similar repairs.
So from a time perspective, I was a bit ahead. I also saved at least $200 in hard cash so I'm happy about that. Furthermore, I find it rewarding to do certain auto repairs, including complete brake jobs, myself.
Next up is spraying the underside of the truck with a secret concoction to prevent rust. Many people here in the Northeast do this twice a year.
ACCKK! White Mold on Concrete
Do you have this on your concrete floors? Settle down for goodness sake.
friend me
WATCH me LIVE!
follow my tweets