deadlydatsun240 Posted November 18, 2007 Share Posted November 18, 2007 Hey all I seem to be having some difficulties getting the last bits of my rusting hulk apart. I'm down to the last bits of the front suspension as the rear came off fairly easy. My problem is the front gland nuts and the rears on my car are totally different and i have know idea how to take the fronts off. The back carts came out fairly easy when my pyro side came threw but im at a loss as how to take apart the fronts. it looks to be a key way type deal on the fronts but i could be wrong, has anyone seen one like this and know how to take it apart? i just wanna say i have used the search function so i don't wanna hear use the search function, i have found lots of info about putting them on just not much about taking them off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deadlydatsun240 Posted November 18, 2007 Author Share Posted November 18, 2007 does anyone know how to take that kind of gland nut off??? im at a total loss lol, cause i dont wanna destroy my strut tubes because of something so stupid and re taping is a royal pain in the u know what. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pop N Wood Posted November 18, 2007 Share Posted November 18, 2007 My gland nuts don't look like that. Mine both look like your rear nuts and came off with a normal wrench. Maybe someone else will recognize what you have. I would try PM'ing either JohnC or zcarnut. Couple of knowledgeable guys. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lowrider Posted November 18, 2007 Share Posted November 18, 2007 when i changed my struts i ran into the same problem you did, althought it looked like mine came off with a spanner wrench. i removed mine with a pipe wrench and the strut tube mounted in a vice. i sprayed some penetrating oil on it and it came right off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ruben Posted November 18, 2007 Share Posted November 18, 2007 I ran into this problem also when I purchased a pair of struts with Koni shocks installed. What you need is a Gland Wrench. There are several tool companies that sell one, (OTC, MAC, cheap knock-offs). Here is a link to the MAC GNW63 Gland Wrench. http://www.mactools.com/Mac/Mac+Products/Catalog/Hand+Tools/Wrenches/Spanner-Adjustable-Pipe/GNW63 They are not cheap but if you shop around you can get a decent price or perhaps you can just borrow one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deadlydatsun240 Posted November 18, 2007 Author Share Posted November 18, 2007 thanks for your help everyone, although kinda depressed i need a close to 100$ special tool to get it off >.<. My rears came off with some mild heat and a pipe wrench, But know one has seen a gland nut like this? is there any other way to take it off like being creative? I really just wanna know if the gland nut i showed you is actually indeed a locking key type? Do i need to mess with the center piece at all of will it spin off like the others with some cleverly applied force? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ktm Posted November 18, 2007 Share Posted November 18, 2007 Take your front strut to a local shop that installs shocks. They'll charge you about $20 to remove the gland nuts. I did this with my entire front strut assembly with the OE springs. I did not trust myself with the spring compressor so I took the setup to a local shop. I spent $40, but it was well worth it in my eyes. A shop should only charge you around $20 for just the gland nuts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miles Posted November 18, 2007 Share Posted November 18, 2007 I have found that pipe wrenches don't grip the gland nut very well and they do not apply enough twisting force to budge a stuck gland nut. I have looked at buying a $100 dollar spanner from Snap-On, but found a cheaper home garage approach that works: If you can get a good bite on the stuck gland nut, place the gland nut in a vice and twist the strut housing. This gives allows a better grip on the gland nut and more twisting leverage. I have removed both front and rear stuck gland nuts this way. With some help I removed the rear strut with the control arm attached and placed the gland nut in a vice and cranked it down real hard. Then using the control arm as a lever, twisted the strut assembly. The gland nut released its grip with very little effort. It is all about getting a good grip on the gland nut and leverage. With the front strut I used the spindle and a pipe as a leverage point. Be careful not to dent the threaded end of the strut tube which I did do when trying to remove a stuck gland nut with a pipe wrench. Miles Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnc Posted November 18, 2007 Share Posted November 18, 2007 This isn't rocket science and it isn't difficult or expensive. If you had searched this site you would have found at least three posts by me listing various spanner wrenches needed to remove Koni style gland nuts (which is what you have on your front struts). Worst case you'll need a $17.95 adjustable spanner wrench. This part number from McMaster-Carr will get you what you want: 5472A1 (http://www.mcmaster.com.) If you actually measure the distance between the holes in the gland nut you can get by with a $7.95 fixed spanner wrench. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deadlydatsun240 Posted November 18, 2007 Author Share Posted November 18, 2007 Koni style gland nuts (which is what you have on your front struts). thank you johnc like many have said before its hard to search if you don't know what your searching for but this help i do understand there are probably many post related to such things, but how are people supposed to search if they don't know what they are . thank you for the information Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pop N Wood Posted November 19, 2007 Share Posted November 19, 2007 If you have a drill and some scrap steel you could probably make one too. I have made similar ones for bicycle bottom brackets. Now that someone more knowledgable has confirmed that is what needs to be done Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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