I bought a seal kit for my power stearing gear (not the pump) cause it was leaking badly. Anyway I spent four hours trying to get the pitman arm seperated from the stearing linkage (not from the stearing gear). I have a ball joint fork and a five pound hammer but I couldn't knock it loose. I tried using two c clamps to press it out and it bent my 3/8" steel plate. Any suggestions besides a bigger hammer, pitman arm remover, or take it to a shop.
Thanks[&:]

 

So your trying to get the tie rod off of the pitman arm?

Just keep beating it with the pickle fork until it comes off. You might want to get an 8# hammer and give her hell but be careful not to hit any thing else. DO NOT take it to a shop. Just keeping beating the **** out of it with the pickle fork.

If its still REALLY stuck, beat it in there as much as you can then get it and turn the truck on. Turn the wheel while parked back and forth and see if it pops out.

As for the pitman arm puller, you'll need to get one no matter what to get the pitman arm off, they're impossible w/out one.

 

beat the pintle fork in there so its under lots of tention then hit the stud of the drag link if it still wont go heat it up a bit (the stud)

 

I've not done any on a Ram yet, but all others I've had to really bang it. 5 lb mini sledge always did it though. I've heard of using heat, but never actually done it. But curious - anybody out there had to use heat?

 

yep, i use heat to loosen a lot of things works great i prefer to heat it up than spend half an hr baging on it. if done properley usally when you heat something up ittl just pop out.
in this case if you heat up the stud its going to expand right, but since it cant expand in the dirrection where it is stuck (in the pitment arm) it will expand out where its not in contact, however when it cools its gonna shrink equley (meaning the part thats auchually contacting the pitment arm is going to be slightley smaller than it was before because it dident expand) this is called "upset dimentions" just one of the many things i learned in trade school (im a jurneyman welder among other things )

 

If you have arms like this, no size hammer will help.

 

Hi just changed my own one on my 99 ram and because they are really cheap and I removed my own by cutting a slot down one side with a cutting disc on a grinder and then knocked in a chisel, it fell off.Dont beat it with a big hammer or you will need more than seal kit to repair the box regards Colin.

 

Thats why i love pikle forks attached to an impact hammer, no swinging big hammer, just pull a trigger and enjoy the noise till it pops off

 

^-- DITTO!! air hammers for the win!