I got 210k on my 96 cherokee, its been in michigan all its life. Im putting my lift on soon which has shackles for the rear. How bad do you think it will be to get the upper bolt out? Possibility of snapping? If it snaps then what? What if i simply just cant get it out?

 

soak the bolts for a while before in pb blaster and try putting a wrench on it and tightening and loosening it while hitting it with a hammer lightly to loosen it. do this for a few days before to start to get them loose. and if all else fails sawlsall and heat

 

Not coming out, no way!!! In most cases the bolt seizes in the sleeve that runs through the rubber part of the bushing and in the nut that is in the frame. The last one I did I cut through the shackle, then through the rubber, then through the sleeve. I ended up I had just the bolt through the pocket and alternated heat than I sprayed it with PBlaster about six times and started working it back and fourth until it came out.

 

Sounds like this could turn into a major pain in the ****. Do the bolts through the end of the leaf spring come out alot easier?

 

yes but can still be a hastle if they stick in the sleaves but you can get to both sides to cut so no worries

 

I just took the bolts off a 1998 that had been in Florida it's whole life and a 1999 that had been in New Hampshire in the salt it's whole life. I got 7 out before I had a problem with one of the Front ones on the Florida Cherokee! That one would turn but only came out until the threads were disengaged. It was siezed in the bushing sleeve.
BUT getting it out that far was key because when I cut it on both sides of the bolt in the bushing it was easy to get out since I had no piece threaded into the threads. See picture. All 4 bolts are the same length so you can judge how much bolt thread you have in the thread.
I used my Snap-on torqure wrench with a pipe on it to break them free. That gave me 42" of moment arm to overcome the rust. With that long of a wrench it's easier if you jack the side of the jeep up you working on so you can get some swing. I'm in Michigan too so I know about rust! Soak them in PB Blaster or something else for a few days before you try. Maybe you'll get lucky...

 

if and when you get them out if they are rusty get new ones and use some antiseize in the center section to prevent this in the future

 

i just recently put a 4.5 in lift on my 1999 classic and al my bolts came out without breaking or anything,guess i got lucky, i did soak every single bolt with PB for 2 weeks though

 

i got all but 1 and i cut it out and threw it away but i had an extra one for the shackle so i used that and went and bought 2 new ones for the box mount

 

I'm gonna have fun on my rear passenger side. I pulled them out of the top shackle bolts while building my rear bumper mounts. I'm dreading it already.

 

shouldn't you be posting pics of the build

 

when the sleeve inside the bushing starts turning with the bolt here is what i did to keep from cutting the bolt and to get the bolt to come out of the sleeve.first i had to use a long breakerbar and stand on it just to turn the bolt. once it was about a inch or so out i clamped a pair of old visegrips behind the bolthead and slid a bar over the visegrips and pried on it VERY hard while my buddy turned the bolt. it wasnt easy but it worked for me and saved me $15 abolt from the dealership.

 

You can send me a private e-mail if you'd like... If your close by I could stop over and help you get them out. I have a few extra bolts in case you have to cut some. Here's a picture of my bolts before I wire brushed them and painted the heads. The rusty one is obviously the before and the better looking one is the after... I wouldn't think these bolts are cheap so do your best to save them. Shoot the PB blaster in the area where the bolt goes through the bushing sleeve as well as the rest of it. Buy a can now and start spraying a few times a day... I will use antisieze from the bottle on the shelf next to the bolts on the bolt, the threads and the nuts. I also scrapped out the rust in the bore of the bushing sleeve before I lubed that with antisieze also. If you want her to look really pretty have it sandblasted... Ask them to blast down the bores of the bushings at that time to remove the built up rust. They won't hurt the bushings.

 

yeah they are 6 bucks a piece at the dealer by me but i just got 2 new one and used the old one for spares just in case

 

anybody know what size these bolts are? as in length pitch and diameter?