How to remove a stuck pitman arm

[@geneworley1915]

I have a 1990 Jeep Wrangler that we put a 4 inch lift in. Ended up with a stuck pitman. Broke the first puller trying to get it out. Nothing seemed to work. 10 minutes with the cutter and it was out. Thank you. Saved us a ton of headaches.

[@CardinalOffroad]

Glad it worked for you!

[@stephenbaker7225]

You are awesome bro. The two cuts worked like a charm!!

[@rknudson1407]

awesome video.. everyone needs a refresher on something they done before.. Last time I done this I got lucky with just the puller.. this time not soo much.. but it will come off!!!! My pitman arm's ball joint shaft sheared off after I just parked my 99 dodge ram 2500 diesel off the interstate..

[@CardinalOffroad]

Thanks a lot. Yeah sometimes they can be a pain especially when they haven’t been off in years.

[@Xxmeca421xX]

I broke 2 pitman arm removers and snapped a ratchet and socket trying to get mine off my Grand Marquis last week. The grinder idea is hopefully going to save me. I just bought one to do it but have been replacing other parts before I attempt it again. I literally spent 10 hours between going back and forth buying tools and fighting it that whole day so wish me luck lol. I was about to put it in the shop and hate paying others to work on my cars.

[@CardinalOffroad]

Just go a little at a time and you’ll be fine

[@Xxmeca421xX]

@@CardinalOffroad it took 3 relief cuts and a burn through $80 welding gloves but it finally came off lol.

[@aedanhickey5264]

@@Xxmeca421xX im about to do my 99 crown vic. broke two removers and trying again lol. pry gonna have to cut it out lol

[@charleswilson4598]

Good informational video. You obviously have knowledge and experience about these things. What did I learn here? Take my 1992 F150 to a shop and let them do it.

[@CardinalOffroad]

Haha. Best way to get knowledge and experience is to do things yourself. Might take longer the first time but that’s how it is.

[@paladinleeroy101]

Dude you cut it soo close! Very impressed

[@CardinalOffroad]

Paladin Leeroy haha yeah it is close. I just made sure I did a little at a time each cut.

[@paladinleeroy101]

Cardinal Offroad Update! Did the cut yesterday and it came right off!

[@CardinalOffroad]

Paladin Leeroy awesome! Glad it worked out for you. Thanks for letting us know. Don’t forget to check out our other videos!

[@Xxmeca421xX]

@@paladinleeroy101 im glad to read this lol. I fought all day breaking pullers and tools trying to remove mine. Im going to try it this week again.

[@jcagam3811]

Thanks brother. This is very helpful.

[@CardinalOffroad]

You’re welcome

[@flinch622]

Have mercy on your pullers: put a little gear oil on the threads before going to town - they'll last a good 4x longer at least.

[@FireEater]

Thanks that seems like the only solution I cannot believe how tough it was to get this thing off. 👍🏻

[@CardinalOffroad]

Mike Blake yeah I struggled with mine too. Glad it helped you get it off!

[@jd2931]

Thank you I was looking for plan c 😆

[@seantire]

Thanks you for the video my 77 is hardcore stuck

[@CardinalOffroad]

Glad it helped. Sometimes they can be a pain to get off if they’ve been on very long.

[@hudsonhawk0016]

Don't ever use a pickle fork on a steering box, you could completely wreck the steering box by doing that.

[@jamesrichardson771]

Gheesh" that was a good video💥🛠

[@cerwin21]

Aerokroil then just snug the pitman tool with a impact. Then hit the pitman with a ballpeen or 3lb hammer. Works everytime

[@shemailgoondall9531]

Thanks. I'm going to be replacing gearbox 1989 grand marquis. From above, below, and side. Have some room to work around. Here are my questions: 1 To pull pitman arm, with puller and breaker bar, how should I set my self up?should I leave vehicle on ground or have it lifted? And what precautions for safety. I'm afraid that applying too much force to loosen pitman bolt may cause vehicle to move and possibly fall from Jack stands. 2 should I stick with 2 ton stands or upgrade to 3 ton? At the parts store, I can even get pair of 6 ton stands for the same price of a 3 ton Jack stand. 3. People tell me to.set stands below control arms. But I prefer a spot under frame/chassis. What's your opinion? 4. Is it ok to use the same pitman for installation or better to put a new. I hear a click upon completing a full turn on steering either side, so maybe Its done?

[@CardinalOffroad]

shemail goondall lots of good questions. So there’s no need to lift the vehicle to take it off, I never raise a vehicle unless I really have to. Now if you don’t have much room to get under it you can or what I sometimes do is Jack it up and put boards under the tires if I can’t find a good spot for jack stands. You can definitely reuse the pitman arm if no damage is done to it or the spline. Not a bad idea to do it in some pb blaster if it’s rusty or been on for awhile. If you don’t have an impact you can use a ratchet and breaker bar, might take some muscle though. Sometimes tapping around the pitman arm with a hammer can help. Good luck

[@shemailgoondall9531]

@@CardinalOffroad I found out pitman arm is accessible from bottom on crown vics/grand marquis. I got 6 ton SUV type Jack stands. Used my shabby 2 floor Jack to raise the car, and put the stands underneath frame. I feel comfortable the vehicle won't roll when I work on it, cause the stands are standing on it's own height not even extended. Rite now I'm struggling with the pitman arm nut as I was given bad information about its size. I thought 32 mm would fit, but its a tad small for the nut. Going to look for 33 or 34. Some one gave me a standard size, 1 3/16 but its for a newer grand marquis. Gonna try with a breaker bar. Might also get a pipe wrench saw someone loosen the nut with it.

[@CardinalOffroad]

shemail goondall I’m sure it will be a little hard getting off if it’s been on for a while. A little heat on the nut will help too.

[@shemailgoondall9531]

@@CardinalOffroad I got the nut off, disconnected the hoses, there's a nut between steering shaft and box that's being stubborn, and I made it worse by removing the box bolts that go into the frame. So the whole box is free and getting it off the steering shaft is becoming hurdle

[@shemailgoondall9531]

This whole mission was not necessarily to save money from repair shop. I probably could've saved money by not taking off from work, but it was more about learning a skill about fixing ones own car and having the right tools.

[@mrtopcat2]

I found that the problem is NOT with how much the pitman arm is stuck, but rather that the pullers jaws are spreading and thereby MISDIRECTING all that force sideways, rather than acting on the pull direction of the pitman arm. Proof in the pudding, once I bought OTC 8150 (but I trust any similar style will do the same), it has pulled my pitman arm in a sneeze, while my 10-ton jaw type was spreading jaws.

[@antonw-uw4ov]

Nice video. Had to cut mine too. But my puller actually broke. So i realized that if you turn the steering wheel sll the way to the left the arm sticks out from under the frame so you can wack it down with a hammer.

[@paladinleeroy101]

antonw194200 Mine broke too 😢

[@michaelwoods3850]

My puller actually bent

[@CardinalOffroad]

If your puller looks like a c sometimes you can weld a strap from each side to prevent it from pulling apart.

[@murphytoadster9864]

Mine has been covered in PS fluid for like 5 years so I hope a puller will just work

[@CardinalOffroad]

I actually pulled one off a CJ7 this weekend and had to cut it too. It started bending my puller. A couple cuts and came off easy.

[@AwesomeAndrew]

Tried that with angle grinder still won't come off

[@brandonsmith8548]

I have a question! I changed my pitman arm and inner tierods and now my steering is way way to tight... Like unreal tight

[@brandonsmith8548]

Is it possible I ruined my gear box hitting it with a pickle fork?

[@CardinalOffroad]

@@brandonsmith8548 will it not turn in either direction? My first thing I would do is make sure the arm is not touching anything especially if you put a different drip pitman arm on. The next thing I would do is take the pitman arm off and see if it turns.

[@brandonsmith8548]

It turns yes. It's just really really tight like something is binding up. I matched the pitman arm it was the same drop and all that. Just worried I did something wrong. It's straight as in I turn the wheel both directions and it's the same amount of turns either way. Something just feels really stiff. Of course we all want tight steering but this is really tight.

[@CardinalOffroad]

@@brandonsmith8548 I would start at taking the pitman arm off and seeing how it turns. This way you can eliminate that. I’ve used a pickle fork a lot on boxes and haven’t had an issue but if you take off the arm that will give you an idea

[@brandonsmith8548]

I won't be able to drive it and tell though lol. It seems to be fine parked moving the wheel. It's mainly when I'm actually driving it's stiff. Parked I don't notice much of anything. But I see what you mean

[@bwyss]

I put the pitman arm puller on, then applied a touch to it for about 7 minutes, the thing popped off like butter!

[@CardinalOffroad]

Ben Wyss that’s a good way too. I use this slot with hard to get bolts. I usually try not to use it on things with seals or hoses.

[@judylyons6380]

Thank

[@CardinalOffroad]

Judy Lyons thanks!

[@Az56818]

Man I tried everything on mine puller pickle fork heat hammering on puller didn't do shit

[@copperhack]

Thanks, worked

[@CardinalOffroad]

Awesome glad it helped.

[@deborahabercrombie9461]

doing it tommorow

[@kevinnicholes1962]

I've pretty much got the exact set up as you except I'm going to 3 maybe 4" front stretch. Which pitman arm do you recommend? I went to partsmike and got a lil confused as to which one to get. I'm thinking the 2" as well. Which pn did you go with?

[@CardinalOffroad]

Kevin Nicholes so I ended up getting the flat that was a blank so you can drill it where you want it depending on what length you need but it ended up hitting my crossmember with using the heim joint so that’s why I used the drop one. They gave me a great deal though since I already purchased the fist one. Biggest thing is you need to make sure it’s not going to hit your diff when flexed.

[@richardspringer4700]

Rule one don't use an impact gun on your pitman arm puller The puller applies pressure then hit the pitman arm with a hammer pops off

[@jermainephillips5179]

I was just thinking about cutting mine.its going down tomorrow i gotta go to work.1 cut would have been all you need.just tiny bit of flex

[@edkay3601]

yeah cut it but an easier way is to drill 3 vertical 1/4 inch ( or a little bigger if you can) holes in the arm and then hit it with a chisel. it will split and then pull off easy.

[@edkay3601]

and make sure you have the steering wheel tied to the brake pedal so it cant spin and screw up the clock spring.

[@CardinalOffroad]

ed kay good to know. I’ve never heard of that one before

[@edkay3601]

@@CardinalOffroad here on youtube if you search "99 dodge dakota pitman arm removal without removing the steering box" or try this link "kzbin.info/www/bejne/fqGzi6V8f8xrecU" you will see the results of me doing what I describe here. 30 second video.

[@rmcustom9573]

PREPARATION ! PREPARATION ! PREPARATION ! LUBE ! LUBE ! LUBE ! LUBE ! Now, if you would have used Anti-seize on that joint the last time you had it disassembled, the removal would be no big deal. But, seeing that whomever installed that pitman-arm didnt, you should have sprayed a little (Or a lot) of PB-Blast/WD-40/CRC-556 above the pitman-arm so the lube would seep down into the joint, the day before, that pitman arm would have fell off w/that much force ! Experience = Wisdom & Know-how. Just sayin'. Also, I always apply anti-seize on my pitman-arm joints. Some people will disagree w/that because its part of the steering-linkage. Well, I've been working w/Pitman-arms (Automobiles) now for 40- plus years & as long as you use the correct & nut (who's threads are not as old as truck & all stretched out) & the same w/the lock-washer. Then torque it all down to spec's, you're perfectly fine. Just like wheel-lug-nuts. I use ample Anti-seize on them. As long as they're torqued down to correct spec's, you're golden. WORK SMARTER..

[@jameseaton8810]

I don't have a grinder

[@valadezjose47]

My Pitman arm puller broke. While using the ugga dugga. Which is not cool. Not cool at all. Now I'm stuck. I was going to try the fork but after seeing this video that might break too lol help

[@CardinalOffroad]

Yeah I’ve had them break before. Getting one that has reinforced sides might be your best bet. They can be a pain when they haven’t been off recently

[@richardparis8738]

Free information I'll do that

[@davidgillettuk9638]

And for those who are replacing the steering box but can't replace the pitman arm....... I assume heat would be ok as I'm not bothered about the seals.

[@CardinalOffroad]

David Gillett UK if you’re putting a new box I’d definitely use heat. I’ve changed my box a few times. Nice thing if you get a new box you can get a lifetime warranty too.

[@davidgillettuk9638]

Cardinal Offroad Thanks for confirming that. Sadly I have no warranty. 13 years ago I bought a Jeep ZG (rhd ZJ) and picked up a new old stock steering box for about $150 in your money off fleabay but never got round to fitting it. I recently bought another ZG with only 80k miles on it and no body rust - it had been garaged for the last 20 years and the only thing wrong with it is the steering box. New steering boxes for rhd are nigh impossible to get, the last one I heard of went for about $900. Eeeek. Thank God I hung on to the box I never used.

[@CardinalOffroad]

David Gillett UK wow that’s a lot of money. I actually am running a Dodge Durango steering box on my tj. There are some yj boxes I think that work too. Might want to see if there are other boxes out there. Or you can always plate the frame a redrill holes to run a different box

[@JammyCrackcorn]

Wasn’t even sprayed with Kroil…TNT spray..PB Blaster etc…

[@johnoktavec]

"cause ya all sorts of issues".yeah,like death.

[@SeekTruthinLight]

Man this one is a bitch, I did all I could short of getting it red hot, which usually works. That is the next thing... hotter fuel then the propane i tried. Ruined Two pitmen puller tools, one bent one striped. I was trying to avoid option C - cutting it off... a lot of work just to change a seal. I tried PB rust eating penetrating spray too. I am spraying it from time to time until my next go at it. Thanks...

[@soufyanedz9688]

I wont cut pitman arm

[@XD65]

Lmao. I dig plan c

[@deborahabercrombie9461]

oil it up

[@JonMoore-b9m]

😢9⁹😊

[@giterdunpete]

disaster