Hello. I’ve decided my next project will be to inspect (and replace where necessary) the bushings on my leaf springs, and replace the rubber parts, such as the grease-retaining washers (original ones are cork; new ones will be rubber). I’ve got the nut off the bolt on the fixed end of one of the rear springs. Now I need to take pressure off the spring and try to get the bolt out of the bushing, then press the bushing out of the spring eye.
Here are instructions that one poster shared in 2013 of another poster's clever idea for a homemade tool for pressing a bushing into and out of a spring eye.
The shop manual says to use a chain hoist to take pressure off the spring, but I don’t have a chain hoist (I see they’re not very expensive).
Q1: If I did have a chain hoist, where would I raise the pickup from (where would I attach the chain)?I do have a small floor jack, but it only has a lift of maybe 12”, and it takes about 8” to get up to the frame. I added some 2x4s last night for a test lift, but that’s inviting disaster. I think I'll build up a base of about three 2x10s to set my jack on.
Q2: Assuming I use a floor jack, where exactly should I jack and how high do I need to go? In my test lift I jacked on a frame side member, but I don’t know how high I need to go. Do you just jack it up until there's some play in the bolt?
Thanks for any tips.
