The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Engine Shop Pitman Arm

Is there any trick to disconnecting the Pitman arm from the steering gear? Mine seems to be frozen in place since it won't come off after removing the large bolt. Any advice?

You need a Pitman arm puller.Buy a quality one, the Lisle brand ,about $20 works fine.If you already have a sturdy 2 arm gear puller, try that.Resist the temptation to beat on the end of the threaded shaft.

Add penetrating oil and patience to Tony's post.

Puller for $20?? How about more like $50. Get a good one like he says. Even with that on there, you sometimes need to tap on center bolt of it or on p-arm some to get it to start breaking loose. Tighten on puller, tap some with hammer at joint and center bolt, them tighten somemore. Usually comes right off then. You cannot remove w/outa puller unless you beat the shaft and arm into junk first. You can leave it on to take outta truck, only need to remove to rebuild or replace seals.

Ok they are $22.95 at the places around here.One from Snap On is probably 50 bucks, gold plated signiture series.

I tried it with a cheap one from Harbor Freight, all I succeeded in doing was breaking the puller. So I went to the rental yard and rented the one they had for $5 I believe it was, and used Kroil on the splines first, let it soak it good, then used the puller. Took some time to come off, but off it did! I would avoid beating on the thing like some people suggest - I think that could damage the seals and bearings inside.

I have had good luck pulling pitman arms (and other tapered shafts) by using a 2 pound hammer and back-up hammer. Hold the back-up hammer against the arm and hit the arm directly opposite of the backup hammer at an angle perpendicular to the centerline of the sector shaft. You won't be able to go all the way around, but do as much as you can. Switch the backup and hitting hammer positions. This procedure will make it a lot easier for the puller to do its job. Usually I can hammer on a stubborn pitman arm for a while and pry it off with a screwdriver if it does not fall down by itself.

I just finished replacing the steering sector on my work truck, with cannabalized parts from another. The pitman arms had to be changed (the replacement was from a 2WD, going into a 4X4..) The pitman arm resisted all efforts using a puller and smacking the puller shaft with a 3# hammer. A usefull trick is to use the hot wrench to heat to pitman arm (On the outside, away from the seals.) All it takes is a little warmth to swell the pitman arm enough for a good tap with the hammer on the end of the puller to free it.... This might not be what you want to do if the sector is still in the truck and covered with grease and oil, etc....

AutoZone will let you "rent" one for free. You leave a deposite when you take it, and when you return it they give you a full refund.
OR take the steering box into the store and they will take it off for you.