Help needed with diff spacers?

That is what I figured, but it certainly has broken the weld.... this simple fix is turning into a SUCK FEST! Thanks for the quick reply and help!

ssgjurista said:

You have access to a welder?

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Yeah, I've got an old buzz box stick welder at the house.

M_O_Z said:

More so can you access the nut? Get a vice grips on it? Or get a wire welder in there?

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The answer is most likely no on all of those. I was using a pry bar and leverage earlier just to try to get the bolt out once it started spinning on me.

I can see the nut through a nickle size hole in the frame. I wonder if this counts as "rust through" under the warranty section.. Can you say new frame??! Never happen though, given my past experiences with Chevy warranty plan. I guess driving through all of those flooded roads back in the day wasn't such a hot idea after all.... oops!

With low light and rainy weather, maybe I'll have better luck tomorrow.

ssgjurista said:

Use the welder to make a few tack welds thru the frame around the hole. You may be able to stick the nut fast and the heat may break the bolt loose.

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Sounds like a plan, but with my welding talents, I will likely just weld the bolt to the nut...haha.

I think I will likely try the other three tomorrow after it stops raining, and then let the weight of the differential pull on it for friction. At least the bolt threads aren't all rusted up tight.

I'll take pictures tomorrow for those who are curious to see it. btw once you see the size of the hole you'll really appreciate how hard it will be to tack it with a welder through the frame.

lkout4trucks said:

THOSE NUTS ARE WELDED LIKE ABSOLUTE SHIT. i have 2 out of 4 free spinning in my frame. sooooo bullshit. no dropped diff for me!

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Dude, thanks for cheering me up! Can't wait to find more jack up problems tomorrow. Anybody want to start a pool to see how many will actually be welded come tomorrow??

These are all great ideas guys! Thanks when I get the diff down and actually get some of the work done I will snap some pictures as to what I did and how it worked out.

Anyone know where I can get a M14 x 5 in long bolt to replace the stock one that will be about a 1/4" short with 1" the diff drop? Or what the pitch is on M14 the bolt?

Okay guys got everything worked out with a little from family. Installed 3/4" spacers, and used the stock bolts so I didn't have to buy any news ones. Diff drop done, and new half shaft installed. Everything was going well for the first couple of trips out. I took it for a drive through the country side today, and came home to find a new collection of inner half shaft grease all over the newly cleaned and painted parts. Front height on the truck is at center line of axle to fender flare bottom is 39.5" and the back is at 39" at center line of the same. The tires I am running on a set of 15x8 Outlaw II rims are 175/75 R15. Can anyone help me with a stock height for a 06 Z85 LT for comparison to see just how far up the @$$hole mechanic at the lift shop cranked my torsion bars?

Okay, thanks for the info. I will get the pics loaded up tomorrow, but I found this post and my tire size is about 3/8" smaller than his. Apparently the mechanic ran my tb's all the way up, because I must be about a 4" lift in the front. With the money spent at this point on the kit, mounting and repairs, I would have been better to just buy the higher lift kit with all the extra pieces from Skyjacker

~T

ssgjurista said:

Ok, I understand now. Sorry for the confusion. The attached pic shows the location.
Since you aren't installing the SM keys yet and are only cranking the torsion bars enough to level the front, you shouldn't need to worry about the bump stops.

You can leave the hellwigs on if you want.

Stock height in front for a Z71 with stock size tires is 35.5" - 36" measured from the ground thru the center of the wheel to the bottom of the fender. For a Z85 it would be about 34.5" to 35.5".

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Here is the link to the gallery I put the photo in. The picture is before my drive, and before the tire was installed. I'm pretty sure by my calculations that the mechanic ran the tb's all the way up which resulted in a 4" lift instead of the 2" I asked him for.


http://www.355nation.net/forum/members/mdblackchevyz85-albums2312-misc-photos.html

onelow1ton said:

Can we get some pix of the truck to see what's going on better

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