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Rear shackle replacement

im2tall2

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Joined
June 5, 2009
Messages
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City, State
Ohio
Year, Model & Trim Level
1994 Eddie Bauer
I am getting ready to replace my rear rusted out shackles. I have read on some articles that the bolts can rust inside the bushing, making it a PIA to fix. I was just wondering if anyone has replaced them and had the same problems or not. They are the factory bushings and I would rather not replace them. If they do rust, any tricks on getting the bolts out? If so, About how long does it take to do that? Thanks everyone!
 



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I had a hell of a time getting the bolts out. What helped a great deal was PB Blaster, an impact wrench, and a BFH. I soaked the bolts and bushings every day, for a week or so. The impact worked great on the one side, and the bolt came right out. On the other side, I ended up having to pound the hell out of the bolt...eventually it came out.
 






The rear shackles can be a little tricky to remove if the bolts have rusted to the metal shims inside the bushings, but there are some things you can do to make it a little easier.

Before you're going to remove them, spray some kind of penetrant (Liquid Wrench, PB Blaster, even WD-40) into the space between the rusty bolt and metal sleeve.

Use a breaker bar. A 1/2" ratchet with a pipe isn't nearly as good, but is still better than trying to do this kind of job with a 3/8" handle.

A trick that I used when popping loose the lower bolt (the upper bolts in the frame don't seem to rust to the sleeve as easily) was to remove the top bolt from the shackle, then put it just below the frame, reinsert the top bolt, then drop the whole frame onto the whole thing, which twisted the nut/tab on the lower bolt, and popped it loose. This will only work if the tab is in the usual position for a fully tightened factory bolt and the shackles are in good enough condition to handle the weight and torque the bolt/tab.

If they are severely rusted together and there's just nothing you can do, you can use a hacksaw/grinder/cutoff wheel and slice the shackle to bits, then saw off either end of the bolt, drill the rubber bushing, and push/pry it out along with the metal bushing sleeve, and replace it with polyurethane bushings.
 






I beat mine out with a roto hammer on impact setting. Works good for loosening bolts.
 






New be to the form. I have a question concerning where can I get a the shackles kits? Ford Dealer says they quit making them in Feb 09. No more on the shelve anywhere in the US.
 






You don't have to order the shackles for a '94.

The shackles from a 95, 96, all the way to the 2001's with solid axle/leaf spring rear ends will work.

You can order factory shackles from fastpartsnetwork.com, get aftermarket ones from rockauto.com, or buy used ones from members on here that are parting out in the for sale forum.
 






Thanks for the help!! I hope it goes smooth. And I bought my shackles at Autozone. They are the universal shackles, but have the same stock height and everything.
 






I made my shackles out of 1/2" thick plate. 2 pieces per spring, holes drilled 10 1/4" center to center (the holes are a bit farther apart than stock, to level the X out). There's no cross brace on mine, as it's not needed with such thick material. Total cost was nothing as I had the steel in stock, but I couldn't see the material being more than $20.00, and it took about 15 minutes to make all 4 pieces...just some food for thought. Oh yea, I also had to use longer bolts, I had to buy those and they were like $10.00 for the nuts, bolts, and washers. I used grade 8 bolts.
 












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