I need to remove the bed on my 2007 Silverado Classic to replace the fuel sender. The bolts are very rusted, three have been broken in the past, before I bought it. Last year, I sprayed down the bolts with SeaFoam and after several days of testing with a breaker bar, I eventually got them all to l…

Agreed. You should replace them all even if you don’t break them getting them off.

To answer your question, an impact gun is just as likely to snap the bolts as a breaker bar. The best thing to do is heat up the area the bolt screws into if possible. Then use a breaker bar so you can feel if it’s coming loose. Tester

It does seem that using an impact lessens the probability of breaking bolts and it certainly reduces the aggravation in getting on with the job. A would be customer once commented on a seeing a mechanic quickly get the wheels off a car with an impact that using a power tool instead of a wrench took…

[image] Rod-Knox: I was flabbergasted. Some people don’t recognize that mechanics are paid to repair cars, not sweat and strain. American attitudes toward work and value-of-labor are wholly screwed up. People tend to not consider anything work unless the worker is tired at the end of the job.…

[image] VOLVO-V70: So what if they break , it seems that you would want new rust free ones anyway. If they break, you have significantly more work in extracting the broken off piece that’s left. If the part they are left in is one I’m saving, I try to avoid breaking them off if I can.

I’ve heard this before. The idea being the rattling loosens the rust. Never been my experience. I prefer penetrant and heat then hand tools with leverage sometimes going back and forth to ease them out. If you feel twisting of the bolt, it’s over anyway. But I have rarely had a break where I can get…

[image] shadowfax: If all they want is to see someone get sweaty, they can go watch a jogging track for free. I watched a woman’s Pilates class once. The woman women didn’t seem to be exerting too much…but for some reason my heart was racing.

The only thing with a battery impact is that you can’t feel what is going on with the bolt. I would prefer a ratchet rather than a breaker bar just for that reason, but seems like if they are gonna break they are gonna break.

An impact is a bit better but with some fittings they are going to break anyway no matter what steps are taken to prevent it. At times I prefer to just cut them off and be done with it; followed by replacing with stainless. I just spent 2 full days replacing the optional engine oil cooler lines on …

Impact tool or breaker bar?

Maintenance/Repairs

VOLVO-V70 October 14, 2020, 2:58pm 2

So what if they break , it seems that you would want new rust free ones anyway.

3 Likes

Topic		Replies	Views
Impact driver usage (+ impact wrench q's) Maintenance/Repairs	46	7063	November 20, 2013
Impact wrench technique when access is limited? Maintenance/Repairs	10	18314	November 14, 2012
Tricks for removing stuck bolts and nuts Maintenance/Repairs	22	20729	March 9, 2012
New Favorite Tool General Discussion	48	2924	February 23, 2015
Broken hex bolt removal Maintenance/Repairs	26	5370	November 4, 2013

Impact tool or breaker bar?

Related topics