- First Name
- Shawn
- Joined
- Nov 29, 2021
- Threads
- 8
- Messages
- 221
- Reaction score
- 436
- Location
- Tuttle, OK
- Vehicle(s)
- Ford F250, Ford Expedition Max, Chevy Silverado
- Your Bronco Model
- Badlands
- Thread starter
- #1
So I’m really only posting this to try and save someone else some trouble when doing anything with the cast / camber adjustments on their Bronco. I’ll be the first to admit my problem was caused by me having a brain fart and doing something stupid. I own that so feel free to laugh at me.
You should probably know that the Zone Cam lockout kit re-uses the original lower control arm bolts and does not replace them like the BDS kit. You, like me a couple days ago, may not realize that the outside cams are pressed onto those bolts using a knurl cast into the bolt just below the head. Because I didn’t know that and didn’t read far enough ahead on the instructions (those are really just a last resort as you know), I tried to put my impact on the head of the bolt (21mm) because it was easier to reach. I then put a ratchet and socket (24mm) on the nut to hold it. Because the cam is pressed on, when I gave it the uga dugas, the cam spun and bent / half sheared off the alignment guide pins on the outside. On the inside the cam is actually splined onto the bolt and so when the bolt twisted and the cam didn’t, the cam jammed itself into the threads. Way into them.
What I was left with was broken guide pins and a bolt that wouldn’t come out because the cam wouldn’t come off.
I know, complete bonehead move and a lot more trouble than I intended to jump into.
Long story short after a couple hours of frustration, and four heavy metal sawzall blades, I was able to cut the bolt out. The guide pins are pressed into the frame and will come out with just a tap of a 3lb shop hammer if they’re still straight enough.
You can’t replace the bolt with a regular grade 8 bolt because the outside cams have larger holes to accommodate the knurls to press the factory cams on.
No one has the lower link bolts in stock but you can order one for about $15. The guide pins are a different problem. The Ford dealership parts people I talked to cannot find the guide pins in the parts book. I too tried in the online parts book and I can’t find them either. It’s very possible that Ford doesn’t have them in the parts books yet. However, I did discover that you can order the guide pins for an early 2000s Chevy Silverado and they are the same length and diameter.
The only problem is the Knurls to press them in are larger on the Chevy version. You can overcome this with a bench grinder by grinding off the the knurls on four sides and just leaving some corners to bite into the frame. They are still a huge PIA to drive in. I tried all the tricks on YouTube and none of those worked. What did work was a hammer and punch driving them from the slotted hole for the control arm bolt.
So if you need a set of guide pins, your probably going to have to buy them for a chevy pickup from an aftermarket provider. I bought some off Amazon that were Moog part number K6716. If you’re trying to pull those bolts or adjust the cams, put the impact on the nut side and just hold the head. Probably doesn’t need to be said for most but…
You should probably know that the Zone Cam lockout kit re-uses the original lower control arm bolts and does not replace them like the BDS kit. You, like me a couple days ago, may not realize that the outside cams are pressed onto those bolts using a knurl cast into the bolt just below the head. Because I didn’t know that and didn’t read far enough ahead on the instructions (those are really just a last resort as you know), I tried to put my impact on the head of the bolt (21mm) because it was easier to reach. I then put a ratchet and socket (24mm) on the nut to hold it. Because the cam is pressed on, when I gave it the uga dugas, the cam spun and bent / half sheared off the alignment guide pins on the outside. On the inside the cam is actually splined onto the bolt and so when the bolt twisted and the cam didn’t, the cam jammed itself into the threads. Way into them.
What I was left with was broken guide pins and a bolt that wouldn’t come out because the cam wouldn’t come off.
I know, complete bonehead move and a lot more trouble than I intended to jump into.
Long story short after a couple hours of frustration, and four heavy metal sawzall blades, I was able to cut the bolt out. The guide pins are pressed into the frame and will come out with just a tap of a 3lb shop hammer if they’re still straight enough.
You can’t replace the bolt with a regular grade 8 bolt because the outside cams have larger holes to accommodate the knurls to press the factory cams on.
No one has the lower link bolts in stock but you can order one for about $15. The guide pins are a different problem. The Ford dealership parts people I talked to cannot find the guide pins in the parts book. I too tried in the online parts book and I can’t find them either. It’s very possible that Ford doesn’t have them in the parts books yet. However, I did discover that you can order the guide pins for an early 2000s Chevy Silverado and they are the same length and diameter.
The only problem is the Knurls to press them in are larger on the Chevy version. You can overcome this with a bench grinder by grinding off the the knurls on four sides and just leaving some corners to bite into the frame. They are still a huge PIA to drive in. I tried all the tricks on YouTube and none of those worked. What did work was a hammer and punch driving them from the slotted hole for the control arm bolt.
So if you need a set of guide pins, your probably going to have to buy them for a chevy pickup from an aftermarket provider. I bought some off Amazon that were Moog part number K6716. If you’re trying to pull those bolts or adjust the cams, put the impact on the nut side and just hold the head. Probably doesn’t need to be said for most but…
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