[How do I?] Loosen Frozen Leveling Studs?

H

Howard70

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Hello All:

First post. I'm recovering a welding / vice table of my father's that set outside for a decade. Table has 4 13+" leveling mounts consisting of threaded rod with swiveling metal feet below and a four-sided "bolt head" on the upper end. I can get the feet off, but the threaded rod is frozen in the threaded inserts welded into the rectangular tubing frame. Have tried Liquid Wrench from both sides 24 hrs +. Just tried heating with propane torch. Still stuck.

Problem may be exacerbated by length of threaded rod. When I use a wrench on the 4 sided head, I'm 10 - 12" from the frozen section. The rod twists and bends & seems like much of the torque is deflected or "lost" before twisting the frozen section. Any suggestions?

Destroying the rod to remove it would not be a problem, but I'd like to keep the threaded inserts if possible due to their position. Have a tap to clean up those threads if I can just get the rods out.

Thanks in advance,

Howard
 
I find liquid to be useless. Try a mixture 50/50 of ATF fluid and acetone. let it soak over night. I would try a pipe wrench as close as possible to the insert.
 
Don't know what they make Kroil out of.
Perhaps kd4gij has the recipe above.

Might take multiple sprays and patience.
Using the recipie above you might make four pans and soak the feet.
You don't want to buy that much Kroil.

Careful with the acetone! Flamable.

Daryl
MN
 
Agree with above, you may have to soak the several days, If you have been turning the nut, and it has not been turning in threaded insert, it may have already destroyed the threaded rod where it will not go through the insert. Is the insert where you can get at it, if so and the soaks do not work, I would think about drilling it out to the size below the one you need then carefully clean it up little at a time until you get the threads cleaned out enough to clean it up with a tap. I'm also not sure a little propane will get it hot enough to break it loose if there is that much rust on it.
 
Drilling her is a good idea!
And it's a great excuse to get left hand drills.

Daryl
MN
 
Hello Guys:

Thanks for the input. Will try the 50/50 ATF & Acetone mix. So far I haven't stripped anything so will soak longer. The threaded inserts can't spin as they are welded in. The pipe wrench is a great idea (why didn't I think of that...). Suspect additional complexity comes from the length of the threaded inserts. They appear to be 1 - 1.5" long. The rod is 7/16 coarse threaded so that's a lot of surface area for binding rust. The table is solid & worth the effort, but it's the memories of projects with Pops that really draw me.

Howard
 
Can you get to the threaded inserts with a torch? if you can, try heating it up fairly hot, maybe cherry red and then CAREFULLY wiping some bees-wax around the threaded rod where it contacts the insert. The wax can suck into the threaded insert like solder, through capillary action. Sometimes it works really well & sometimes not. I have removed 2" steam piping like this, BUT BE CAREFUL THE WAX CAN IGNITE JUST FROM THE HEAT. It's an old plumbers trick, but can work easily.

Tom
 
Last edited:
Hi Howard,

Welcome to the site!

In my experience 24 hours in not a lot of time for a penetrating oil to work. The rust has been forming for years, it will likely not loosen in hours. If time allows I'd coat it every day or every other day and keep that up for at least a couple weeks. I prefer a 50/50 mix of acetone and Automatic Transmission Fluid (ATF). The acetone makes it so thin that it can wick in the tiniest crack and leave behind some oil.

Can you:
-clean the exposed thread
-weld a nut on the end (or use a pipe wrench)
-drive the clean part of the threaded rod into the nut
-once it moves you should be home free, work it back and forth until it loosens

other thoughts:
-I would try the heat and cool approach, alternate getting the rod thoroughly hot and then pour some water on it. Try to get some thermal shock to crack the rust between the threaded rod and the nut
-be careful of flammable penetrating oils!
-can you get to the sides of the nut? I sometimes use an air hammer with a chisel I cut flat on the end, just something to apply many, many tiny whacks, again trying to microscopically crack the rust. I find a few thousand little whacks may be better than a few big ones. You could also try this on the end of the threaded rod, just try not to damage the thread if you need it to eventually go thru the nut.

Please post back with any progress!

-brino
 
It's called Patients with a capital P. Put your penitrating oil on and let it soak. Wiggle the rod every time you walk by it. Hit the leg and tap the rod with a hammer. Soak it some more. I've had to work several weeks breaking stuff loose. Get yourself a small oxy-acetylene torch if you can would hurry up the process.
 
+ 1 on the above comments. I have had some luck (I believe) tapping the rusted parts with a hammer & impact wrench set at low frequency. Like ARKnack says "Patience"
have a good day and good luck!
Ray
 
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