I spent a whole day trying to get a seized bolt out with a torch and a cheater bar before I remembered my little impact driver.

This was on a 6.7 Powerstroke oil pan, and the bolt was just not moving. I had the torch cherry red, a four-foot pipe on my breaker bar, and I was basically doing a workout. My buddy walks over, grabs my Milwaukee M18 Fuel impact, puts a socket on it, and zips the bolt out in two seconds. I felt like a complete idiot for overcomplicating it. Has anyone else had a moment where you went full caveman on a job before remembering the simple tool that does it better?

3 comments

3 Comments

wright.finley4d ago

Just a small point, but a hot bolt can actually seize tighter in the aluminum pan as it cools. The impact driver works because it breaks that static friction with sudden hits.

dakotal164d ago

That "static friction" thing is EVERYWHERE, like when you just can't start a chore but once you do the first bit the rest is easy.

dakotal194d ago

Right, that sudden hit from an impact driver is the only thing that works sometimes. I had a caliper bracket bolt do the exact same thing wright.finley is talking about, totally seized after a heat cycle. You can stand on a breaker bar all day and it won't budge, but a few good ugga-duggas and it pops free. It's crazy how much force that static lock can hold.

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