Seized Swing Arm Bolt

Strip down nearly compleated for the refurb, but the swing arm bolt is seized solid, 17mm socket with long leverage just started to round the head, so hammered on an old 16mm socket again with long pole leverage and the socket split. So going to try a blow lamp next on the frame and swing arm. My question is: are the bushes in the frame made of steel or plastic ? If they are plastic they would probably be destroyed with heat.

C'mon guys and gals, anybody have an answer to my question: are the swing arm bushes made of plastic or steel ?

The bushes in the frame are rubber/steel composite 'metalastic'. so heat will destroy them.
This is a common problem with s/arm spindles on the Townmate. My current one is siezed but I just leave it as I have no reason to remove it.
On a previous bike the s/arm rusted through & needed to be replaced anyway so I cut it through on both sides. You can then unscrew the remaining piece on drive side & drift out the spindle c/w RH bush. It was only the RH bush that was seized & that came out of frame with spindle whilst the LH bush (which was not seized) remained in frame. If both bushes are seized then you really have trouble as the bushes press in up to a shoulder & have to come outwards. Problem with burning out the bushes is that you will still have the outers pressed in frame which will be difficult to remove, also unless you cut & destroy the s/arm you still cant get spindle out.
I managed to salvage the seized bush by drilling out the remains of spindle (a long labourious process with a hand electric drill), would be easier in a lathe. Best to fit new bushes if you can still buy them, I think A J Sutton do them
Best of luck.
PS. One method you could try is to weld a threaded stud to the hex head of spindle & than with a spacer tube over the hexagon put a large washer & the nut over end & try to extract it that way. I would think you would need at least a 8mm or 10mm stud. You will need to hacksaw through the threaded RH end of spindle, the remaining bit of thread in swinging arm should be easy to remove as its usually oily.

Thanks for the detailed reply John, so what your saying is the spindle is seized to the inner sleeve of the bush or bushes, and applying heat will make no difference as the heat will not transfer through the rubber part of the bush and will end up destroying the rubber. I wrongly assumed that it was the threaded part that was seized. So it looks like my best option is to leave the swinging arm in place and work around it with the refurb.

adespin wrote:Thanks for the detailed reply John, so what your saying is the spindle is seized to the inner sleeve of the bush or bushes, and applying heat will make no difference as the heat will not transfer through the rubber part of the bush and will end up destroying the rubber. I wrongly assumed that it was the threaded part that was seized. So it looks like my best option is to leave the swinging arm in place and work around it with the refurb.

Correct its the inner sleeve of bush that's seized, not the thread, unless the s/arm needs replacing best to leave it as it is.

hows your problem bolt coming along

checked mine today came out easily then I remembered 4 years ago I took the rear wheel out to underseal the mudguard and grease up the centre stand so I must have sorted it out then

one way that may work if your not in a rush ,its worked on my old Landover place a socket on said nut then put a 6 foot scaffold pole on the bar tie a bucket on the end so its hanging in mid air fill with water then leave it for aweek
the theory is a steady pressure over time will loosen said bolt

I like the idea but the problem is the rubber between the two sleeves of the bush is twisting under torsion, if it was a solid metal bush it might work, or i could apply heat and expand the metal. As it is i am now leaving the swinging arm in place and working around it as JohnW suggested, It's much harder getting at the rust but i'm out of options.

with out laying the bike on its side there is no real way to administer any steady easing fluid,
my grand dad tells me that in the war , ..according to him there has only been two..them yanks would pour coke over a stubborn bolt and leave it over nite
have you given any thought to getting hold of a spare swinging arm
keep us informed as to your progress

well you have had a couple of weeks to sort out your swinging arm bolt , so what happening

The bolt is a bit like Stonehenge, it's there forever, i'm working around it. The frame has been shotblasted and now in primer ready for topcoat.

Just revisiting this thread. One thing you need to take into account with a seized spindle is that it then often then causes the swinging arm to pivot on the spindle if the clamping force is insufficient to clamp the swinging arm to the bush inners. That means the the swinging arm is then making a metal to metal contact with the spindle both on the right hand side and the threaded portion. This can cause wear which will result in swinging arm sideways movement. A blob of weld between the hex head of bolt and the swinging arm will stop this and make the rubber buses take the movement as intended.
Make sure though that the weld is to the steel insert in the swinging arm and not the thin pressed steel main assembly.

Here is a close up of mine that is still in the frame.

https://i.servimg.com/u/f97/17/79/03/86/img_5410.jpg

3hundredspartans wrote:Here is a close up of mine that is still in the frame.

https://i.servimg.com/u/f97/17/79/03/86/img_5410.jpg

You are lucky that the spindle has not sized in the bush, make sure the spindle is well greased when replacing, or better still make up or get made a stainless steel spindle These are 12mm dia x 180mm long, and the thread M12 fine (1.25 pitch) Not the normal M12 which is 1.75 course pitch.

Exactly John, from what others have experienced I was very lucky that it didn't take much to remove the spindle. I have new bushes to replace the old ones with but a stainless steel spindle sounds like the way to go.