I had to ream 8 of the 12 pinch seam holes. The forward most body bolt is misaligned and won’t even go in. All other bolts are seated, but the tab seems about 3/16” too far back.
You may not believe me, but I’d wager that the variance is more on your Jeep than on the sliders. Obviously they’re are fabricated in a jig. The jig will have every component in the exact place every single time. The Jeep that’s put together on an assembly line - not so much.
No doubt, the variance is in my end… but the jeep wasn’t built for the sliders, the sliders were built for the (and all) jeeps).You may not believe me, but I’d wager that the variance is more on your Jeep than on the sliders. Obviously they’re are fabricated in a jig. The jig will have every component in the exact place every single time. The Jeep that’s put together on an assembly line - not so much.
As I recall I had to drill out 2 or 3 of the pinch seam holes too. But I’m glad you got it to work without extra drama of breaking one of the bolts.
Glad you had an easy time of it. Curious, why did you reuse the OEM hardware instead of the new installation hardware that RockHard provides?Buying rock hard sliders was on my radar, but the thought of a broken body bolt had me hesitant to pull the trigger. I was brainstorming with a buddy who has these sliders waiting to be installed. So I came up with a new method to remove the body bolts yesterday. Really this is just building on the other methods by adding a torque wrench to keep my strength in check.
The Cookie Monster Method™:
1: Grab a torque wrench and set it at 100 ft lbs
2: Attach a 18mm deep socket
3: Applying upward pressure on the head of the wrench with one hand to keep the wrench level
4: slowly apply level horizontal force using your other hand
5: The secret sauce: If the torque wrench clicks, STOP! This is your warning sign.
6: If it clicks, try reversing the direction and tighten the bolt a half turn, then start again
7: If it clicks again, try applying heat using a torch or induction heater
8: If it clicks again, consider selling your sliders for another brand or having a shop do the install.
My passenger side never even clicked, it was super easy to remove. The driver's side was a different story. However the torque wrench only clicked once as I started the bolt moving. After that it was just slow and steady, taking frequent breaks, reseting and ensuring the wrench was level. I never had to use steps 6, 7, or 8.
Yes, I am that crazy, I removed my front two body bolts as practice.
The Proof
Passenger:
Driver:
You will notice significantly more locktite on the driver's side which corresponds with my level of effort to remove. Also I am wearing a glove as I am about to use a wire brush to remove the locktite before reinstalling.
Because I haven’t bought the sliders yet. I removed these as an exercise to see how hard it would be. My plan was to rethink sliders if I couldn’t get the bolts out.
Ahh. You’re way ahead of the game. Well I’ve had the RH since the beginning and they are awesome IMO. I think you’ll love them. Good luck, and thanks for sharing another technique with the community to make this job less perilous.
Buying rock hard sliders was on my radar, but the thought of a broken body bolt had me hesitant to pull the trigger. I was brainstorming with a buddy who has these sliders waiting to be installed. So I came up with a new method to remove the body bolts yesterday. Really this is just building on the other methods by adding a torque wrench to keep my strength in check.
The Cookie Monster Method™:
1: Grab a torque wrench and set it at 100 ft lbs
2: Attach a 18mm deep socket
3: Applying upward pressure on the head of the wrench with one hand to keep the wrench level
4: slowly apply level horizontal force using your other hand
5: The secret sauce: If the torque wrench clicks, STOP! This is your warning sign.
6: If it clicks, try reversing the direction and tighten the bolt a half turn, then start again
7: If it clicks again, try applying heat using a torch or induction heater
8: If it clicks again, consider selling your sliders for another brand or having a shop do the install.
My passenger side never even clicked, it was super easy to remove. The driver's side was a different story. However the torque wrench only clicked once as I started the bolt moving. After that it was just slow and steady, taking frequent breaks, reseting and ensuring the wrench was level. I never had to use steps 6, 7, or 8.
Yes, I am that crazy, I removed my front two body bolts as practice.
The Proof
Passenger:
Driver:
You will notice significantly more locktite on the driver's side which corresponds with my level of effort to remove. Also I am wearing a glove as I am about to use a wire brush to remove the locktite before reinstalling.
