I too am doing the same job. do you guys know the size of that jam nut. damn is that thing a bitch to get off with just an over sized crescent wrench.

 

2000 chevy blazer zr2. Trying to replace idler arm but, IT WILL NOT SEPERATE FROM THE CENTER LINK! There is no room to try and whack it on the side with a BFH. I have tried a ball joint pickle fork and a tierod end pickle fork. Started with a large ball peen then moved up to a sledge. I bent my pickle forks! Heat is not an option as there is grease everywhere and I don't need a bill from the Fire Department. I am hesitant to buy another tool as it appears that this thing is really on there. Any other ideas before I pull the center link tomorrow?

 

degrease all the grease away then a little heat

 

I HAVE WON! I have successfully replaced my idler arm and pitman arm. From my experience here are a few tips:
0) Replace them both at once and DO NOT attach them to the center link until you have both in and ready and then do the pitman arm FIRST.
1) If you smoke, have a pack ready (trust me on this)
2) if you drink, have a 6 pack ready (trust me on this)
3) The "I had my steering box out in 10 min" is most likely on a 2wd truck. Not a 4wd like mine.
4) If you have a friend with an air hammer, pickle fork adaptors, and a pointed chisel bit, call them and promise to buy them a steak dinner if you can borrow their tools. (this will be much cheaper in the long run)
a) REMOVE the nut, drive the pickle fork in as far at it will go, and then use the pointed chisel on the stud and hammer it out. This goes for both idler arm and pitman arm.
5) remove front skid plate if so equipped.
6) unbolt steering box from frame, push it up and into the truck and then rotate it clockwise until you have a clear shot at it from behind the steering stabilizer.
7) using an air or electric impact, remove the nut. I beleive it to be 1 5/16. IT IS NOT 32MM! (I went and bought a 32mm and it didn't fit. I don't know the actual size as I got pissed off and used a 36mm that I had. It worked but, probably was no good for the nut)
8) Mark the relationship of the pitman arm to the steering box (I put a line on both the pitman arm and the steering box)
9) using a pitman arm puller and an electric or air impact, remove the pitman arm.
10) Line up the old and new pit man arm and transfer your mark from the old one to the new one.
11) line up the marks, install the new pitman arm, and drive that nut home with either an electric or air impact. Don't worry about overtightening it (but, don't run the impact for 5 min either. When it stops turning, your done.) You will not get it back to it's original spot and you WILL be going for a front end alignment.
12) the rest is the reverse of removal.

When you start to get stressed, take a smoke or beer break. Personally, it took me four hours but, had I known then what I know now, it probably would have gone faster. Hence this post. Hopefully it will help someone else out.

 

I changed my Idler arm in twenty minutes without a fork or imact tools. Took out the cotter pin, unscrewed the nut untill it was flush with the bolt, first hard whack with a hammer and it popped right off. Working on the pittman arm now and the same thing there. I to am removing the gear box and its four wheel drive,about a half hour. Probably I was just lucky cuz yours sounded like a nitemare

 

May have been the ZR2 part of it. I was doing this in my drive way and there was no room to swing a hammer. It may have worked if I had a rack to put the truck on. But, as it was, I had to move the center link back and forth just to get a clear shot at the nuts. And there was only enough room for the socket and ratchet. The pit man arm nut is directly above the steering stabilizer. So, I had to crank the wheels to the left just to get access to the nut. My buddy is a mechanic and he was the one that borrowed me the tools and told me how to go about it.

 

does sound a little different. On my 98 the frame is right under the jam nut

 

Hello everyone I am new here and am trying to change the idler arm on my 99 4wd Blazer LT. I have tried using pickle forks with a mini sledge and nothing happened. I decided to buy that harbor freight ball joint separator tool and am having a hard time using it. My problem is I can't get the tool on there the correct way to use it. Whoever used one on a 4wd could you tell me from which side you used it on and what you used to turn it to pop the idler off. Many thanks in advance! I've been fighting it for awhile now...

 

my suggestion would be to pound the pickle fork in as far as you can and hammer on the stud. If you can get a hold of an air hammer that would do it.

 

my suggestion would be to pound the pickle fork in as far as you can and hammer on the stud. If you can get a hold of an air hammer that would do it.