ATV Florida Forum

I appologize if this has been answered before but I am desperate and dont have time to look!
The bolt that runs through the  main frame+swing arm+ and back side of the engine, I backed off the nut on the left side and put the 17mm socket on the right side to break it free and it is so tight that I have roled the dang corners off. What is the secret to getting that bolt out so I can finish stripping the bike down to the frame for some weld repair and a new paint job...
Thanks in advance on any help :N

Well now it looks like I will be buying a new swing arm bolt/nut.....
It will not budge..I tried tapping w/ a hammer and a piece of wood to keep from mushrooming the threads...Then I tried putting a round punch in side and tapping.....Then I said heck w/ it and hammered away....Has not even budged....
I downloaded the manuel and it appears to be a simple nut and bolt.....anyone w/ some experiance on this if you have and advice I will really appreciate it...at this point I will not have my strip down and put back together project done this weekend and now I have a Honda that needs life support....
This really sucks, everything came apart nicely until this one little swing arm bolt.... :'( :'( :'( :'( :'(

More than likely it is seized in there. That is a common problem. You will have to beat it out.

I would try to soak it in WD40. If you have access to air tools. put an impact on the one end and beat on the other end.

I know you said you rounded off the end. I don't know what you have available to you but, I would try to weld a socket to the bolt then do what I said above.

You will also need new swingarm bearings and seals.

Well, I used a torch and cut the bolts out, hated to do it that way but nothing else was going well for me on this.. My last issue thus far is that the head side of the swing arm bolt is is stuck.
I used a cutt off wheel to make a clean cut just out of the inside of the swing arm so it would pull through. I am able to put the socket on the bolt and turn it though it is really tight as iff the needle bearings are trashed or something. but the bolt will not come out the rest of the way.
Looks like my next procedure will be to try and drill it out unless someone has any better ideas...
Thanks for the advice so far.... 8)

How about an air hammer?

so you are saying the bolt head and nut are cut off and the bolt shaft is stuck in the swingarm/frame? like a even flat surface to on the sides of the swinger? take a screw driver and hammer and put the screw driver on it and try to beat it out. i dont know if this will help or not cause i dont fully understand what you are saying. a pic or 2 would help.

the bolt is stuck in the motor part. i have seen this 100 times on the 400ex. i have had to cut the bolt out just to get the swingarm out many of times. it is not a easy thing to do.

When I have this type of problem, the only solution is heat.

Take a small propane torch and heat the tube that the bolt is stuck in.
As it cools down, spray some rust cutter, penetrating oil, the like on each end.
Do this 4 or 5 times, letting it cool down good. It will suck in the solvent when cooling.

Then try to move it back and forth, in each direction,

using a big hammer and a bolt slightly smaller than the one you are trying to remove.

It's a pain, but it works.

Heat and "rust cutter" spray can be dangerous! better be sure it aint too hot or ya may end up burning the whole bike to pieces.

heat didnt work for me. put one in a press and still didnt move.

Thanks for all the input.. I cant believe that this whole time it was stuck in the frame and not the motor. Well Lesson learned on this one for sure.......The head of the bolt and the the part of the bolt that actually sets in the frame before it makes it to the swing arm was the whole issue...
Thanks again...Now I have to sand her down, paint it and put it back together..... 8)