5CHN3LL

I have a 10-lb 4-foot section of 1" stock (it's technically a slide hammer for rebar and other stuff you want to smash into the ground) that happens to work nicely with a 24" 1/2"-drive ratchet.

I haven't found anything you can't crack with six feet of cheater bar. That's the one concession I've made to arthritis - trying to use mechanical advantage so I don't beat my hands up so badly they're useless the next day.

808Bill

I sure can relate to that. I wake up in the middle of the night with throbbing hands way to often at 54!

5CHN3LL

46 here - but at least I'm starting to figure out the rules.

white out

Electric impact gun from Harbor Freight is your best friend.

charlieaf92

Have a link to one you've used for this? I've always considered buying a heavy duty impact but would hate to spend that kind of money to find out it doesn't have enough power to break these types of bolts loose. I'd also consider pneumatic as well.

5CHN3LL

I have an 18v electric impact wrench and a decent air gun as well. Hammering is definitely off the list. When I look back at doing stupid sh*t my entire life - like hammering sh*t with my fist - the arthritis seems less surprising/unexpected. Heh.

As long as the battery is good, the electric handhelds work fairly well...but you're probably not gonna get the lugnuts off your superduty, at least with the one I have:

Even if it's not good enough to blast off your lug bolts, it WILL be good enough to blast out those damnable rotor set screws. That alone is worth the price.

My $20 HF air impact gun is ridiculously capable. I think I've remembered to oil it once in the last decade. Hard to bitch about ROI on that sucker.

"Considering pneumatic" is the way to go. Once you have supplemented your hand tools with air tools, and become accustomed to shop air, you can't go back. I have a 5-gal pancake compressor and a 75-foot retractable hose built into one of my cabinets. It's hard to overstate how useful having a compressor can be.

Also: If you happen to be working on your 911 in the driveway, and you use your impact wrench to zip off a tire while your (wife/girlfriend/husband/significant thing) is watching, there's an EXCELLENT chance you'll get some. The only reason they keep using that ridiculous "can you use your impossibly big wrench to help me fix my car" script is because it works for somebody, right?

Andrewck

Any update in the project? Considering converting over to a RWD vehicle as well. Two questions on this:

i) if I convert to RWD, that would mean the car would have an open differential in the rear? Isn't this the same setup that a regular Carrera runs? I see a lot of people complaining about getting a Wavetec or LSD when doing this conversion, but just wanted to make sure that removing driveshaft and front differential would't make the car some unruly beast compared to a C2.

ii) if I break axle stubs, pull driveshaft and front differential out, what mounts to the transmission to cover the now exposed piece? Maybe I'm not understanding correctly, but after reading multiple threads on the process, I'm still having an issue visualizing what's left on the front end of the transmission.

charlieaf92

Hey Andrew

I removed the front axels and replaced the inner and outer CV boots - then put them back in. As others have mentioned, you cannot drive the car with the front axels removed unless you disassemble the outer CV joint and install the spline piece into the wheel hub assembly.

My understanding is that the rear differential is essentially the same as a C2 - so it won't perform any different than a standard C2 in that respect.

If you remove the front diff and the drive shaft - you don't have to cover anything. The transmission has an sealed output that bolts to the drive shaft via a little rubber piece (guibo).

Hope this helps. I posted a couple vids on YouTube along the way that may help you with removing the front axles.

white out

With the stock rear diff, it will act like a C2.

There is nothing to cover on the trans. The metal disc the guibo bolts to is left exposed as it is in stock form (just without 3 bolts connecting it to the driveshaft.)