I removed the centre tie rod with the idler arm attached. Easy to remove on the bench later, I thought. Tonight I did remove it, but only after a struggle. Nick was right saying I should let my son wield the hammer.
I'm struggling with the same. I've got the track rods off the centre tie rod, and got the idler unbolted from the chassis rail. No matter how hard I belt the taper joint (with two hammers) it won't shift (I'm aware there is a knack to it, and I obviously haven't got that knack). It would be much easier if I could get it all off the car and in a vice. But...
How did you detach the centre tie bar from the steering box arm? Or did you remove the arm from the steering box?
I did not remove the arm from the steering box. I had 3 plans to remove the arm, as this thread relates. Nick W repeated that I was making a mountain out of a molehill, use 2 hammers, he said.
He was right, but you want the right hammers, and you must hit it hard. My sledge hammer was too big, so I used smaller lump hammers. I lay on the floor under the car holding the bigger hammer behind the arm taper, while my son hit the other side of the taper with all his might. On the 4th thump the pin dropped out.
I had of course umdone the nut, but left it on the end of the thread where it was free to unscrew, to protect the thread in case son missed. I also marked his target with white paint.
I had similar trouble with the idler arm, so I detached the holder from the chassis. Having removed the centre track rod from the car I thought it would be trivial to remove the idler arm from the centre rod. It was not. None of my extracters would go in the narrow gap so they were no help. 2 hammers did not seem to work for me on this joint. Eventually, using the sledge hammer head as the anvil and hitting the taper with the heavier hammer, it popped out.
My conclusion - I must buy some heavier hammers - I see Screwfix do a 4lb hammer for £10 - and I must hit the taper hard. My son is a burly 40 year old, I am a 10 stone weakling. This old man needs all the help and tricks he can get.
I wonder whether the tool mandula depicted would have helped. The prongs on all my extractors were too fat to insert between the arms. Obviously it needs strength, but I reckon a puller could be designed with the right prongs for this job. I shall seek one.