Cat 963 pivot shaft

Anybody have any suggestions on how to remove a stuck pivot shaft on a 963? Cat says to screw in two 1" bolts in special holes to push shaft out. That did not work, just as it didn't work in removing the stuck assembly that joins the undercarriage to the equalizer bar.

I have tried a 55 ton cylinder pushing against wood blocks and the other side of the frame. Blocks have buckled and broke before pivot shaft released.

I'd prefer to not have to use an exothermic torch because I would like to have a machinist repair the shaft (they are expensive!).

What has worked for you?

Thanks, and take care,
Colin

the old geezers once showed me the easiest and quikest method on how to remove a stuck shaft: by a piece of dynamite. yep thats right.

it was a snapped cat 245 boom to stick connecting pin with expander sleeves and we had tried to pull and push the pieces out with dual 50ton jacks, with zero results. then we did as the old pros said and took a 1 quarter dynamite rod and taped it on the shaft end. bang and it broke loose and flew a decent amount of meters lol. not the quietest way of fast removal but in extreme cases very, very handy

pivot shafts are very expensive. www.frakesparts.com has new aftermarket pivot shafts made in house for most popular size Caterpillar bulldozers. they are a fraction of the cost of new Caterpillar ones