Hi Frank,

I am familiar with the exterior head of the pivot. In the nearly 3 dozen Vanagons I've owned, none had ever required tightening or repositioning on that piece of hardware. It's a security head which is designed to be tightened but not removed. Of course corrosion is not a major factor here.;-)

As far as using a nail to drive out the roll pin, I would caution the use or any sharp tipped tool. The tip can effectively engage the tip of the roll pin and cause it to expand against the sides of the hole. The more you drive the nail, the more difficult it will be to remove the pin. If you must use a nail, the tip should be ground flat turning it into a homemade drift.

Regards,

BenT
sent from my electronic leash

On May 8, 2013, at 3:09 AM, Frank Condelli <RAlanen@AOL.COM> wrote:

>  ... First you must remove the black cap on the pivot bolt on the outside.  ...you will see the head of the bolt that can only be turned one way... made sure it was not removable for theft reasons I presume... Also, note that the lever can be removed if needed by driving out the drift pin which is very, very small so look closely and you will see it.  You will need to find a drift pin remover that is of the correct diameter to remove that pin, I have had good success with a hardened nail.