What tool to get for a rounded nut?
 

I was swapping out my front sway bar today and I was almost done until I noticed that someone had already messed with it. The stock sway bar also had some orange spray paint on it so I assume it was from a junkyard. Anyways, the 12mm nut on the right front sway bar mount is rounded. I have tried everything that I have to get it off and nothing is going to work. I went against my gut feeling and got one of those stupid gator sockets at walmart and the stupid thing doesn't even go deep enough to get to the nut. What tool do I need to get?

Something like this works great, they sell them at Sears. Maybe Harbor Freight too, but not sure on that. Usually they are called a bolt or nut extractor.

http://www.irwin.com/irwin/consumer/...oltgrip_sm.jpg

I figured that they might be at Kragen so that is why you missed a call from me. I will see if I can pick one of those up tomorrow. I just hope they make them long enough.

You're going to need a torch to heat the rounded bolt(or nut, I wasn't paying attention) into a fresh round ball. Then your going to need an angle grinder and a couple of files to create some flats in the sides of the new ball. You'll also need some sort of geometric field guide to identify the shape you just made(taxonomy is job #1). Next you're going to need some calipers, a protractor, some drafting paper, pencils, erasers,etc. You might be asking yourself, "Jucifer, why the hell do I need all of these pencils and shit?" I'll tell ya, you don't want to look like an idiot trying to describe to the machinist exactly how you need the new custom wrench and socket made,these guy prefer to work from prints. You might be able to bring the bolt(or nut?) in to have him measure it but it's stuck to your car, duh.
I would say just drive the car over but you don't have a transmission.

I don't think we carry them, but I haven't really looked for them either.

Just use a set of vice grips and put a new nut on there when you reinstall the swaybar.

I doubt it would be better, but I have the kind of extractor that looks like a socket with splines (like a spline drive nut key) that you hammer onto the rounded nut or bolt head and then just use a normal ratchet to unscrew it. I think there are like 6 of them in various sizes. I'll bring them to GSR when I go in a couple hours from now in case you want to come grab them, Juice.

I finally got it off. Thanks for the offer Cody.

Van, your advice was very costly. However I did make up a lot of time once I got the drafting paper to work.