[1955cj5]

I "pushed" mine in using a socket with the extension inserted the "wrong" way, so i could tap on the extension and push the bushing in with the flat face of the socket..

The bushings I had were split, so I sanded the gap a little so they would slide in more easily

The bushings are soft and will distort easily as you probably know.

Not the best way to do it........I then had to use a brake hone to size the bushing so the shaft would work smoothly.

Your method might work. You may have trouble getting the shaft with a bushing on it to slide into the hole in the housing.

Freezing the shaft and bushing might help a little...

I know there are special tools for this but I don't have them either

It took quite a bit of time to get it all to fit and work smoothly, and in the end it works just fine, a huge improvement over the badly worn bushings that came out....