Balljoints round 2.

[Blacksheep Josh]

As some of you may know, I replaced my balljoints back in January/February and had many many many problems. The balljoints I used then were from eBay, which is why I think they've all ready failed, or maybe not even failed just not the right size...

Anyways, this go around I'm going to buy (or rather my Grandparents are sponsoring this) the Duralast brand balljoints from Autozone. Going to go ahead and replace all uppers and lowers and this time with some professional help.

Is there anything I shoudl replace while I'm into it? I've all ready replaced the outer tie rod ends, so I think I'm good with that.

Only thing left to do is switch the steering gear...

 

[abomb4601]

go moog. they are greaseable.

 

[Blacksheep Josh]

go moog. they are greaseable.

so are the duralast. i'm not going to spend 50-60 dollars a joint when this vehicle will only be driven 60-70 miles a week starting in the fall...

i just need it to work and hold a true alignment

 

[yellowcat]

I would at least try and get a good brand. I have been noticing auto parts are geting crappier and crappier. Have you looked into trw, they were good years back. I have had a nightmare ordering online, but thats for another post. Just say no to chinese parts.

 

[bluexpy]

I'd also go with the Moog as well. I have bought Moog suspension parts for years, and never an issue.

Old saying:

Buy the right thing ONCE, or buy the cheap **** over and over again.

 

[Blacksheep Josh]

yellowcat, what is wrong with duralast? their balljoints are greasable as well. everything else i've used from that brand has worked fine.

bluexpy, if you read all the posts, you would've seen that my grandparents are paying for the parts, so i'm not goign to buy the most expensive thing.

i realize MOOG is the best, but guess what, the best is expensive and i can't afford them. if anyone would like to send me a check FOR the price of all the moog balljoints, i'll go that route, but until then i'm sticking with the duralast. they'll work. my ORIGINAL question was is there anything else i should replace while i have it apart?

 

[boggs1227]

easy josh.....i just got done looking at napa , have you tried advance or napa yet? looks like napa sells some for about around 20-25 each...advance at little more per like 30 some odd dollars each. now napa .... when ever i need to buy bearings pumps or what ever i go there.like with my 95 dodge 4x4 ... i had to do the wheel bearings twice since i owned it ( 10 years i had the truck) i bought skf bearings ( funny enough the factory for skf is about 3 miles from me there good sealed bearings...never had problems from them (the brand name or napa) ,so..... i know napa does'nt sell crap so if they are selling a little better than places like advance and auto zone then go look at them and see what you think .

since you'll have it apart what about the coil springs sagging....mine do just a little,they sell at advance coil spring bushing spacers ...if you can't replace ( ruff 80$ a pair) could install the spacers to give you front end a face lift , and also stabilizer bar bushings ...

 

[bluexpy]

yellowcat, what is wrong with duralast? their balljoints are greasable as well. everything else i've used from that brand has worked fine.

bluexpy, if you read all the posts, you would've seen that my grandparents are paying for the parts, so i'm not goign to buy the most expensive thing.

i realize MOOG is the best, but guess what, the best is expensive and i can't afford them. if anyone would like to send me a check FOR the price of all the moog balljoints, i'll go that route, but until then i'm sticking with the duralast. they'll work. my ORIGINAL question was is there anything else i should replace while i have it apart?

I don't follow all your threads, so no. I didn't see that one; nor do I care who's paying.

For some things, "they seem to work good"; for some things, "WOW! What a difference they have made! Well worth every penny!"; "I spent ALL THIS MONEY and it didn't help any?"

To ensure a long life, serviceability, performance...do your homework before you buy anything. Never buy by price alone. You will be sorry. Buy what will fit the best. Buying the most expensive thing is rarely worth it.

No one said MOOG was the best. Two people are saying MOOG are worth the quality and money well spent. For your convenience, Spicer ball joints are just as good. You must strip the mentality of money being the principle. Sometimes, the best things are cheap.

BTW: MOOG ball joints range from $20-40. To me, that is cheap for reliability and longevity. If you can't afford that, then I wonder how you're going to able to afford the next tank of gas.

To answer your ORIGINAL question: Replace? You are implying you are throwing more parts on. Inspect/troubleshoot the parts before you buy anything else. Everything that is around the ball joints, such as: Spindles, thickness of rotors and pads, the condition of the rubber brake hose, the wheel bearings [very important, a common compliant on here is that they come loose frequently], RABs, the zerk fittings [also check if they need to be greased], the steering linkages, all rubber bushings in the immediate areas.

 

[boggs1227]

ummm josh bluexpy kinda makes a point here....i know money must be tight with you if your grandparents are nice enough to pay for it but putting cheap parts that may fail is not to hot of a idea ( hey who knows...the cheap ones may fit the bill) but like me with my fuel pump ... i wanted to save money on it and got a new one with a 1 year warranty good right ?? wrong ...failed withen a week ....spent $30 extra dollars and gota really good one witha lifetime warranty but .....had to do it twice ! do you really want to tear down the front end 2 times ??? i know i would not .

about money... your grandparents are paying ( i know you dont want to stick them witha big bill) maybe ...just maybe you own parents could buy say the uppers and your grandparents could buy the lowers of good quailty parts (from who ever you buy them from ) that way between both of them helping you out you can end up with some good parts that will be reliable and safe for you to drive on .

 

[Blacksheep Josh]

to boggs, i've looked around at pricing, and this is what i have in my area:

http://www.napaonline.com/MasterPag...&KeywordCat=Ball+Joint+-+Front+Susp&VehCode=Y

http://www.partsamerica.com/ProductList.aspx?PartType=66&PTSet=A

http://www.partsamerica.com/ProductList.aspx?PartType=85&PTSet=A

http://www.autozone.com/N,14600191/shopping/partTypeResultSet.htm

http://www.autozone.com/N,14600206/shopping/partTypeResultSet.htm

http://www.oreillyauto.com/EW3/Disp...5 4.0L OHV&bid=1209787926698&cycleCount=2294

So you don't have to click on each one, i just put them there for reference, this is what I came up with:
Advance Auto Parts:
MOOG UBJ: 44.99
MOOG LBJ: 68.99

Autozone:
Duralast UBJ: 33.99
Duralast LBJ: 29.99

Oreilly's:
MOOG UBJ: 31.99
MOOG LBJ: 50.00

it does look like I can use the MOOG for the Uppers and save a few dollars, but as for the lowers, looks like i'll go with the Duralast for those.

As for getting my parents to help, we aren't to well off or else I would have asked them.

 

[Blacksheep Josh]

 

[Blacksheep Josh]

BTW: MOOG ball joints range from $20-40. To me, that is cheap for reliability and longevity. If you can't afford that, then I wonder how you're going to able to afford the next tank of gas.

are you kidding me? MY GRANDPARENTS ARE PAYING FOR THE BALLJOINTS!!! I PAY FOR GAS, THEM THE BALLJOINTS, THAT'S HOW I'M GETTING THE NEXT TANK OF GAS

 

[boggs1227]

i understand josh.... hey i know times are tough too ....i know that all to well.
well... go with you can afford .you tried napa right ? i would have to look again to see but i think there just a bit cheaper than auto zone ones .just make sure the ones you buy have at least a 1 year warranty and not 90 day stuff ( that tells you right off that the company dont have a lot of trust in their product) just buy what can be bought .you are doing the work yourself right?? then if worse case scenerio if the are faulty then it just your time wasted on returning parts .i do all of my stuff myself ( hell who can afford shop prices these days? .... i can't ) so all the stuff i do if it's a bad part then i just wasted my time and returning a part instead of a shop reaming me for $80-90 a hour for labor.


edit : i wonder why the dam lower ones are more money ???? i guess they are built to hold more of the trucks gross weight and are built a little beefer to withstand more weight thus = more money . hey who knows... it's all a conspiricy to get more money out of people. like isuzu....was doing some work for girl i know that has a 96 trooper,the oil cooler went out ( $600 btw !) but to get it off you have to almost dismantle the intire front of the engine ( harmonic bal,rad,etc...) they built it so you would have to take it back to them ....conspirciy...i'm telling you ! ( lol)

 

[Blacksheep Josh]

i understand josh.... hey i know times are tough too ....i know that all to well.
well... go with you can afford .you tried napa right ? i would have to look again to see but i think there just a bit cheaper than auto zone ones .just make sure the ones you buy have at least a 1 year warranty and not 90 day stuff ( that tells you right off that the company dont have a lot of trust in their product) just buy what can be bought .you are doing the work yourself right?? then if worse case scenerio if the are faulty then it just your time wasted on returning parts .i do all of my stuff myself ( hell who can afford shop prices these days? .... i can't ) so all the stuff i do if it's a bad part then i just wasted my time and returning a part instead of a shop reaming me for $80-90 a hour for labor.


edit : i wonder why the dam lower ones are more money ???? i guess they are built to hold more of the trucks gross weight and are built a little beefer to withstand more weight thus = more money . hey who knows... it's all a conspiricy to get more money out of people. like isuzu....was doing some work for girl i know that has a 96 trooper,the oil cooler went out ( $600 btw !) but to get it off you have to almost dismantle the intire front of the engine ( harmonic bal,rad,etc...) they built it so you would have to take it back to them ....conspirciy...i'm telling you ! ( lol)

that's part of the reason i felt comfortable wiht the price of the duralast, they have a limited lifetime warranty. so if the balljoint goes bad on it's own they'll replace it, not if i like go offroading in the grand canyon, lol.

 

[MDewell]

why can't someone just answer his original question and not judge him based on the parts he's askin about..sheesh!

 

[Blacksheep Josh]

why can't someone just answer his original question and not judge him based on the parts he's askin about..sheesh!

lol

 

[bluexpy]

are you kidding me? MY GRANDPARENTS ARE PAYING FOR THE BALLJOINTS!!! I PAY FOR GAS, THEM THE BALLJOINTS, THAT'S HOW I'M GETTING THE NEXT TANK OF GAS

You must feel superior to use size five text.

Judging from your stubborn attitude, you don't want to listen to sound advice except your own. In this case, I wash my hands off this. On ignore you go.

 

[MDewell]

Sorry..I just find it amusing that several people are hard pressed for "their product"...LOL

To answer your question..I submit to you via Autozone's website:
The ball joints are arranged such that if the upper ball joint is to be removed, the lower ball joint must be removed first. Also, when installing the upper ball joint, the lower ball joint must be installed first. Failure to install the lower ball joint before the upper, will result in a lack of clearance for the installation tool.

1.

Remove the steering knuckle.
2.

Place knuckle in vise and remove snapring from bottom ball joint socket if so equipped.
3.

Assemble the C-frame, T74P-461-C, forcing screw, D79T-3010-AE and ball joint remover T83T-3050-A or equivalent on the lower ball joint.
4.

Turn forcing screw clockwise until the lower ball joint is removed from the steering knuckle.
5.

Repeat the previous steps for the upper ball joint.


Always remove and install the lower ball joint first

To install:

6.

Clean the steering knuckle bore and insert lower ball joint in knuckle as straight as possible. The lower ball joint doesn't have a cotter pin hole in the stud.
7.

Assemble the C-frame, T74P-461-C, forcing screw, D790T-3010-AE, ball joint installer, T83T-3050-A and receiver cup T80T-3010-A3 or equivalent tools, to install the lower ball joint.
8.

Turn the forcing screw clockwise until the lower ball joint is firmly seated. Install the snapring on the lower ball joint.

If the ball joint cannot be installed to the proper depth, realignment of the receiver cup and ball joint installer will be necessary.

9.

Repeat the previous steps for the upper ball joint.
10.

Install the steering knuckle.

 

[Blacksheep Josh]

Sorry..I just find it amusing that several people are hard pressed for "their product"...LOL

yeah....

i've taken it all the way off before, i bought a set of balljoints from ebay and they aren't the right ones, so i'm buying them local so i can switch them out in case something happens.

 

[boggs1227]

.... i think this has got a little out of hand here on this thread
boggs shakes his head........