Finally got the new ball joint kit.....did intend to replace lowers, the ones that get the wear and tear, and while there, replace shocks. And, so far, it is an intention only. Pulled the torsion bar adjusters out 20 turns, almost loose. Removed the two big bolts thru the knuckle and brake backer plate. And now, thought my world would not leave me in a pickle, as fork. Have driven the fork in almost to the bottom with a two pound hand maul. Tried some heat, tried hitting the side of the cast arm, and also tried to tap the top of the bolt. And guess what.....no love. Boy am I having fun. Just for info, my C body Fury tie rod joints are just about 5/8 dia, so the 3/4 pickle fork worked fine. The new ball joint tapered shaft is just over 3/4 at the lower big end and needs the 22mm or 15/16 pickle. The upper ball joint is just under 2 inch for the socket, so if I recall it is 1 59/64.....or so. More scotch whisky
Lower Ball Joint Fun
- Thread starter 66furys
- Start date
Try this... Two hammers, good size, but not so big you can't comfortably swing them.
Put one against one side of the knuckle and smack the other side. If that doesn't work, pound the pickle fork in and repeat with the two hammers.
Put one against one side of the knuckle and smack the other side. If that doesn't work, pound the pickle fork in and repeat with the two hammers.
Thank you muchly for a great suggestion....will try tomorrow. Still cannot understand the phenom of how hitting the side of the joint works.....and I have never had success with it, but many seem to.....interesting concept. thanks
Could not stand it.....dirty clothes back on and under the car. I am using an ancient blacksmith hammer that is pretty heavy, with backup from a dual headed heavier hammer......so not using small ball peens. And, tried two eschelons of the exercise. Will try more tomorrow. Interesting.
Works great! $20 at HF And some auto parts stores loan them out.
Sometimes when you have the fork in with tension on the joint, screw the nut on a couple of turns and whack the stud. It will sometimes give way. Or an air chisel with a blunt end may help rattle it loose.
I would take the castle nut and flip it to not damage it in case I needed one at some point. It has worked for me.
It works by slightly distorting the tapered hole as the hammer hits it. The hole goes back to normal.
I think that too big a hammer can be as limiting as a small hammer. You don't get the speed of a quick hard rap with a big hammer and therefore it doesn't do the job. The big hammer is fine for the "back-up" that you hold against the other side. Think of it as an anvil. The hammer you hit it with should be light enough to give it a fast hit.
Adding the pressure of a pickle fork, or maybe better yet, that remover that @halifaxhops suggested, with the smack on the side should release the joint.
Interesting thought.
Smaller hammer with swing = horsepower.
Large hammer with weight = torque (force).
I've always chosen the bigger hammer.
I have looked at this type of puller, but they have never seemed tuff enough.....but, jut for grins, I will get one. I went back this am and tried more heat and hammer with the pickle and nada. So, went to the bin and pulled out two pullers, the first was the small normal kind, short and stout, but turns out it was too wide.....about 1 3/8 span and would slide off half of the arm. So, got out this one that I thought was not tuff enough either. Put it on, and got it as tight as I could draw. Finally added a lot of heat and it sounded like a gun going off when it jumped. Age and pounding certainly had seated this tapered shaft. I am going to try a smaller of the small type claw puller....needs about 1 1/8 opening of the claw jaws. Will try the others on the passenger side, later.
Good analogy!
My late friend Dave, one of the best mechanics I've ever known and a walking encyclopedia of Mopar knowledge, used a claw hammer for most things like this... One of the style that was once piece without a wooden handle. Yea, wrong hammer, but it always worked for him and he was comfortable with it, so that's what he used. It was also good for some laughs, but you would have to know him to appreciate it.
Of course, I used to adjust these expensive (about $1800) Mitutoyo height measuring gauges with one of those big Harbor Fright orange dead blow hammers... I'd never do it in front of a customer because they'd crap their pants if they saw me do it. Always got them right with one or two hits.
1971 300 Alvah
Member
"Tried some heat"
More heat!!!
In my personal experience, I had to give up and become emotionally defeated. Then I needed to assume nothing was ever going to work. Then I had to foolishly think it was possible. Then I had to give up again, have friends help, and then watch my friends give up. Finally... heating up the joint and hitting the side of it with a hammer. It isn't easy, but damned if after all the trouble it finally worked. I may be confusing this with all of the troubles I had with the upper ball joint, but heat and a hammer, and overall, persistence!
More heat!!!
In my personal experience, I had to give up and become emotionally defeated. Then I needed to assume nothing was ever going to work. Then I had to foolishly think it was possible. Then I had to give up again, have friends help, and then watch my friends give up. Finally... heating up the joint and hitting the side of it with a hammer. It isn't easy, but damned if after all the trouble it finally worked. I may be confusing this with all of the troubles I had with the upper ball joint, but heat and a hammer, and overall, persistence!
This is only entertaining when you finish the job......the other nite I did not sleep after the stubborn ball joint just laughed......I had to say thanks when it broke loose. But, I will try a couple other types of pullers on the next one. And, right now I can appreciate the thoughts above.
Here is what an air hammer set up looks like. Brace the lower control arm w/ a floor jack or a large block of wood. Have used this set up for 20 plus years.
hemi71x
Well-Known Member
This ball joint removal tool has always worked well for me, other than pickle forks of different widths.
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I just ordered this type tool also recommended above.....and we will see. Also used to have an air hammer with pickle fork attach, never tried it. But, I have never thought to try this one by David, to drive out the stud with air hammer, cool idea. thanks again for better ideas.
Now, I want to add one more thought here, for future nimrods. Make sure when you replace these joints, you install the grease fittings, and maybe even pump in some grease. My nice ball and tie rod joints had a couple sizes of metric fittings, and one would not take grease, meaning yet another size fitting, so three wrenches necessary, 7, 8 and 10......guess where made. But, to save some pain UNDER the car, do all of this before install.
Now, I want to add one more thought here, for future nimrods. Make sure when you replace these joints, you install the grease fittings, and maybe even pump in some grease. My nice ball and tie rod joints had a couple sizes of metric fittings, and one would not take grease, meaning yet another size fitting, so three wrenches necessary, 7, 8 and 10......guess where made. But, to save some pain UNDER the car, do all of this before install.
I must say thanks to one and all for the encouragement. After the nonsense on LH side, I almost said nah.... But, this type puller recommended by Halifax and also hemi71, worked like a charm. Wish I had tried on the nasty first one, but this second one was simple, did not even really tighten and no heat and pop. Thanks again all.
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