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Replacing Ball joints on bagged setup.. questions..

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1.9K views 23 replies 11 participants last post by  extreme01chevy  
#1 ·
Alright, well if you read my other threads you will know that i bought a truck with front airbags that were done quite right and need replacing. Well now when i turn i hear a "ticking" noise coming from the front suspension. So i guess its the ball joints. The rubber things on the ball joints that holds the greese are all leaking. I put greese in them but it didnt do any good. So now here are the questions I have..
1. Why do you think they went out.. the truck has 55kmiles on it. Probably because he never greesed them up? (pretty sure he never did)
2. I was reading my Haynes manual and seeing how to do this. Should i be able to do the work myself? I read i will have to get a shop to press in a new ball joint in the lower control arm.. so what i just have to take them off and bring it down there? How much should that cost?
3. When i get my bags fixed... if i set the truck at my normal riding hight and get the front end aligned then should my ball joints have problems in the future? Basically what i am asking is this.. because i have bags will my ball joints keep going out on me?

let me know what you guys think.. thanks
- Mike
 
#3 ·
I'll take the bottom ball joints and lower control arms in to be pressed but i think i am gunna do the rest by myself. I cant afford to pay a shop hundreds of dollars in labor, i just dont have the money. What do ya think tore the boots? Do you think its because i have bags and that it will happen again?? I really dont want to have to replace them every 3 years! thanks..
- Mike
 
#4 ·
thepunkerguy said:
I'll take the bottom ball joints and lower control arms in to be pressed but i think i am gunna do the rest by myself. I cant afford to pay a shop hundreds of dollars in labor, i just dont have the money. What do ya think tore the boots? Do you think its because i have bags and that it will happen again?? I really dont want to have to replace them every 3 years! thanks..
- Mike
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"every 3 years" if you drive 20-30k miles a year that that woudn't really be so bad.. they don't last forever. It's not gonna be expensive to get the ball joints pressed in. Go to a place like napa. It'll be fairly inexpensive. I forgot exactly how much it ran..
 
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#6 · (Edited)
before you replace your ball joints, jack the truck in the air so both wheels are off the ground. then put one hand on the top of the tire and one of the bottom and try to move it back and fourth. if there is play have someone come over and look and see whats giving the play, but if theres nothing, then your balljoints are fine. i actually had bad u-joints that were ticking when i would give it gas, so depending on when it ticks, it could be that. expect to pay some money for Moog balljoints unless you know someone that works at a shop or something, as they are fairly expensive. but like i said before, if there isnt any play when you try to tug the wheel back and fourth, then the balljoints are still fine.
 
#7 ·
how_low said:
"every 3 years" if you drive 20-30k miles a year that that woudn't really be so bad.. they don't last forever. It's not gonna be expensive to get the ball joints pressed in. Go to a place like napa. It'll be fairly inexpensive. I forgot exactly how much it ran..
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Ok, i understand.. so usually they need to be replaced about every 50k-90k miles anyway? I just know my old '89 Blazer has like 200k miles on it and as far as i know it has stock ball joints and its lowered. They dont click or knock or anything either. I guess they just dont build the new ones like they did the old ones. But you guys dont think that having bags tears them up much faster? The reason i ask is because i was talking to a guy at a local auto parts store about how i had bags and he said that they were gunna tear up my ball joints.. then i noticed mine were going out. I just dont wanna have to replace them all the time since i have bags. thats all.. thanks guys! Any particular brand you guys like? Locally i can buy TRW, Tread Saver, and McQuay from my local discount auto parts store.
- Mike
 
#9 ·
thepunkerguy said:
Ok, i understand.. so usually they need to be replaced about every 50k-90k miles anyway? I just know my old '89 Blazer has like 200k miles on it and as far as i know it has stock ball joints and its lowered. They dont click or knock or anything either. I guess they just dont build the new ones like they did the old ones. But you guys dont think that having bags tears them up much faster? The reason i ask is because i was talking to a guy at a local auto parts store about how i had bags and he said that they were gunna tear up my ball joints.. then i noticed mine were going out. I just dont wanna have to replace them all the time since i have bags. thats all.. thanks guys! Any particular brand you guys like? Locally i can buy TRW, Tread Saver, and McQuay from my local discount auto parts store.
- Mike
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I don't know exactly how long they last.. I am just saying 3 years is a long time if you drive a lot.. I can't give you a straight answer on if bags wear out ball joints faster. You but them through there full range of motion more often. Think about it instead of only having like 5" of travel on bumps you are sending your suspension all the way up and all the way down. If you lube them often you shoudn't have a problem tho..
 
#11 ·
Yeah, probably was the installer since the rest of the airbag install was ghetto. Anyway.. today i spent most of the afternoon replacing the upper ball joints since i could do them without a shop to press in or out new ones. I ended up getting THW or something like that.. the best ones they had at the local auto parts store. Cost me a total of $26.48 and about 5 hours of work. I went and drove in many circles in a parking lot and now the ticking noise is gone.. . yipee! I am still going to get the bottom ones replaced by a shop later on down the road since the boots don't look to be all that great. Thanks for the help guys!
- Mike
 
#14 · (Edited)
00bluesdime said:
i had a lower balljoint strip out a few weeks ago replaced it with moog like $20 for one and took it to a shop to have it pressed in and it was like $5 work was easy though
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What did you do.. take the LCA and the joint down with ya for them to press in?
Whats the big deal about Moog.. everyone says to get them, but i couldnt locally because they didnt sell that brand locally.. is is THAT much better? Should the TRW ones i bought last plenty long?
- Mike
 
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#17 ·
thepunkerguy said:
Hmm.. thats a nice bit of info to have.. saves me from taking off the LCA and bringing it to a shop. I have borrowed tools from them before, just didnt know they had a ball joint press. Nice.
- Mike
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NASCAR uses MOOG and they are built much better. I have heard they give a little more travel too.
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MOOG bought TRW a while ago. They are the same products just under different brand names.. Almost all of the TRW's part numbers are exactly the same as MOOG's..........this is what i read off their website a few years ago.........
 
#18 ·
atomic wedgie said:
MOOG bought TRW a while ago. They are the same products just under different brand names.. Almost all of the TRW's part numbers are exactly the same as MOOG's..........this is what i read off their website a few years ago.........
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Well, thats good to know becuase i cant find anywhere around town to buy Moog, but i can get TRW and thats what i got. Them being the same company explains why when i searched around the net Moog and TRW were both considered to be top premium brands..
- Mike
 
#19 ·
just cause its clicking a little, and some grease is leaking out doesnt necc mean anything. id say its more then likely your shit is fine. when youre ball joints are getting close to defeat, they will let you know. theyll be popping and grinding and destroying your spindles. plus youd be able to feel it in your steering wheel. i wouldnt worry about it too much.
 
#20 ·
Baggd2DaXtreeme said:
just cause its clicking a little, and some grease is leaking out doesnt necc mean anything. id say its more then likely your shit is fine. when youre ball joints are getting close to defeat, they will let you know. theyll be popping and grinding and destroying your spindles. plus youd be able to feel it in your steering wheel. i wouldnt worry about it too much.
Click to expand...
Well, its alright.. i replaced the tops anyway. Instead of dealing with the popping and grinding and destruction of my spindles. It only cost me like $27 and a few hours to it was well worth it just to put in new ones..
- Mike
 
#22 ·
00bluesdime said:
a good way to check them to see if the lower balljoints are going bad look at the grease nipple and see if it is moving up into the ball joint if the shoulder on it is flush or inside the lower cover its time to replace it there is a pic in your haynes manuel 10-6
Click to expand...
Yeah, i read that in the Haynes manual, havent had time to check yet. Ill probably replace the botttoms either way since its under $30 for a set of good ones.., but i am going to wait until i get my bags fixed before i worry about them
- Mike
 
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#24 ·
Another thing to look at while your messing with the ball joints, is grab the center link and pull down on it, if you feel any play look towards your tie-rods, pitman arm and idler arm, they might need replaced as well. You can also jack the truck up in the air, feel for any play as said earlier with on hand on the top of tire and one on the bottom. Or one hand on the left side of the tire and one on the right, don't try to actually turn the tires just see if they move a litte bit
 
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