Ball Joint Horror

[jimmymarsbar]

Replaced front struts and springs today, and I thought whilst the car was up, I'd replace the bottom ball joints as one was a bit worn.

4 hours later, the ball joint is still in the hub carrier. I've had an air impact ratchet on it, blow torch, lashings of WD40, breaker bar, the kitchen sink, everything was thrown at it, but it hasn't moved an inch.

Any thoughts on what next? If at all possible, I don't want to have to buy a new carrier. I might try take the whole thing off and try it in the vice at work, but I won't have enough time to commit to it until next Friday. Which means I'm driving around with a loud clunk on the O/S, as the rubber sock was knackered. Hopefully it won't be doing any damage.....

[RichardW]

One of them on my 307 was v tight - when it came out the thread was a bit flattened and it was tight all the way out, so I can only assume the thread was poorly cut in the hub. Only thing you can do it get more leverage on it - mine needed all 16st of me hanging on the end of a 5ft breaker bar in the vice to shift it - that's somewhere over 1000 ft lb!!

[evilally]

I've done loads of 405/406 ones, don't know how similar they are? Usually one approach on it's own doesn't work. I'd try heating the area of the assembly round the ball joint, get as much leverage on it as you can and then strike the assembly with a hammer, or get a volunteer to do it. The combination of heat/torque/shock usually works for me.

[Stickyfinger]

\Agree, a combination of Archimedes and Percy Whatsit...

Leverage and a hammer (by a 2nd person)

[RichardW]

It's similar to the 405 / 406 ones, but has a proper hex on it rather than the castellated socket. I was about to get SMWBO to give mine a good hammering when it relented!

[spider]

After struggling with a couple of these in the dim / distant past, I ended up eventually finding a hugely deep socket that would fit over the threaded part and allow it to be undone with a windy gun. They are F.T though like the 405/406 ones.

[elma]

You did unstake it didn't you? They don't budge if you don't.
Airgun and blowtorch should get it out, maybe worth a second go now its already been disturbed.
Failing that, as you suggested, hub in big vice should do it.

[ekjdm14]

\Agree, a combination of Archimedes and Percy Whatsit...

Is that the Percy I know, the one who's always sat on a cushion?

Nice that they have a proper hex though, I remember trying to sort the nearside one on my old 405 many moons ago and it was squeaky-bum time putting that much torque through those 4 pins hoping they wouldn't shear and allow a breaker bar & bit of scaff tube to launch at my face! Still knocked with a new one though but then I found the strut top nut was loose that cured it...

[jimmymarsbar]

Hoooorah! Success!

Got the hub off and into the vice, a few blasts with the windy impact gun to "loosen" the ball joint and we're in action.

I managed to break a breaker bar (the irony.....), and eventually worked it off with a modified ratchet (the drive has been welded solid so there's no movement in it) with a 6 foot aircraft torsion bar to amplify the moment on the joint.

They're definitely built to be a tight fit - the new joint was almost as difficult to get in as it was to get the old one out.

And getting the ball joint shaft into the suspension arm was a stinker of a job. Definitely a 2 man job!

[RichardW]

And getting the ball joint shaft into the suspension arm was a stinker of a job. Definitely a 2 man job!

Well done! I've decided that it's not possible to put the BJ taper back in the arm using the normal movement - there simply isn't enough down movement in the arm. Easy when you've got the hub off, as long as you remember to insert the taper before you do up the strut bottom bolts. Don't ask how I know that I tried jacking the hub up (which is how I got it out first time) but doesn't work with a trolley jack - it might with a bottle or scissor jack.

Got to have mine apart again, as it needs a new spring now....