Xantia Ball Joint

[froggy]

Hi, just replaced the bushes on the front of my S2 Xantia. My question is, I found it difficult undo the nut on the hub end of the wishbone. The nut would not undo . The nut and thread of the ball joint would spin together! is there ' a right way' to undo the nut, stopping the ball joint from turning. I ruined the ball joint by holding the shaft using molegrips then loosening the nut. is there a better way? Terry ( the butcher).

[ekjdm14]

Put a jack under the balljoint & put a bit of upward pressure onto it & it ought to grip on the taper that way

[Timmo]

I normally undo mine with weight still on them, learnt from doing drop links is much easier to undo the nuts whilst pressure on them, on lock you can normally reach in to them,

[elma]

I tend to use a lever on the wishbone to lock the balljont in position then undo the nut. If I'm not reusing the balljoint I just put an impact wrench on it and let it spin until the heat locks it.

[citroenxm]

Before even starting to undo them drop links too WIRE BRUSH them very well!!

All it is that locks them is rusty threads and crap in the threads too..

[falling-out-with-my-car]

Ahh some you get out easily and some you don't is a good thing they are not very expensive to replace. I used to use the forks of a ball joint seperator tool to take up the slack as I undo the but tapping the tapered edge in to hold the taper tight as the but loosens.

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[falling-out-with-my-car]

Nut not but stupid phone.

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[van ordinaire]

Mmmmmmm! Some interesting ideas there. Must say I've always resorted to a strategically positioned jack - while offering a little prayer of gratitude it's not one of those cars with the inverted ball joints!

[ekjdm14]

....offering a little prayer of gratitude it's not one of those cars with the inverted ball joints!

I would have thought keeping the suspension loaded up with a jack would work in that situation anyway?

[CitroJim]

That balljoint taper is normally so tight it can be a right 'mare to split at the best of times...

My technique with all taper ball joints is to thoroughly wire-brush the exposed threads, soak it in Plus Gas and then start to undo...

I never fully undo but undo a turn and then do it back up half a turn. I then repeat it backward and forwards - as if I'm using a die to cut a new thread - and touch-wood the nuts always come off OK without breaking the taper...

If the taper does break then as Ekjdm says, loading it with a jack to make it tight again will often save the day...

But as I say, the real secret is in the backwards and forwards undoing method...

[van ordinaire]

Only problem I've ever had was getting the split pin out (no longer an issue!) UNLESS the thing was so badly worn that the taper turned as soon as you looked at the nut. A combination of Jim's method AND a loading jack will probably get you out of schtuck - although once I had to resort to hacksaw.

Problem with inverted tapers is the difficulty in placing a jack where it'll do the job, without being in the way.

Tapers will always yield to slow, steady, judicious application of a club hammer, ideally, with another strategically positioned behind as an anvil, it's just a question of how many blows need to be delivered. If space is an issue, an old Kango bit makes for an excelllent 2' drift.

[CitroJim]

Only problem I've ever had was getting the split pin out (no longer an issue!)

I remember those!!!

I still prefer them to Nyloc nuts if truth be told!

[ekjdm14]

Tapers will always yield to slow, steady, judicious application of a club hammer, ideally, with another strategically positioned behind as an anvil, it's just a question of how many blows need to be delivered. If space is an issue, an old Kango bit makes for an excelllent 2' drift.

Our Xant' didn't even need that much, a couple of smart whacks to the wishbone end with the trusty old ball pein and they were practically falling out, made driveshaft removal a doddle compared to previous experience (helps a lot not having the usual steel spring to fight with when taking them in & out on HP Citroens too)

Whichever way the ball joint is facing, I find placing the saddle of the jack under the brake disc works well in most cases. Heck it's even better on a Xantia with the handbrake on the front! I tend to block the disc from turning with a screwdriver if it's vented, on cars with rear handbrakes