Ball joint tools...

[KWilkinson]

Well a friend of mine with an 05 4x4 needs ball joints badly, so I offered to do them if he bought the tools (Im sure I'll need the tools to do mine eventually). I have done numerous sets of ball joints on these trucks, but have always used the Miller ball joint adapters and press designed for these (I worked at a dealer). Has anyone had success with using the universal ball joint adapters and press kits with these joints, or am I better off spending the money for a kit designed for these? Quad 4x4 has a kit, but for a bit over $300, versus universal kits for a bit cheaper. If the universal kits have adapters that fit, what brand kits are you using? I plan on stopping at napa tomorrow and tearing open a ball joint tool kit and checking out the adapters to one of the new ball joints...

 

[dan.poitras]

Snap on sells a universal kit for about $600. 00 which will cover most models including ours. Pricey yes but I'm a tool nut. It's substantially heavier than the competition.

 

[p-Bar]

Look on Ebay if you want to save your money for fuel

 

[dan.poitras]

Look on Ebay if you want to save your money for fuel

What's that got to do with ball joint tools

 

[JeffJackson]

I used loaner tools from Autozone when I changed mine. I seem to remember the adapters weren't quite long enough, but I managed to get them changed.

 

[Vaughn MacKenzie]

I used a kit from Harbor Freight Tools that was pretty cheap- friend owned it & bought it for around $100 as i recall, worked fine except some weren't quite long enough like Jeff said but I made it work. Basically looks like a big C-clamp with a hole in one end you mount the adapter which holds the ring pieces that push the BJ out.

Vaughn

 

[p-Bar]

What's that got to do with ball joint tools

Sorry I didn't make myself clearer, instead of buying the Snap on stuff that is overpriced for the weekend mechanic you can buy the small c-press on ebay and use the difference to buy fuel.

 

[KWilkinson]

I am also a tool nut, my garage holds about $35,000 worth of tools and boxes. Thats not including my welders and machine tools I have a universal ball joint kit, but I do remember using it the first time I did these joints and they werent long enough... I think I ended up finding the correct kit in our tool room at the dealer and stashing it under my bench, along with all the cummins tools I looked on Miller's site for the proper adapters, but the kit from quad 4x4 was cheaper than all the adapters individually. So I'll end up buying that, thanks for your input everyone.

 

[bigdaddydieseldan]

You can also buy snap-on tools off of ebay to along with mac, matco, craftsman there are some pretty good deals if you know what you're looking at

 

[_Hyde]

Making sure I'm on the right page here; yall are talking about using the OTC ball joint/u-joint/brake pin press that I assume has been around for years? Got mine in the early '90s and looked the same as one I used in the mid to late '80s on a 2WD Chevy for ball joints. This as opposed to a similar kit with a longer/deeper/bigger c-clamp press assembly? Not sure if I need to be concerned since I was in a wreck last weeked that snapped off the LH steer knuckle at the lower ball joint and currently in the early stages of battling the insurance company over repair.



Hyde

 

[bighammer]

Borrowed from AutoZone

 

[ed9824v]

Borrowed from AutoZone

here I go getting myself in trouble, I have the harbor freight one and have done many ball joints and ujoints and seems to to work as well as the AutoZone one and that one was well made. not all there tool are ok maybe not all ball joint from hf but mine has had a work out and is still going strong. ED

 

[ryecreek]

like you said your looking for a press. the diff in the quad 4x4 is the press is wider which would not work on some other stuff(i did mama's jeep and a std press barely fit) kd and otc make a good press for the money and make them for snap on mac ect. saw in a catlouge from car quest they have a otc or kd master kit on sale for like 350 or so and they have a budget line too for like 180 for the master set don't know how much of a tool junkie you are. if ya want a name brand check ebay i bought a 21 pc. mac (KD) set for 145+20 shipping i assume with the smaller press it does not come the whole way out i imagine a light tap or 2 does the trick

 

[05mxdiesel]

The second time you need to replace the b/j's no press will be needed if you use anti-seize. Just some light pounding with a hammer and they pop out. Its just too bad the factory couldn't of done this.