Re: Breaking out old Upper Ball Joints
[Re: AlexP]
#1948856
11/10/15 05:26 PM
11/10/15 05:26 PM
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Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 5,363 Rancho Cordova, California (Sa...
hemi71x
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master
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Rancho Cordova, California (Sa...
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If your inpact wrench has enough "oomph" torque, to get the old ball joints out, go for it. It's not going to do anything to the UCA. Mechanics have been getting them out with air guns forever. That's what i did, when i was professionally wrenching, for a living.
RF-4C Phantom 69-370 Zweibrucken, Germany
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Re: Breaking out old Upper Ball Joints
[Re: AlexP]
#1948908
11/10/15 06:23 PM
11/10/15 06:23 PM
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Joined: Oct 2012
Posts: 1,106 Northeast
VincentVega
super stock
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super stock
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Northeast
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I'd be concerned about tearing or galling the threads. Why make more work for yourself if you can avoid it? Run a piece of pipe through it, bolt that to something, and do it by hand. If it gives you any grief, you can try tightening it ever so slightly to help break it loose. It's one thing doing it on the clock, quite another doing it at your convenience at home.
Looking for 1975 through 1978 B body 4 door sedan sheet metal or parts cars - monaco, fury, coronet. Please let me know
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Re: Breaking out old Upper Ball Joints
[Re: AlexP]
#1948911
11/10/15 06:24 PM
11/10/15 06:24 PM
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Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 14,889 up yours
Supercuda
About to go away
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About to go away
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up yours
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Never had a problem using a 3/4" drive ratchet and the proper socket to get them out and back in, while still on the car though. I also don;t work on rusty crap either so that probably helps.
They say there are no such thing as a stupid question. They say there is always the exception that proves the rule. Don't be the exception.
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Re: Breaking out old Upper Ball Joints
[Re: AlexP]
#1948913
11/10/15 06:25 PM
11/10/15 06:25 PM
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Joined: Oct 2012
Posts: 1,106 Northeast
VincentVega
super stock
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super stock
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Northeast
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Wouldn't hurt to soak in PB Blaster overnight, either.
Looking for 1975 through 1978 B body 4 door sedan sheet metal or parts cars - monaco, fury, coronet. Please let me know
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Re: Breaking out old Upper Ball Joints
[Re: Supercuda]
#1948922
11/10/15 06:33 PM
11/10/15 06:33 PM
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Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 5,363 Rancho Cordova, California (Sa...
hemi71x
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master
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It's not going to make any difference if you take out a ball joint with an air gun, or a 3/4 drive breaker bar. If they are tight, or rusted to begin with and are hard to get out, and tend to strip, you still gotta get them out, no matter what method you use. Now cmon, your not working on the space shuttle here, just a 40+ year old car.
RF-4C Phantom 69-370 Zweibrucken, Germany
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Re: Breaking out old Upper Ball Joints
[Re: AlexP]
#1948937
11/10/15 06:43 PM
11/10/15 06:43 PM
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Joined: Oct 2012
Posts: 1,106 Northeast
VincentVega
super stock
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super stock
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Northeast
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That's exactly what I'm talking about. If you enjoy shooting yourself in the foot, a willy-nilly application of power tools is about the biggest gun you can have. Slow and careful is how you work on large rusty fasteners if you care about trying to save them. It's a lot easier, and cheaper, to keep what you have than tracking down replacement parts.
Looking for 1975 through 1978 B body 4 door sedan sheet metal or parts cars - monaco, fury, coronet. Please let me know
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Re: Breaking out old Upper Ball Joints
[Re: AlexP]
#1948939
11/10/15 06:45 PM
11/10/15 06:45 PM
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Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 14,889 up yours
Supercuda
About to go away
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About to go away
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up yours
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Hopefully it will. I once had a donor car shear off the captive nut inside the frame rail when I went to take the K frame bolts out. I had to pry down with a pry bar as I turned the bolt to get it out. Pry bar slipped, nailed me in the temple and I ended up in the Emergency room getting stitches. Wife thought I took my eye out due to the blood in it. That was a car from the coast and it was the last rusty POS I ever turned a wrench on.
They say there are no such thing as a stupid question. They say there is always the exception that proves the rule. Don't be the exception.
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Re: Breaking out old Upper Ball Joints
[Re: AlexP]
#1949173
11/11/15 01:26 AM
11/11/15 01:26 AM
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Joined: Mar 2011
Posts: 1,655 Cut and Shoot, TX
kentj340
top fuel
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top fuel
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Cut and Shoot, TX
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If you are dealing with loose, nasty, dirty, and likely rusty upper control arms, and you are using a 3/4' drive breaker bar, this is a possible scenario:
a. UCA is in a vise. Ball joint won't budge. b. Add a cheater pipe on the breaker bar. The ball joint still won't budge, but now the table that the vise is bolted to is moving. c. Add a longer cheater pipe and anchor the table to the garage framing. Ball joint still won't move, but now the vise is bending the control arm.
Lesson: Get an impact wrench on those ball joints to save damaging the control arms.
In my case, the UCAs were still on the car. But the forces needed to loosen the ball joints with a breaker bar were more than enough to push the car off the jack stands. An impact wrench was the solution.
If you don't see two dolphins, you need a vacation.
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Re: Breaking out old Upper Ball Joints
[Re: AlexP]
#1949309
11/11/15 12:44 PM
11/11/15 12:44 PM
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Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 21,080 Niles , Ohio
therocks
oh wait.but hey.lets see.oh yeah.
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oh wait.but hey.lets see.oh yeah.
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 21,080
Niles , Ohio
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That and I guess most dont know that new ones cut threads as they go in.A good impack will get most out.Never had a problem and I started doing them in the 60s.Rocky
Chrysler Firepower
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Re: Breaking out old Upper Ball Joints
[Re: AlexP]
#1949332
11/11/15 01:16 PM
11/11/15 01:16 PM
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Joined: May 2013
Posts: 133 Parsippany, New Jersey
340challconvert
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Parsippany, New Jersey
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Unless it is important to you. I just purchased two new upper control arms for my 70 A66 Challenger from Rock Auto for 142 each. They have new ball joints, and new control arm bushings. I weighed the labor and time involved with cleanup and removal and went with new, stock looking UCA's that are made by Goodmark. Just a thought. It would be a lot less work and the advantage of new parts.
1970 A-66 340 Challenger convertible
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Re: Breaking out old Upper Ball Joints
[Re: AlexP]
#1950169
11/12/15 10:16 PM
11/12/15 10:16 PM
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Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 152 Worcester, Mass
68goldfish
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Worcester, Mass
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Before you try any method mentioned. Clean the area very well, and inspect the Ball Joint for tack welds. Not doing this is what caused me to twist my UCA into a pretzel.
Last edited by 68goldfish; 11/12/15 10:21 PM.
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