03' QC 4x4 5.9l I'm tackleing my lower ball joints tonight or tomorrow morning. Got everything apart just need to remove and replace. I have the ball joint press tool, anybody have any tips or advice for making this job go smoothly?

 

I have heard that freezing the ball joints will make them shrink a tiny bit allowing them to go in easier.

 

Good luck I have seen people on this forum that could never get them off and the same on.

Very PITA but maybe you will a lucky one.

Be prepared for plan B to kick in ASAP

 

Got into the job yesterday around lunch time, had everything tore down and back together by about 4:30. Didn't go to bad. Got the press set up on the bottom ball joints, heated the arm a little and got it to free up a smudge with the air hammer, then a little sweat and elbow grease and they came right out. Went back in fairly easy. One problem, grease fitting on my passenger side coulda been turned inward a bit more, I'll just make up some new swear words every time I go to grease it

 

OOC, which brand of replacement did you use? Moog? Raybestos Pro Grade? Something else?

 

Combo of moog and raybestos....Recently wrecked the dak and insurance paid for a new control arm and upper or the drivers side...I prefer raybestos, so that's what I purchased for the rest.....but my parts store gave me the wrong ball joints and weren't open on sunday to correct the problem so I wound up with moogs. So there's moog lowers and one moog upper and one raybestos upper.

 

And side note...did a side by side compare of the 2 brand new lowers(raybestos vs moog) I could hold the moog and move the peg on the bottom side but not with the raybestos...much tighter ball joint

 

Interesting to see which one holds up.