I curse Chrysler for riveting these stupid ball joints. After putting it off for a very long time, I finally took advantage of the warm weather and swapped them all out today. I used an angle grinder with a cutting wheel to cut pluses in the rivet heads, then knocked the heads off with an air chisel. I then drilled each one and knocked them out with a punch.

Had a few mishaps along the way. While drilling, a large bit broke off in a rivet. I ended up drilling a small hole from underneath. I then ground the tip of a nail to flatten it, and hammered it upward thru the small hole I'd drilled, to dislodge the broken bit. I used a tie rod puller to pop the tie rod off the knuckle, as well as to pop the lower ball joint. The upper joint, I banged that with a hammer.

So what I found was that the passenger side upper BJ was shot. I could move the shaft up and down almost a quarter inch by hand. The lower passenger side also had a bit of vertical play, but almost not discernible by hand. The driver's side BJs were still good, but I went ahead and changed them anyway because I didn't want a mismatch of bolt ins and rivets, tight and looser. Besides, I'd ripped the rubber of the lower BJ with the tie rod puller, when removing the knuckle. It's almost all back together but I stopped for the night. While at it, I greased the tie rod joints with a grease needle and relubed the caliper slide pins.

Here were the ball joints I used. I went cheap... junkyard uppers and Napa lowers. Ya'll may remember these threads.

https://dodgeforum.com/forum/2nd-gen...ll-joints.html

https://dodgeforum.com/forum/2nd-gen...-question.html

 

I did one side at a time actually a year apart yea I broke a bit also. How are the steering stabilizer links ok they are usually worn out also? First side I got lucky and didn't need to get an alignment she drove fine with no tire wear.

 

I replaced the end links with Moogs a while back. I've been having an issue with the passenger side though. When the end link rotates back and forth, the angled grease nipple comes in contact with the control arm, eventually unscrews and falls out. I switched to a straight nipple and it fell it too, but probably because the hole seems to be stripped now. I'm going to weld one in and be done with it.

I'll see how it drives today. I'm not looking forward to paying more for an alignment, than I did for all the ball joints added together.

 

I tossed some economy links on my Dak they had no zerk's and they looked on the weak side I should replace them with some quality ones but they are still working so maybe they are ok.

 

I got the grease nipple welded onto the end link. If it falls out now, I give up. I got the truck all buttoned up and took it to a screwed up parking lot, known to make the ball joints clunk like crazy. Not a single sound from the front end and it also feels tighter. I do need an alignment now as the steering is slightly off center.

 

I replaced mine back in early 2015 when i did the lift and bigger tires; originally threw on (Dont remember the brand) but they were the blue premium boots I liked and were dirt cheap on rock auto..

Big mistake; the bolts the come with are like plastic and strip just torquing to factory spec; i put old ones on that previous owner had put on (not sure what brand just i replaced due to broken boot from over servicing)

thought about it a day and decided to oder moog... the only comment about the moogs they are already rusted up on their outer housing..

Not sure what brand the previous owner put on here but they were not rusted at all.

cheap parts even the trusted name brands

 

Don't be afraid to go with the Napa ones I linked to up above. Cheap in price, but they look like a quality item.

 

Drove truck to work today. Hoped to leave early and take it for alignment. Well, that didn't happen.

So in the twisty turns of my building's parking garage, I noticed that the steering feel wasn't the same and felt heavier. It just wasn't light and quick to return to center when I released my grip on the wheel coming out of a corner. I'd almost have to steer it back to straight... not quite but almost. I think I may have torqued things a lot too tight. I didn't use a torque wrench ( I know bad) and now I'll be paying the price. Namely the tie rod end at the knuckle, the upper and lower BJs need to be properly torqued.

I'm a bit confused on a few things. Here is what the service manual says....

CAUTION: The ball joint stud tapers must be
CLEAN and DRY before installing the knuckle.
Clean the stud tapers with mineral spirits to remove
dirt and grease.

Well, I applied antiseize to the ball joint taper before installing. Not sure how that affects things. It did cause the ball joint to spin while tightening, but I was able to stop that and get it torqued down. Now I'm going to have to pop things loose again, I'm wondering if I should just clean off the antiseize. I don't plan to drop the knuckle completely off. I just want to loosen the upper and lower BJ castle nuts, then bang it so it drops a bit, then retorque. I'm afraid if I just loosen and tighten the nuts, the taper will remain tight as it is now, unless I break it loose.


Torque Specifications according to service manual...
-----------------------
2) Install the knuckle onto the upper and lower
ball joints (Fig. 19).
(3) Install the upper and lower ball joint nuts.
Tighten the upper ball joint nut to 54 N·m (40 ft.
lbs.) (on 1500 series only an additional 90° turn is
required) and the lower ball joint nut to 52 N·m (38
ft. lbs.)(on 1500 series only an additional 90° turn is
required)(LD) or 135 N·m (100 ft. lbs.)(HD 4X2).
(4) Remove the hydraulic jack from the lower suspension
arm.
(5) Install the tie rod end and tighten the nut to
61 N·m (45 ft. lbs.).


Now regarding the above... Am I reading this right in that the top BJ castle nut is only 40 ft lb??? And the lower, 100 ft lb? Everywhere else I've read says the upper should be torqued to 105 ft lb and the lower 115 ft lb. 40 lbs seems very light for an upper BJ, no? Also heard the tie rod should be 60 lbs but SM says 45 ft lb. I'm not questioning the service manual, just afraid I may be having a bonehead moment and not reading things right.

Any advice is appreciated.

 

Gonna update this thread with the torque specs in case myself or anyone else needs it in the future.

Upper ball joint bolts (3) = 52-55 lbs
Upper ball joint stud (castle nut) = 60 lbs (exceed slightly to line up with cotter pin hole. Do not loosen)

Lower ball joint bolts (4) = 60 lbs
Lower ball joint castle stud (castle nut) = 94 lbs (exceed slightly to line up with cotter pin hole. Do not loosen)

Tie rod end stud = 60 lbs
Sway bar end link upper nut = 27 lbs (this seems too tight so I backed off)
Sway bar end link lower ball stud = 35 lbs

 

I would never use antiseize on the shafts they are tapered to lock them together that's why using a torque wrench is a good thing as too tight and you would need a jack hammer to get them off next time. The nuts/bolts to the ball joint I would stick stringently to the castle nuts are more forgiving and lock with the cotter pin anyway so 50 to 60 will do.