Any American cars with Chinese badges on them like what Dodge did with the Stealth and Ram 50?

 

I think both of those were actually Mitsubishi...... (japanese....)

 

I haven’t heard great things about Detroit Axle. I’ve considered the Dana’s. Mevotech TTX seem attractive, though I don’t like that you can’t replace the boot. MOOG doesn’t get great reviews, either. I’m worried all the knurled options will booger out the knuckle. Just seems like a rock and a hard place with these

 

If you ever cut one open it's a ball in a plastic socket. Of course materials and quality in manufacturing you don't know. So it's a bit of a crap shoot trying to figure out if one is better than the other. If you don't have anything worn stay away from the knurled ones. Do your own research and try to make the best choice. I found this on a HD ball joint search.

Description

Jeep Super HD Ball Joint Kit (1) BJ107 (1) BJ109 For 99-04 Grand Cherokee 07-18 Wrangler JK Apex Chassis.

At APEX we like to say our quality is not consistent, it's constantly evolving. We rely entirely on engineering, in-house and off-road testing as well as customer feedback to decide on the best design and materials to choose.

• Phosphate Finish: Extremely durable. Double coated. UPPER: Threads coated as well. Rugged look.
• Grade 8 - Class 10.9 Hardware: Superior tensile strength
• Castle Nut: Industry standard where high vibration loads occur.
• SAE 1045 Solid Steel Forged Housing: This is unequivocally the best carbon alloy steel for this application.
• Knurled Housings: The preferred design for aftermarket installations.
• CNC Machined Housing: Make our parts and bearings dimensionally perfect, eliminating any die wear issues.
• Upper: Carbon Bearing Design: Used mainly in Jeep and upper ball joints is the solver of all things wobbly. Like all of our product
• Lower: Military Grade Acetal Bearing: The same bearing material spec'd by the US military for Hummer ball joints.

This material is: dimensionally stable (doesn't expand or contract with hot or cold, water or oil absorption), it can be polished smooth as steel, is anti-friction, Doesn't wear itself out under load like metal on metal, and can take an absolute pounding.

• SAE 4140 hot forged Chromoly Ball Studs: For the strongest possible metallurgy.
• Induction Heat Treated Ball Studs: Provides a very precise heat treatment to the exact depth and location we want it.
• Upper: Plunger Design Stud:and Unique to Jeep and, allows up and down movement with no side-to-side movement.
• Lower: Polished Ball Studs: Are built like an anti-friction bearing with extremely precise tolerances.
• Rolled Threads: Are made by pressing the shape of the threads into the ball stud instead of cutting.
• This strengthens the threads instead of weakening them and allows for easy movement of hardware.

This ain't no Ikea furniture!

• Step Threads: Allows for very easy movement of hardware on install and superior holding when torqued (installer choice).
• CR Rubber Boots: The most durable material for undercar applications. Resistant to deterioration from road level ozone, oil/gas/engine fluids and extreme heat or cold
• Pancake Boot
• Pre threaded Zerk Housing: If you have ever installed a MOOG Ball Joint without a pre-threaded zerk fitting you will understand what a simple but great feature this is. Another installer fav.
• Greaseable: Because it should be.
• Pre-Greased: Just in case you forget, we have you covered.
• Gull Winged Grease Grooves: Allows for improved lubrication disbursement around the ball stud.
• Zerk Fittings: Included for every application.
• Custom Features: Upper: Custom Bearing design to eliminate Death Wobble.
• Custom Features: Lower: Angled Zerk housing for easier servicing.

I must say they do give a pretty good description of what/how it's made compared to most.
Most durable? I would go with a silicone boot. This is a perfect example of what makes one better than the other but most of them don't give you any idea what you are buying.

 

I like this a lot. It seems that Apex is attempting to be transparent, and at first glance, their product looks great. And they don’t seem to break the bank as much as the other boutique options. I need to find time to pop the current ball joints out to see how the knuckle bore looks before ordering. I tend to spend a month or two researching the job and parts before actually doing the project. Doesn’t seem like Apex makes a smooth option. Found this literature from Geno’s Garage https://blog.genosgarage.com/2017/05...m-ball-joints/

Huge thanks to everyone for the suggestions thus far! If I find anything of value in my research I’ll make sure to update this thread

 

Dana/Spicer or Yukon

 

Guess I should have added this to my last post but if you search who has the longest warranty's you get a few that come up(even lifetime). Here is a link about XRF joints, I remember reading about someone who tried them and they didn't last that long either. Don't know any details though. I looked up what Dana/Spicer has to offer(ball joints) and nothing is coming up. Found this but nothing for the 1500's. I then looked up the Dana part # and then found them. lower and upper This is what Yukon has to offer. Randy's makes parts for Yukon and some others. I would bet they are subbed out from one of the other manufactures.

 

https://www.partsgeek.com/catalog/20...all_joint.html
dana spicer 708072 1 upper and 1 lower ball joint set. About $140 at parts geek a little over 1/2 down the list.

 

Good read! I too had never considered knurled vs smooth and I've never measured a BJ (because there's not a lot you can do about it)

Carli may be great but I'm very distrustful of boutique aftermarket for shocks and steering. Stuff like Kryptonite and Icon is sexy but just never has any longevity when it comes to wear parts. Perhaps Carli is an exception

 

Carli is one of the brands Randy's makes.