So the car is being awkward as usual.

Started the front axle balljoints this morning and its fought us the whole way. getting the hubs off took what felt like hours of beating, one oil seal is ruined, and i smashed both CV boots so those are also wrecked.

Then started on trying to break the tapers free on the balljoints... The top ones came free easily enough but the bottom one wouldnt shift. I've ended up grinding the balljoint cone off, then taking the knuckle to the bench and smashing it out with a lump hammer.

So finally we're at the worst bit of the whole thing, pressing the balljoints out. I ordered a big G Clamp style balljoint press and it fits well enough, but i cannot get the balljoints to shift. I've tightened it to the point the spanner jaws are spreading and slipping off the hex and theres been no movement at all. I cant get a socket on because the clamp is hard against the arch liner.

Anyone got any pointers to get the balljoints moving? Theres a few guides floating around that seem to cover reinstalling them, but the removal is glossed over...

See pm, otherwise, jack the body, that gives you room to get socket on, I use a 32oz ball pen hammer to shock them into submission, getting the hub off, a disc round the wrong way gives you a whacking point, without ruining your gaitors ( too late I know ) I do these all the time, it’s more technique than anything .

Yeh i figured out the jacking the body earlier, wound the C clamp up as much as i dared with a 3ft breaker bar, but its not shifting. Not tried shocking it yet though.

Given up for the night.

This is where we are on both sides:

Tightened it as much as we dared, the C clamp is actually deforming in the pic its so tight.

Bashed lumps out of it with the ball pein and its not moved at all...

Bleh!

Do you have any means of applying heat to it?

I picked up a small (butane powered, I think) blowtorch from Halfords a few years ago. No where near as much heat asa proper oxy acetalene torch but it managed to free off the brake discs that had corroded to the hubs.

Art with shocking things is to get something really solid underneath so nothing bounces and plenty of hand speed on a heavy hammer for a really sharp rap. Thump away all day with big swings with too light a hitter and get nowhere. Although theoretically the energy is the same half of it seems to bounce back.

Those C shape extractors look the part but are very weak. That spindly screw tend to run ways from under the load. Once you have a bend on it its doing 3/8 of nothing at all. Hope you've left it under tension as overnight temperature changes might just let it pop out.

If I have to do mine a copy of the hydraulic Sykes Picavant tool : https://www.chrometrader.co.uk/sykes-pickavant-18771100-swivel-ball-joint-tool-d2-p38-c-w-press-frame-ram.html will get made tout de suite. Almost £600 drinking vouchers is a joke in bad taste. Especially as I already have a ram, well two actually. Probably nearly as effective to substitute a fat bolt for the ram and put an impact drive on it. I guess the thread will be something like 1 1/2" x 18 so that aint gonna bend!

Clive

Depending on what tools and materials you have available, you might be able to make something like this but a bit smaller:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d_LSPX8cNaE

I've never had a problem using the screw press to get them out/in. I've done 5 or 6 of them now, and never had one that tight (well, not the ball joints... hubs/knuckles are another matter!)

My first observation is that with the adapter plate you're using on the bottom, it looks like it is just hard up against the bottom of the knuckle, and the top is obviously compressing. To me it looks like you're just pressing against the knuckle and that's why nothing is moving.

I used one of the smaller diameter bushings that I've circled in red in this image (it's hard to remember from the picture which one it was - but it was one of the thinner ones), directly onto the bottom of the C clamp to press the joint out. It then slides up over the taper, and will probably destroy the rubber dust cover etc - but as they're coming out and being replaced, it doesn't matter. The pressure point to get the top ones out is up inside the knuckle, and with the adapter you're using I don't think it has the reach on the internal diameter to press up far enough, and as mentioned above - I'm pretty sure you're just forcing the C clamp apart as the pressure is going against the solid metal knuckle - not the ball joint.

To do up the clamp, I use a socket and a 4ft breaker bar... even on the one which most the most of a pain to get undone, I've not got close to needing that much pressure it looks like in the picture to get it to crack free.

Edit: looking at the picture again, I'm sure I used a wider receiving cup on top of the knuckle too - I'm sure the one I used was about the same diameter as the knuckle...

The bottom adaptor is too big, however the balljoint sticks thru by about 3mm so pretty sure the adaptor is pushing against the balljoint, not the knuckle. I was hoping to at least get it started moving, then swap it out for a socket or something to pull it the rest of the way thru.

Unfortunately my press kit doesnt have as many adaptors as the one pictured.

Ah, I'm guessing you went for the 10pc one then...

I went with the 21pc one as I was unsure if the 10pc one had all the bits I needed to do the job, and from memory - after doing it, I found that there were a couple of useful bits (like the smaller bushings) that were quite useful.

I'd try a decent impact socket or something over the taper of the ball joint instead of the flat adapter, as I'm sure that when I've done them there hasn't been enough meat on the ball joint to just use the flat one.

The 10 pc kit works, As Marty says, you need to change the bottom fitting, either a smaller sleeve or socket to push on the casing of the ball joint rather than the joint itself. ( it’s quite tight over rubber ) It can be a bit awkward with adapters top and bottom, but once under load with a sharp rap it will move.
Once that ones out, you thread the press threaded part through the top ball joint hole, sleeve and plate with hole on bottom, socket to press down and out.

Cheers for the help guys. Back at it this morning and got them out. Tightened the thing even more and smashed at it with a big ball pein and it finally let go. The passenger side let go with a bang too!

https://www.dropbox.com/s/dy6sfw41lrosje0/IMG-20180408-WA0006.jpg?dl=0

The tools definately bent now though, refitting the bushes was fun with the bent tool:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/duv3dkxm1j58fhn/IMG-20180408-WA0003.jpg?dl=0

Didnt start out like that, but the end walked across the cup due to the bend and it all ended up cocked over. However all four went in without issue.

I then realised i ordered 4 big nuts for the balljoints, rather than two big and two small, so i now need to get those before i can finish installing the knuckle.

Also need to get axle oil seals, new bolts to attach the hubs (existing ones were missmatching and ended up pretty smashed up), new CV boots, a new ABS sensor (one ended up getting smashed out!) and i appear to have lost a caliper bolt, so i might just replace the four of those as well.

Not finished, but the backs broken, and once the bits arrive its probably only an hour in the evening to finish it off. Slightly annoying the cars now stuck in the middle of the driveway though! I should have parked it further forwards!

I always get bearmach ball joints, as they come with nuts.
How bad were the joints, I found a huge difference when I did mine.
I’m not surprised you bent the press looking at pics, ive Had them go with a bang, only ever had one that needed oxygen to move it. On reassembly, just stick a jack under the hub carrier and the joints hold nicely to put the nuts on without them spinning.
if I was doing everyday I’d pay 400 for a hydraulic press, had a set to fit last week, then all of a sudden the guys not answering his phone, some muppets around..
glad you got them out.. another job well done

The boots were all split on them and the insides were rusty. They would creak when you turned the steering. So defo gubbered! Hope it makes an improvement with how it drives because it was certainly a bit wandery before

What's the best way to test these ball joints?

I get an occasional creaking when turning the steering wheel at low speeds and the car can be a little wandery. Figured the noise was the steering damper and the wanderyness was bushes but it sounds like it could be ball joints ☹️

Jack the front of the car on the axle so the wheel is clear of the deck, then put a long bar under the wheel and try to lift the wheel. If there is any up and down movement, the ball joints are shot. Ideally it's a two man job, one person on the bar and another underneath looking for the movement.

Gilbertd wrote:

Jack the front of the car on the axle so the wheel is clear of the deck, then put a long bar under the wheel and try to lift the wheel. If there is any up and down movement, the ball joints are shot. Ideally it's a two man job, one person on the bar and another underneath looking for the movement.

That is extremely useful info. In my quest to stop the wobbling I think balljoints are likely to be high on the list. Thank you!

mine didnt wobble, and the MOT man didnt mention any play. But it did wander all over the place and its like an old american movie trying to keep it in a streight line down a back road.

In the last year its had a new steering damper, a new steering column to steering box UJ shaft, both panhard rod bushes and all four steering balljoints replaced. (annoyingly i clipped the boot on one of them with the grinder trying to remove the stupid lower balljoint, so thats going to need done again at some point :()

I really hope these balljoints sort the wandering because its really unpleasant and theres not a great deal left!

Mine weren't picked up on the MOT either - but made a large difference to the wandering.

I haven't done the panhard bushes on mine yet, but the other think that made a noticeable difference for me was the radius arm bushes..

the front radius bushes onto the axle look ok, at least not all torn/ripped etc i guess they could have gone soggy though. I've not checked the chassis end.

They are pretty cheap so maybe i should just do them... Anyone got a spare pair of radius arms i could borrow?