Quick question about ball links I'm doing the work now

Ok got a quick question about changing lower ball links.

Do you need to remove the coilover to do the work? What I'm getting at is. Is there spring pressure on the assembly? Will it all spring apart when I remove the bolts?

 

Yes I mean ball joints. And thank you for the quick response I didn't think so but the write up I read had it removed but he was replacing upper and lower lca's too.

I don't think I will have an issue with the lca flapping down if the shock is still installed.

I wonder though if the lca will drop far enough away from the ball link stud to remove it with the shock still on. I guess well see lol

 

You dont have to remove the shock. Just be careful not to pull the hub assembly to far away from the truck with the CV still attached if you are 4x4.

 

im stuck guys. iv got the new ball jount on the steering knuckle but i cant get the ball joint stud to reach the lower control arm, its 10 @ night and this stinks. any tips on how to do this before i remove my coil over?

plus why does the upper control arm have some springiness to it? im doint this by myself and i think im gonna need another hand to old down the upper control arm/steering knuckle assy to get the lower ball J to go through the lower control arm enough to get a thread on it with the castle nut.

or take off the coil over so the lca moves freely. than how do i get the coil over back on once its all instaled?

do i need to remove the torsion bar?

my haines manual blows big time.....

 

Well got it all done...what a pain in the ass to do by yourself.

So I eventually busted out the bottle jack that comes with the truck and jacked up the LCA while also letting slight pressure off the main jack which basically compressed the shock so I could get enough of the bj stud through to get a thread started than I just tightened and torqued within spec till the cotter pin holes lined up.

Since that took forever I'll be doing the drivers side Sunday. Should go a lot smoother since I know what to expect

 

glad you got it figured out. Good idea on the bottle jack, i was going to suggest that but didnt see it in time. Similar to what happened to me the first time i changed a CV. Took me forever the first time and the second time went a lot smoother.

 

No actually you said to have a jack under there to prevent the lca from swinging down abruptly...don't try and take credit for a coincidence ;-)

 

Yeah hoping the drivers side tomorrow goes a he'll of allot quicker. It is nice to walk up to my truck and see nice shiny new parts underneath, and to also not worry about dying from a ball joint failing at 75 mph on the freeway lol

 

Thanks crainholio, yeah it went way smoother. Had it all done and even washed the truck in 4 hours vs the 8 hours it took for the first side.

Moog makes some quality parts, the new stuff is beefier and also serviceable with zerk fittings. Only gripe I have is the Zerk fittings that came with the tie rod ends, one of em didn't fit...it was the wrong size and the ball joints didn't even come with any. So I had to buy a multi pack of zerks at harbor freight which turned out good because I was able to replace the one that didn't fit..

Now time to get a wheel alignment, my steering wheel is off about 15-20 degrees to the right now lol

But the steering wheel feels alot tighter now but I can't tell if it's good or bad. It feels like less slop yet also feels like it has less power steering assisting in turns. I should be able to really tell after the alignment.