vett79

I started on my winter project on replacing control arm bushings,ball joints and tie rod ends. Tie rods were easy but I've been unsucessful in popping the first ball joint. I started with the lower using pickel fork and hammer but no luck. Can I use heat? What about the screw type removers from Auto Zone? What are the tricks? Any suggestions are appreciated!!

mrvette

Well, I had to walk 8 feet to measure my pickel fork, and in fact it is 3/4 inch between the tines... and if yours is not that wide, grind it out...or get another one....bet that is the problem....

GENE

vett79

Mine checks about 7/8" opening and about 3/4" thick at the tine opening. Thick enough?

lbell101

I'm assuming your popping them with the spring and all still in place - right?
Start with the top one and loosen the nut a quarter inch or so. Then use the coil tension to your advantage and tap on the side of the casting that the post goes into. If it doesn't pop then use the fork. It will pop. From memory now, I don't think you can pop the bottom one while it's still om the car. Ithink the coil puts pressure in the wrong direction. (correct me if I'm wrong guys). Then remove the lower control arm with the spindle. Put it in a vise so you can use gravity and the fork on the bottom joint. Tapping on the sides where the tapered shaft goes in seems to really help.

Shutdown1

Hey man,


The other guys posting are all on the right track, but finesse aside, you've really got to whack that pickle fork to break the ball joint loose. I mean really slug it; -rest a while, and come back and hit it again!

'74 Turbocharged 350, "Molested to Perfection," class of '71

BAD-L88

Spray some lubricant in there, and leave it for half an hour.

When you get back hammer the picklr fork in as far as it can go. Make sure you have a friend nearby to make sure the car doesn't come off the jack stands. AND MOVE IT UP AND DOWN AS HARD AS YOU CAN until it breaks.

That's my two cents.

vett79

I guess I was expecting sucess too early....I'll keep at it but do the top one first. Thanks for the encouragement.

C3 Shark Tank

vett79,

Call Art at Van Steel, order the suspension rebuild video. It covers the front and rear suspension, gives lots of tricks on how to do things the easy way. Best $20 you can spend! http://www.vansteel.com/ It's no Hollywood production, but I watched it 4-5 times before doing my rear suspension and it helped greatly.

kenincanada

Use heat as a last resort,it wil change the integraty of the steel making it weak

454Big

I tried to use a pickle fork on my cars, but even with excessive hammer blows :smash: it refused to break loose.

Totally different with the screw type splitter tool. Set it up, turn the wrench (it also needs some kind of force! :blueangel: ) and wait until it pops!
Be sure that you have the nuts still on the joints!
Otherwise the spindle will pop out.

BTW, if you are careful, the front springs don´t pop out, they just drop out.
All cars I worked on lost their front springs by lowering the lower A-Arms and let them drop out. Use a chain as insurance!

If you have more Questions mail me or post!

vett79

Thanks for the tips.........I think I'll try the removal tool from Auto Zone this week-end and see what kind of lucl I have . Keep you all posted.