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The right tools
Ok, I finally got the ball joint replaced. And I must say as one of the members said, its a matter of having the right tools. The job went a lot easier with these tools. I used the OTC7315A for separating the upper ball joint from the spindle (mine was stuck to it pretty good). Although I tore the boot the other day when I used a pickle fork with this upper bj, I know that the otc will not tear the boot when used correctly.
The NAPA 7759096 separator did the trick with separating the lower ball joint from the lower control arm. After that, I used a hammer and a short piece of 1" dia steel pipe coupling to hammer out the old bj. To install the new bj, I used the AZ bj press tool. I first removed the boot of the new bj b4 putting on the AZ tool. However, this whole process was not as smooth. I did not have a good vise to hold the spindle with so everything was by hand. My son and I held the spindle down to the floor as we turned the tool. In between, we would raise the spindle up and tap on the AZ tool really hard to help further push the bj down into the spindle. It took a bit of doing but got it fully seated eventually.
The tool to the left is the OTC. I got from Dodgetopia.com for $37+shpg. The Napa tool is $17 with 20% off card.
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the sooner you start... the sooner you'll get done  If it ain't broke, don't fix it.. Its always simpler to tell the truth... 
2007 Honda Accord EX
2007 Honda Accord SE V6
96 C220
97 Explorer - Found Another Home
2000 Honda Accord V6 - Found Another Home
85 300D - Found Another Home
84 300D - Found Another Home
80 300TD - Found Another Home
Previous cars:
96 Caravan
87 Camry
84 Cressida
82 Vanagon
80 Fiesta
78 Nova
Ford Cortina
Opel Kadet
68 Kombi
Contessa
Last edited by tobybul; 09-11-2006 at 10:04 PM.
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