Lower Ball Joint Replacement Question - Page 7 - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

Brian Carlton · #91 11-10-2006, 09:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tobybul

I ended up ordering the OTC 7315 tool which separated the spindle from the joint effortlessly. I think this tool is a must have....

I found this set for $100. Couldn't stop myself.........

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Pitman-Arm-Ball-Joint-Tie-Rod-FRoNT-EnD-ToolS_W0QQitemZ120051333471QQihZ002QQcategoryZ43996QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

zebra · #92 11-10-2006, 11:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Whiskeydan

It's all pretty obvious when you pull the rotor and have a look.
You will need to remove the spindle in order to hammer the old ball joint out.

No need to compress the spring.

Good luck.

Do you mean that with jack stand under low control arm, I need not compress the spring, just dismentle the upper control arm from the spindle and push off the low control arm from the ball joint? Now which part hold the spring from release? Is the shock aborber? Is it too much for the shock? I have W126 (420 SEL) but I found the front spindle is the same.

zebra · #93 11-11-2006, 12:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brian Carlton

I found this set for $100. Couldn't stop myself.........

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Pitman-Arm-Ball-Joint-Tie-Rod-FRoNT-EnD-ToolS_W0QQitemZ120051333471QQihZ002QQcategoryZ43996QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Actually, the same tool from Powerbuilt can be loaned from Checker, just wonder they can only do the upper and low arm to ball joint job, but not the spindle/ball joint job. Maybe the Napa is best choice for me, because I don't have a vise and nobody would hold the spindle for me. But maybe I can't find a Napa shop in Vegas.

tobybul · #94 11-11-2006, 08:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by zebra

Do you mean that with jack stand under low control arm, I need not compress the spring, just dismentle the upper control arm from the spindle and push off the low control arm from the ball joint? Now which part hold the spring from release? Is the shock aborber? Is it too much for the shock? I have W126 (420 SEL) but I found the front spindle is the same.

Below are some pics of my 85 300D ball joint replacement job.... I supported the base of the spring....

nautical · #95 07-07-2012, 10:17 AM

hey folks. looks like lower ball joints are tuff and confusing. i can't do my own. and my mechanic has been working on cars for 40 years. so, i hope he can do both of my lower ball joints.

my question is- how many hour do you think he is going to charge me for?

i'm broke.

thank you.

300d benz 1985

Brian Carlton · #96 07-07-2012, 10:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nautical

hey folks. looks like lower ball joints are tuff and confusing. i can't do my own. and my mechanic has been working on cars for 40 years. so, i hope he can do both of my lower ball joints.

my question is- how many hour do you think he is going to charge me for?

i'm broke.

thank you.

300d benz 1985

Nobody likes doing lower ball joints. Most will do the job badly because they don't have the correct tools.

If he does the job in anything less that four hours, consider yourself very fortunate. If he doesn't want to do it, he'll charge you eight.

Diesel911 · #97 07-07-2012, 11:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jmana

I need to replace both ball joints on my 85 300SD due to the fact that there is not a boot on either one. I was looking at the proceedure for replacing it, but I was wondering if it is possible to do it without removing the spindle?

I have not read all of the comments by the other Members so this may be a repeat.

For the below I am assuming that you have had no other symptoms that indicate a Worn Ball Joint other than that the Boots have been messed up.

Before condeming the lower Joints get the Wheel off of the Ground and supported under the Lower Control Arm.
Get a Jack under the bottom of the Spindle and jack it up and down to see if there is any movement in the Ball Joint. If you are sure there is no movement there is a good chance the Joint is not shot.

After you get the Spindle off of the Car spray the Joint down will WD-40 and clean all the nasty dirt off really well.

Work the Joint back and forth to see if you can bring out any dirt.

After it is cleaned as good as you can get it if the Joint is still feels tight I believe you could consider just buying New Boots for the Lower Ball Joints and Filling the Boots with Grease before Installation.

Even with some dirt in them if the Joints are still tight there is no reason that you could not get several more Years use out of them. At least enough time to Plan the Job and save Money for the Job.

I think it is the same for the Ball Joint on the Upper Control Arm.

Also when doing the Upper Control Arms it is not unusual for there to be an issue with the Tip of the Sway Bar.

Jack None · #98 07-31-2012, 02:23 PM

There's a LOT of confusion over what turned out to be a simple job. Here's my .02. I hope it helps another amateur mechanic, which is why I'm taking a few minutes to write this.

My '84 300D (300k) had front end squeaking, a steering wheel shimmy above 65 mph, and pulled to the right. The boot on my passenger side lower ball joint was shot. My indy (trusted) quoted me 3.5 hours, $350 (not including alignment or parts).

I ordered the part (Meyle, before I read the overwhelming opinion that they are inferior... oh well). I studied the FSM (you can find it free online. 33-400, 33-310, 33-300). I cracked open a beer. I put jack stands under the front jack points. I took off the wheel. I removed the brake caliper and hung it to the top of the wheel well, out of the way. I removed the grease cap (gripping the whole thing gently with channel locks, and rocking side to side gently while pulling out). I scribed a mark on the axle nut and the spindle end so as not to need to deal with 33-300 (adjustment of wheel bearing and play) on reassembly. I removed axle clamping nut. I removed rotor, put the nut in the grease cap and grease cap loosely back on and the assembly in the trunk on some clean cardboard to keep grit out of the bearings and to avoid changing the grease. I jacked up under lower control arm a bit, so jack was very stable but jack stand was also still VERY stable (rock car, etc.). I removed nut from upper ball joint. I used the Autozone loaner tool, "tie rod end puller, OEM27022" (the skinny one, not OEM27016) to easily separate the knuckle arm from the upper ball joint, without damaging the upper ball joint. It took a little elbow grease to pull the upper control arm away from the knuckle arm, but it wasn't hard. I removed the steering knuckle arm (2 bolts under lower ball joint). I removed the nut from lower ball joint. I used the same "tie rod end puller" to persuade the lower ball joint threaded end to separate from the lower control arm. It took a decent sized monkey wrench. As I don't have a good vise and I didn't have the time anyway, I took the knuckle and the new ball joint in to my indy to be press out old ball joint, press in new ($40).

Installation was easy... be careful when replacing the rotor/bearings/clamping nut on the spindle not to let any greasy part drop onto the ground. Use some thread lock on the two caliper bolts and the two steering knuckle arm bolts. Get an alignment.

No, don't try to do this "in situ." Why would you want to do that? No, you don't need to compress the spring. Yes, you get to keep your Man Card if your indy does the actual ball joint pressing.

It took maybe two hours from jacking to knuckle removal (not counting trip to Autozone). WAAAY less time than reading all these confusing posts on all these threads. Not bad for $310 savings and a bunch of experience points. Shimmy, squeak, and pulling are history. Old ball joint was rusty.

funola · #99 07-31-2012, 02:51 PM

Jack None, sounds like an easy job for you. well done!

Is this the puller you used to separate the lower ball joint taper from the control arm? From the pic, it does not look like it will fit considering how the LBJ is recessed in the knuckle.

Autozone 27022

Jack None · #**100** 07-31-2012, 03:02 PM

Turn it on its side to get it around the control arm, a few inches up from the LBJ. Then turn it back upright again, and position it over the threaded end of the LBJ. At this point the knuckle is very free and easy to move out of the way (only held on by LBJ). The two prongs of the tool grip the bottom of the control arm. Make sure it's lined up straight.

It took some force on the crescent wrench, but then the knuckle popped free. For some reason, the autozone part has a cap and can't accept a socket. Socket and breaker bar would have made this easier. I tried a fork and hammer first, but this is what worked for me.

vstech · #**101** 07-31-2012, 03:51 PM

click the buy parts tab, then go down to special tools, click on steering, and then advance to the next page.
item kk129-0 is the tool for this job!
best tool I've ever purchased.
Harbor freight has a similar one for about 17.00 that is ok for the average DIY.

Diesel911 · #**102** 07-31-2012, 06:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jack None

There's a LOT of confusion over what turned out to be a simple job. Here's my .02. I hope it helps another amateur mechanic, which is why I'm taking a few minutes to write this.

My '84 300D (300k) had front end squeaking, a steering wheel shimmy above 65 mph, and pulled to the right. The boot on my passenger side lower ball joint was shot. My indy (trusted) quoted me 3.5 hours, $350 (not including alignment or parts).

I ordered the part (Meyle, before I read the overwhelming opinion that they are inferior... oh well). I studied the FSM (you can find it free online. 33-400, 33-310, 33-300). I cracked open a beer. I put jack stands under the front jack points. I took off the wheel. I removed the brake caliper and hung it to the top of the wheel well, out of the way. I removed the grease cap (gripping the whole thing gently with channel locks, and rocking side to side gently while pulling out). I scribed a mark on the axle nut and the spindle end so as not to need to deal with 33-300 (adjustment of wheel bearing and play) on reassembly. I removed axle clamping nut. I removed rotor, put the nut in the grease cap and grease cap loosely back on and the assembly in the trunk on some clean cardboard to keep grit out of the bearings and to avoid changing the grease. I jacked up under lower control arm a bit, so jack was very stable but jack stand was also still VERY stable (rock car, etc.). I removed nut from upper ball joint. I used the Autozone loaner tool, "tie rod end puller, OEM27022" (the skinny one, not OEM27016) to easily separate the knuckle arm from the upper ball joint, without damaging the upper ball joint. It took a little elbow grease to pull the upper control arm away from the knuckle arm, but it wasn't hard. I removed the steering knuckle arm (2 bolts under lower ball joint). I removed the nut from lower ball joint. I used the same "tie rod end puller" to persuade the lower ball joint threaded end to separate from the lower control arm. It took a decent sized monkey wrench. As I don't have a good vise and I didn't have the time anyway, I took the knuckle and the new ball joint in to my indy to be press out old ball joint, press in new ($40).

Installation was easy... be careful when replacing the rotor/bearings/clamping nut on the spindle not to let any greasy part drop onto the ground. Use some thread lock on the two caliper bolts and the two steering knuckle arm bolts. Get an alignment.

No, don't try to do this "in situ." Why would you want to do that? No, you don't need to compress the spring. Yes, you get to keep your Man Card if your indy does the actual ball joint pressing.

It took maybe two hours from jacking to knuckle removal (not counting trip to Autozone). WAAAY less time than reading all these confusing posts on all these threads. Not bad for $310 savings and a bunch of experience points. Shimmy, squeak, and pulling are history. Old ball joint was rusty.

Glad you had and easy time of it.

Unforunately the Lower Ball Joint does not come out so easly for everyone.
The above post is the type of post someone who has never done the Job reads and thinks it is and easy Job He or She can do.
Next, they are back on the saying how the followed the Instructions and cannot understand how they followed the instructions and still cannot get the Lower Ball Joint out of the Lower Control Arm.

If this thread is confusing only because when people had something stuck they had to get creative in order to un-stick the Parts and that seems to have required them to use what was available to them.

Jack None · #**103** 07-31-2012, 06:47 PM

Yes, the devil is in the details. For example, Dave made a nice step-by-step with photos for replacing a rear axle, which I followed. Except that my snap ring was a different type than his, and much more difficult to get off and on. Still, I was grateful he made that step-by-step.

I wouldn't have tried this job if I hadn't done some other stuff. It went smoothly for me (for once). I relayed my experience -- take it or leave it!

funola · #**104** 07-31-2012, 07:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Diesel911

Glad you had and easy time of it.

Unforunately the Lower Ball Joint does not come out so easly for everyone.
The above post is the type of post someone who has never done the Job reads and thinks it is and easy Job He or She can do.
Next, they are back on the saying how the followed the Instructions and cannot understand how they followed the instructions and still cannot get the Lower Ball Joint out of the Lower Control Arm.

If this thread is confusing only because when people had something stuck they had to get creative in order to un-stick the Parts and that seems to have required them to use what was available to them.

Read his post again!

It was easy because he read this confusing post and got wise, brought the knuckle with ball joint to a shop to have them knock it out and press a new one in.

Diesel911 · #**105** 07-31-2012, 07:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by funola

Read his post again!

It was easy because he read this confusing post and got wise, brought the knuckle with ball joint to a shop to have them knock it out and press a new one in.

Of course that was part of it.

But, He also said he used the Tool similar to the one pictured at the bottom on the left to pop the Lower Ball Joint off of the Lower Control Arm.

I did not say it in specific words but I think he was extremely lucky that that partuicular Tool worked as it is not a Strong Tool compared to the Factory Tool on the Right.