I bought one of their 2 1/2 ton floor jacks. thing leaked off right from the start.

Don`t even think of using their hack saw blades. I was at PNP to pull an engine. so cut off the cross brace the radiator attaches to si I didn`t have to lift the engine so high.

Iam hack sawing through the sheet metal, and it took off all the teeth. I wondered why it quit cutting. glad I had the package of new blades with me. went through 5 blades.

Charlie

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there were three HP ratings on the OM616...

1) Not much power
2) Even less power
3) Not nearly enough power!! 240D w/auto

Anyone that thinks a 240D is slow drives too fast.

80 240D Naturally Exasperated, 4-Spd 388k DD 150mph spedo 3:58 Diff

We are advised to NOT judge ALL Muslims by the actions of a few lunatics, but we are encouraged to judge ALL gun owners by the actions of a few lunatics. Funny how that works

Well, I guess I was just trying to give a swing visual with the pendulum idea, but you're right - the wood splitting motion is a better analogy because it reinforces the notion that you had better lay into that thing pretty hard. By all means, start slow and easy and if you're lucky maybe it plops out. Unfortunately not the case fro me - but, hey, I managed to get it out. I did mangle the socket a bit, but it is still usable - I made sure not to pick a metric one.

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'95 E300D ("Tank") - 231,000 miles
'79 240D ("Biscuit") - 197,250 miles (Sold)
'83 240D ("Ding-Ding") - 217,000 miles (Death by deer)
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"Back off, man. I’m a scientist” ~ Peter Venkman

I have had bad luck with the HF regular Hack Saw Blades when used on something like a grad 5 Bolt. Apparently some areas of the blade that Teeth are hardened and on other areas they are soft.

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84 300D, 82 Volvo 244Gl Diesel

I have to wonder about folks who sell bent and broken tools on E-Bay

the rental balljoint press tool from autozone WILL work. i know i can vouch for that and dannym will too. ive had this argument over and over on this forum and have mostly stopped posting on here due to the people here who cant figure out how to use a tool. so since they cant figure it out, IT CANT POSSIBLY WORK!


the autozone tool will work just fine. just take your time

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have no worries.....President Obama swears "If you like your gun, you can keep it

It will squeeze the ball joint into the hole. It just can't squeeze it where it should be squeezed. That's what a few folks are incapable of figuring out. It's all in how you choose to measure success.

There is a liquidator on Ebay whose main product line appears to be Harbor Freight returns. Try searching for "Tadd."

Did a nice job on every car I did. Never had a problem with it crushing the rolled lip. Of course, I clean steering knuckle good and press it in nice and straight. Never had to use too much effort, never found any damage using it and most of all have never had an issue out of any of the joints I pressed in.

There are those who can do a job and make whats available work without damage and there are those who cant fathom using anything but the tool specifically designed for the application.

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have no worries.....President Obama swears "If you like your gun, you can keep it

And there are those who thoroughly investigated the subject tool and, after thoughtful consideration, concluded that it was a very poorly suited to the task of installing ball joints in W123/6 type vehicles. The MB press, on the other hand, is perfectly suited to the unusual configuration of the W123/6 suspension. I highly recommend it over a conventional ball joint press.

ok

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have no worries.....President Obama swears "If you like your gun, you can keep it

Today I brushed and sanded the LCA, spring perch and the steering knuckle - removing the rust or crud that had accumulated. Then I clean them all with brake cleaner and, after letting them dry, spray painted them with a nice flat black rust-proofing paint. I'll let them all dry overnight and tomorrow will begin reassembling everything.

Of course, I still need to press the new ball joints in and obviously there is some debate about how to do that best. I guess the gist of it is, just get it pressed in straight. I bought the Meyle ball joints, if that means anything. I see on the bottom there are a lot of little ridges running around the circumference of the base. Judging from the old one I whacked out, it looks as if they are intended to deform (flatten out) as the joint is pressed in - yes? I cleaned the seat where the joint goes into the knuckle out really good today as well - there was a lot of rust and crap built up on the surface.

Okay, so I think I will give it a try with the AZ press tomorrow -see how it goes. I have the new ball joints in the freezer and figured I would spray a little lubricant on before I attempt to press it in. Anyone have any final words of wisdom for me? I know some of you disagree with the AZ press. I understand there is a specialty tool for this job - I don't have it and I don't want to buy it. If anyone close to me has one they care to lend, give me a holler. If not, I will try the AZ press and if I can't seem to get it start in straight I will give up and take it to the shop and see how they can handle it.

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'95 E300D ("Tank") - 231,000 miles
'79 240D ("Biscuit") - 197,250 miles (Sold)
'83 240D ("Ding-Ding") - 217,000 miles (Death by deer)
______________________________________

"Back off, man. I’m a scientist” ~ Peter Venkman

go nice and slow check for strait every so often. im sure you know this but just in case, remove the boot first

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have no worries.....President Obama swears "If you like your gun, you can keep it

The first pic is mine. You need to remove the Ball Joint Boot in order to use the C-press.
If I had it to do again I would have taking the time to grind a Washer to go between the Joint and the C-press where the red arrow is as Joint (a Lemforder) is some what rounded where the C-Press makes contact and the does not make it as easy for the C-press to be kept flat on the joint.

I turned the C-press with a socket and a Breaker Bar but I was reinstalling the Old Ball Joints. They still went in hard; lubed with Motor Oil.

Last Pic: On the forums I have seen pics of 2 different persons using the C-press with an Impact Wrench. I have not done this so I cannot comment on it.

If you us one of the Autozone C-presses before you rent it take a look at the area that is going to contact the Joint. On the one I looked at that area was deformed by someone who had used it previously.

I rented that Autozone one anyway as I wanted to compare C-Presses. I own 2 C-presses. The one in the pic is a PitBull one and I got a Harbor Freight one when on sale.
The Autozone one was better quality of the 3 presses.

Note; the C-press can be used for other things. A few weeks after pressing in the Ball Joints I was using it to Press in the Bearing Caps on a U-joint.

Attached Thumbnails

   

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84 300D, 82 Volvo 244Gl Diesel

Tango, what is it about the MB tool that is so much better? Is it the diameter of the contact surface? I'm just curious why the c-press types are so poor for this application? What is the greatest danger - not getting it in straight? Or deforming the joint.

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'95 E300D ("Tank") - 231,000 miles
'79 240D ("Biscuit") - 197,250 miles (Sold)
'83 240D ("Ding-Ding") - 217,000 miles (Death by deer)
______________________________________

"Back off, man. I’m a scientist” ~ Peter Venkman

The MB tool aligns the joint properly and applies pressure at the large-diameter flange, not at the rim above the "ball." And it does it with the grease boot in place.

Both are significant possibilities. In my opinion, it's impossible not to cause some degree of deformation when pressing on the top of the joint housing. The damage might not be catastrophic, but it could easily reduce the life expectancy of the joint by substantial margin. The possibility of contamination while the boot is removed is another downside to using a conventional press.