86 300E - What's the proper tool....
 

...for R&R'ing the front ball joints in the lower control arm on a W124? The tool that Performance Products rents is only for the W116, W123, & W126. Will this tool work on the 124 as well, does it need an adaptor, or is there a separate tool? Anyone have a link to a picture of one?

Alternatively, can this job be done on a shop press with a tubular adaptor of some sort?

Gary

PLease, read the DIY I wrote up on this very topic. Took me forever, look in the DIY tab, under 124 ball joint. THANKS!!!!

The Harbor Freight tool works fine if you grind a relief in the middle sized tube so that it fits on the bottom. You will need to use another custom bit (we used three shaft collars we had lying around) to press the ball joint out. It will press in nicely using the smaller tube on top and just the adapter on the bottom. You may want to "assist" with a hammer as it won't pull quite straight.

A press will work very nicely, but you will need an internal spring compressor to remove the control arm safely.

Peter