Rocklobster

Well I have done the search method and checked a few writeups but when I actually went to put them on I was stuck right when I started. How are the bolts/studs removed? After taking the 4 nuts and washers off the top of the balljoint on the very top of the control arm i couldnt get the upper arm and ball joint to seperate inorder to put the spacer in. What is the best method to get the balljoint and upper control arm seperated? Oh and how are the studs removed...do they screw out of the bottom or are they pounded out? :pat:

Rocklobster

c'mon anybody? I know a million of you guys have done these...just give the new guy some info haha.

Strap22

Follow the link to the instruction page.
http://sdori.com/parts.html

elripster

What I typically do is put something between the upper a-arm and its bumpstop. This increases the clearance when you do separate the joint from the arm. As for the original studs, just remove the nuts and pound them out the other side. They rust and can stick but they will come out.

I trim with a 4" cut-off wheel as opposed to grinding. It makes the job very fast and easy.

Frank

Rocklobster

thanks guys I just wanted to make sure the studs were not threaded on or something, I was just using a regular hammer when I was trying any other ideas if the going gets tough?

Rocklobster

one more quick question, after you unbolt the balljoint and knock the studs out...does the lower control arm just fall down out of the way?

elripster

Pretty much. You might put a jack under it so you don't put excessive stress on the brake line.

The a-arm only pivots downwards so far but the jack makes it easier to align the balljoint/spacer while installin the new hardware.

Frank

Rocklobster

Ok thanks for the tips only thing is that im worried i will get hung up where i left off last night trying to knock the darn studs out.

Strap22

You will be fine. They are not that hard to do. I just did my '92 last night.

Rocklobster

haha we'll see, thanks for the words of encouragement

cootees

When we did mine we went ahead and replaced the balljoints at the same time. It made things much easier and pressing the studs out on a new bj was extremely easy.

Rocklobster

what exactly holds the balljoint to the upper control arm once the 4 nuts off of the balljoint? Or do the studs need to be completely knocked out before the balljoint and upper control arm seperate?

elripster

Technically nothing should be holding the joint other than say a jack under the rotor. However, over time the rust, etc... can have an adhesive effect. Still, the lower part should drop away when the hardware is out so I would be prepared for that.

Frank

Strap22

Just get a BFH and it will come right out. You must have rust buildup or something else holding it. If the BJ is that stuck I think I would be looking a a new set of BJ's anyway. Cheap insurance.

deathrunner

Yeah, if I were you, I'd go down to the parts store and ask for a BJ.

Rocklobster

Well when you say hardware, is there anything else that needs to be removed besides the 4 nuts/studs? Because I cannot get the upper arm to serperate for the life of me.

slosurfer

You might not have your upper control arm up high enough. You can wedge your bottle jack in there to lift your uca higher lifting it off the ball joint. Just be careful and watch your brake line. That was the only way I could get my uca high enough. The good thing is the other side goes so much faster once you get one side done. Also did you undo your shock? Good luck

Rocklobster

When you are talking about wedging my bottle jack inbetween the upper and lower control arms is this more or less doing the same thing as wedging somthing between the upper control arm and bumpstop like they did in the writeup? Or are you using the jack itself to pry the upper arm up and off of the ball joint?

Either way after removing the 4 nuts on the top of the ball joint and the upper shock mount, all that is left is the prying apart of the ball joint and control arm?

Would you recommend knocking the studs out before seperating the UCA and balljoint?

elripster

I would recommend knocking the studs out. It makes it a bit easier since the joint is held in place.

The bottle jack should accomplish the same goal as wedging something in between the upper bumpstop and upper a-arm.

That ball joint shouldn't be stuck to the a-arm like that though. If knocking out the studs doesn't allow it to move and wedging, etc.. the the upper a-arm doesn't make for enough clearance we need to see why the lower arm is not dropping away.

Just out of curiosity, could you take a look at the lower a-arm mounts and see if anything might be bent such that it is interfering with downward motion? I know on the 4" lift kits a part of the lift bracket limits downward travel of the arm and depending on where the alignment cams happen to be can change that total droop a bit.

I'm sure you thought of this but I'll throw it out there. Is the sway bar disconnected?

Frank

Napoleon047

if the shocks and sway bar are disconnected, slightly loosen the camber adjustment nuts.