So I was transferring over the balljoints from my totaled truck to the new truck and while trying to tighten down the castle nut on the upper, I noticed the shaft with the threads on it was spinning freely.. I know they are aloud to rotate with the steering (arm/knuckle?) but how can I get it to stop spinning so I can torque down the castle nut? Thanks!

 

Put upwards pressure on it so it jams the shaft into the tapered hole. If you haven't, attach the LBJ so you can use the LCA to push upwards.

 

The lower is in there, but not torqued.. I'll torque it, then I'll lift up the lower control arm with a floor jack? Does that sound right? I figured I needed to put pressure on it somehow.. I believe I damaged the BJ though, grease is spewing out of the bottom of the boot.. Maybe I'll have to buy new ones and plan another day to do this.. But I'll try to get it secure using the what I just stated.. Right? :think;

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Yes, sorry, thats what I meant- pushing upwards with a jack on the lower arm.

 

I can't help out with the ball joint issue, but glad to see you found another truck. The 5 speeds, when running right, can actually hold their own against most modern cars in normal stop-and-go traffic, or at least I was always happy with mine, until I moved up to 33's.

 

YEEESSSS! Thank you, Sir! I feel so much better now haha..

A general question for the public, you generally want to tighten down the castle nut, past the torque spec, in order to fit the cotter pin, correct? As opposed to loosening it to fit it in there?

And Wallace, thanks man! I'm starting to enjoy the 5spd, however when out wheeling, I feel that I am required to go faster so as I don't stall.. I hate going fast on a trail.. When I put the manual hubs on, i'll most likely keep them free but engage 4L and coast around in 1st/2nd gear just so I can go super slow, and not stall it, ya know?

I think all I am going to do to this truck is some maintenance work, maybe some driving lights on the bumper and keep the rest stock. I'd like to get an ARB bumper and possibly a rear locker but I figure college is a better investment haha.

 

You don't generally want to, it is a rule you should never break.

As for driving a manual truck, you'll get used to it very quickly. My best advise for a beginner is don't rest your foot on the left pedal. Nothing else will ruin your clutch as quickly.

 

Hard to say whether you damaged the ball joint or not. You may have just torn the boot which is an easy fix. When you get ready to tighten it down, put your floor jack under the lower ball joint and raise it up. You may have to put a lot of weight on it. I replaced BJ's in a 93 full-size Chevy I had and ended up having to put the entire weight of that corner on the jack. It's dangerous. Make sure you keep your jack stands under the frame rails and only raise it BARELY off the jackstands if you have to go that far with it.

 

Alright so i'm buying some new OEM ball joints, all 4.. Last year I bought them at my local dealer for around $80 each and I found them on Toyota Part Sales for $52 each... It's my understanding that they are in fact OEM but why is that such a difference? Should I be concerned? I guess that's why everyone calls it the stealership... But could anyone confirm that they are OEM and in fact the same ones that I bought at the dealer last year?

 

I always have the same experience with my local dealership. They're WAY higher than other suppliers online and I can usually get the exact same parts, plus shipping, for less than I would pay at the local dealership. There's no worry ordering online. They're still the same parts. Most (if not all) should come in a Toyota box and have the part number on the outside. If it's a different manufacturer it'll be a different part number so that's an easy way to verify it's genuine OEM.

 

Alright, i'll go ahead and purchase them.. 2nd ball joint job in less than a year... haha oh well, I need them!

 

yes you want to tighten more if you need to get the cotter pin in. i never torque them to specs (idk what it is lol) i just hit it with a impact gun. from my experience and all the ball joints i have done, you just get a feel for it. i done tons of ball joint recalls on the tacomas, tundra and sequoia with no issues

 

Well i'm closing this thread up, thanks for all the advice fellas! I had replaced the pass. side ball joints with the ones from my totaled truck and just finished the driver side yesterday so i'm sitten pretty, granted the ones on the pass. side have a few thousand more miles, oh well.

I was also looking for the seal that is on the back side of the hub backing plate/dust shield, the one that the CV axle passes through FIRST. I called Marlin and they said they knew what I was talking about but assured me that it is a dealer item and they will most likely sell me the entire dust shield/steering knuckle so that's out, hopefully that seal doesn't need replacing!