Problem Getting Ball Joint Back On

NJshadow93

NJshadow93

New member
The whole stud is spinning when trying to put the castle nut back on. Coming off, there was no problem, but putting it back on seems impossible because of the stud spinning. We tried holding the stud with pliers but there is too much force putting the castle nut back on. I had no issues with the driver side. Here are the pics:

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Anyone have any advice? In a jam, thanks.
 
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Have you tried lightly tapping the top of the UCA to "set" the ball joint into the tapered opening a bit more? This will keep the ball joint threads from spinning...one thing I noticed from your pictures is that the threads on your ball joint seem either a bit dirty or worn down? Could you chase the nut out with a tap and also run a die around the threads to clean it all out?
 
I would chase the threads on the nut and balljoint if possible as EddieBX suggested, also tapping the taper into the spindle with a socket (to put pressure on the spindle not the stud) helps a bit, just whack it a few good times (Use an impact socket for this if you can, less chance of cracking the socket itself.) Another thing you can do is to let the vehicle off the jacks with the wheel on and use the weight of the vehicle to force the balljoint into the taper, hopefully wedging it enough to get the castle nut on (Its hard a bit tricky to reach this way, but I've made it work.)

Balljoints, endlinks, and most anything with a movable joint like that are a pain to do without an impact wrench, and even with an impact wrench can be a pain in the ass anyways. Wish you the best of luck.
 
I had this issue with my tie rod ends. I cleaned the castle nut threads and ball joint threading with wd40 and a wire brush. Even a small bit of rust or dirt can make it bind. Hope you get it working. Nothing more frustrating than trying to put that last nut on and it sticks....
 
I'm taking it to a shop on Monday to hopefully get the threads repaired. I think the pitman puller bent the bottom of the threads ever so slightly. I reconnected the sway bar and that nut is on there (stuck) very tightly. Not the safest thing to do but I'm gonna drive it the mile and a half to the shop. I drove it around the block without issue today so it should be fine. Just hope the shop can A) repair the threads and B) hope they won't charge too much. So you guys think its something any reputable shop can handle?
 
Stuff like this irritates the crap out of me when wrenching on cars. There's ALWAYS something!
 
mrrab said:
Stuff like this irritates the crap out of me when wrenching on cars. There's ALWAYS something!
Click to expand...

You said it. The irony behind this is because I just commented to my buddy about 5 minutes prior to this how smooth and quick the whole process was. Oh well, at least it's a learning experience at the same time.
 
Oh yeah, I can see the pictures now, you're gonna need to repair those threads they are flattened, I assume the castle nut doesn't look that great either (I have a bunch of extra castle nuts in a box at the shop for this reason.) Wish you the best of luck!
 
Sorry to hear that the threads are messed up, that's what I hate about those pitman pullers...have you considered just purchasing a replacement ball joint from SPC? I personally wouldn't want to risk repaired threads on such a critical part. Hang in there, I know it's frustrating but you're almost done...Good luck!
 
I wonder how much a new ball joint would cost? I'll try to find out. Yeah the threads you see in the picture, that was from me with the pliers. The damage from the pitman puller isn't visible because the castle nut is over it. A quick search indicates that new ball joints aren't that costly, so I may actually do that. I'll post a follow up.
 
NJshadow93 said:
I wonder how much a new ball joint would cost? I'll try to find out. Yeah the threads you see in the picture, that was from me with the pliers. The damage from the pitman puller isn't visible because the castle nut is over it. A quick search indicates that new ball joints aren't that costly, so I may actually do that. I'll post a follow up.
Click to expand...

I vote this.

I should have left the impact wrench with you for the weekend...
 
I have had this happen alot use a jack if on bottom to put pressure on it and a pry bar putting pressure down for the top this forces tapper into hole of spindle usually stopping it from spinning if it still spins apply more pressure lol has worked for me 90% of the time when working alone
 
When applying pressure like others stated, your impact can spin fast to allow the connections to grab tight enough to synch down. Not always, but, possible.

Maybe try a large C clamp to press it back into position and use wd40 on the treads with a impact. It will have the force to spin on the threads.

If you have the patience, a jewlers file to the treads on the ball joint. Just other suggestions.
 
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Thanks for all the suggestions. I sent an e-mail to SPC requesting a part number for the ball joint. Depending on how much it costs, I may order a new one. I may try it again this week to do it myself before going to a shop. If I can get the castle nut back off, I may be able to make the stud more usable. I just care about getting the castle nut torqued enough to put the cotter pin back in.
 
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