Ball joint

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Schurkey

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Using a breaker bar or hand ratchet/cheater pipe is a great way to tweek the ball joint press out of alignment.

The impact applies torque without much side-force. The long, offset handle of a breaker-bar or ratchet puts side-force on the BJ press, tends to bend it. This is why "Loaner-Tool" BJ presses don't work well sometimes.

Be really careful to support the breaker bar/ratchet head, to absorb the side-force so the BJ press doesn't have to.
 

454cid

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Using a breaker bar or hand ratchet/cheater pipe is a great way to tweek the ball joint press out of alignment.

The impact applies torque without much side-force. The long, offset handle of a breaker-bar or ratchet puts side-force on the BJ press, tends to bend it. This is why "Loaner-Tool" BJ presses don't work well sometimes.

Be really careful to support the breaker bar/ratchet head, to absorb the side-force so the BJ press doesn't have to.

Yes getting it setup needs care to be taken, and possible readjustment. The issue with the loaner presses, that I've had is that they're put away with grit in the screws. I always clean and lube them before use.
 

Schurkey

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Thanks for the reminder about clean and lubed threads on the BJ press.

I use Bel-Ray moly paste "assembly lube"; any other high-pressure lube would be fine, but friggin' anything is better than dry, or contaminated grease.
 

SlimPickinz

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I'm not sure what to tell you. Hitting it with an impact when it's crooked is not the thing to do. I'm also not sure how you greased the knuckle. Everything should be clean and dry, and then thread locker on the ball joint before it goes into the control arm.... not sure of that was speced by GM or just some aftermarket ball joints.
The problem ended up being cheap ball joints. I got them for like 5$ on rock auto and they flanges just bent making it look crooked. I bought a 30$ one to replace a damaged and it pressed right in. Both knuckles were clean and heated up with gear oil poured on while being pressed. I appreciate the help though.
 

454cid

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The problem ended up being cheap ball joints. I got them for like 5$ on rock auto and they flanges just bent making it look crooked. I bought a 30$ one to replace a damaged and it pressed right in. Both knuckles were clean and heated up with gear oil poured on while being pressed. I appreciate the help though.

Why would you poor gear oil on it?
 

xXxPARAGONxXx

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Kinda hard to grease a red hot knuckle, it’s thin and I figured lube is lube. So we poured some right on the edge as we pressed it in figured maybe some got in there and helped
Yikes...you don't do that to press fits, such as ball joints, bearings, etc. Not even on the taper where the ball joint stud sits in the knuckle.

It's supposed to be clean metal-to-metal contact. No grease, oil, nothing. Well, actually, you're supposed to apply retaining compound like Loctite 609 to the outer circumference of the ball joint where it will sit in the lower control arm, per GM instructions. That is it though.
 
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Schurkey

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Kinda hard to grease a red hot knuckle, it’s thin and I figured lube is lube. So we poured some right on the edge as we pressed it in figured maybe some got in there and helped
Red hot, then oil-quenched? The knuckle, or (more likely) the control arm?

You've heat-treated the control arm. That control arm is now junk. Hardened...brittle.

DO NOT heat the control arm to press-in a ball joint.
 
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