Ball Joint wear

TQJ CJ5 · Jun 17, 2008

Forgive me if this is a "newb"-esque question but...what is the most likely cause of lower ball joint wear? or ball joint wear in general?

background info:

Dana 44 front axle (Chevy-late 70's I believe). Pass drop, LP w/ 5x5.5 bolt pattern, 15x10" steel wheels (4" bs) and 38" Mickey Thompson MTZ's.

I went to get an alignment on Saturday morning and (granted, I don't know how I hadn't noticed this) the tech grabbed my wheel and rocked it back 'n' forth while everything else stayed completely still. Quite a bit of slop while the vehicle was raised off the ground. Could easily see the lower ball joint floppin around.

Just thought I'd ask about potential wear-causing factors to see if I could prevent having to regularily replace ball joints.

Terry

crash2 · Jun 17, 2008

Any idea how old and what brand terry?

I used to go thru moog BJ's on my 44 in about 6 months--but that was due to hard abuse and full hydro steering. Swapped to Dana BJ's and they lasted a while...

TQJ CJ5 · Jun 17, 2008

couldn't tell ya what's in there right now but I'll be swapping in Dana joints.

interestingly enough, I really don't beat on my rig and don't have hydro steering (although I wouldn't mind getting set-up with at least hydro assist)

Not Jobless · Jun 17, 2008

TQJ CJ5 said:
couldn't tell ya what's in there right now but I'll be swapping in Dana joints.

interestingly enough, I really don't beat on my rig and don't have hydro steering (although I wouldn't mind getting set-up with at least hydro assist)

Keeping then greased and making sure you squeeze out the water after wheelin will help.

crash2 · Jun 17, 2008

TQJ CJ5 said:
couldn't tell ya what's in there right now but I'll be swapping in Dana joints.

interestingly enough, I really don't beat on my rig and don't have hydro steering (although I wouldn't mind getting set-up with at least hydro assist)

Randys r/p has a good deal on spicers. I gotta do the BJ's on mine still

TQJ CJ5 · Jun 17, 2008

what's the process for greasing ball joints? excuse my ignorance...

JOOP · Jun 17, 2008

TQJ CJ5 said:
what's the process for greasing ball joints? excuse my ignorance...

Grease gun then zerk fitting..

I need to BJ's in my 44 too,. :booo:

Cascade_Crawler · Jun 17, 2008

they got zerk fittings on them?

Balls joints arent gonna last forever with big tires. Im pretty sure the D44 ones are the same size as D30 ones

An alignment on a off road rig? get your self a tape measure!

TQJ CJ5 · Jun 18, 2008

I don't believe there are any fittings on the upper and lower balljoints from what I can see.

I'm just getting an alignment to get the rig back into 'square'. sure it'll go out again but since I drive to and from the trailhead (primarily Reiter), I'd like to have it as true as possible even if it is for only one outing...

Travis1 · Jun 21, 2008

What's the cause of wear? 38" tires.

When I actually wheeled alot I would get no more than 6 months out of my 44's balljoints, even spicers. (didn't try dana)

So, I opted to get whatever brand had a lifetime warranty at schmucks and got real fast at replacing them.

gasman1 · Jun 21, 2008

This is what can happen with unmaintained balljoints.

Stuck on the trail for 6hrs before giving it a temp fix to get cack to camp.

Not Jobless · Jun 21, 2008

gasman said:
This is what can happen with unmaintained balljoints.
Stuck on the trail for 6hrs before giving it a temp fix to get cack to camp.

That's typical Dana 30 wheelin at it's best right there :redneck:

TigTorch · Jun 21, 2008

I hate trail repairs. (Hate having to do them).

Gasman, that has to be staged. It it was a real trail repair you would be kneeling is 2 feet of mud.:redneck: