Wrangler TJ Ball Joint Replacement

Watch a YouTube video or two. That should give you a better idea.
Here's one:

And looking at that reminded me: take a photo of your bearing caps so you know how they go back in. They need to be the same cap in the same orientation.

Yeah the tutorial thread from this forum is super easy to follow. Seems like pictures of the setup will suffice.
 
It is a simple enough job. You will be an expert after doing it once. The seals when old frequently leak. Replacing the seals is good preventive maintenance. I highly recommend getting a lube locker for a differential cover gasket. You will have your brakes apart at the same time. Good time to replace the pads if they need it. Just because it is a hobby for me and not an occupation, I'd replace the axle u-joints while I was there if they are original or old. Minimize my chances of having to return soon.
 
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How to detect bad ball joint? My jeep right knuckle either sway bar makes this "click click" or broken bone sound when i back park into parking pocket. Sometimes it clicks on offroad. Is it u joint or ball joint. I visited jeep service but everything and everyone is cheat here, they said its sway bar, i wiggled my jeep pressing on sway bar/bumper but it only makes this rubber sound not click
 
Also i dont know if its okay but on melted asphalt by trucks and bus gauge track i lose control, it feels like i am on ship, its very horrific i almost give birth to bricks. I hate to drive on those streets but have to. Is it okay? Or signals of bad ujoint,ball joint, amortisators?
 
Jack up your front end one side at a time. Place the jack under spring to unload the wheel. You only need your tire up a few inches. Put a pry bar under the front wheel and lift up and down while looking for play in the joints. Then hold the tire at the 9 and 3 oclock position and shake back and forth again, looking for slop and play. Wide tires wear the joints faster, and under ideal conditions they are probably only good for 75K miles (give or take). Age and sitting don't help. If you have play in one joint, replace all four. It is much easier to have someone doing the rocking back and forth and prying while you watch. A BJ press such as this is a worthy investments. You can get less expensives ones that function okay, but I personally think you should never cut corners when getting a BJ. I have a cheap one here, but at home I have a Snap-On BJP1 which is the Rolex of BJ presses.
The full job with seals will require a torque wrench done correctly. Something like the below is adequate.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0002SRGXY/?tag=wranglerorg-20

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00C5ZL1NS/?tag=wranglerorg-20
 
I did mine when I had it apart simply because I didn't want to take it all apart again if they leaked. It is an easy job, with the diff removal (which I had never previously done) being the hardest/scariest part, which isn't really either once you've done it once. I bought the tool since I didn't want to mess with hammering the new ones in crooked, wondering whether they were fully seated, hitting them too hard, etc.

My diff was in there pretty tight, but once you keep it from turning by putting it in 4WD I was able to use an 8" long 1/2" extension inserted into one of the carrier holes from the bottom and it just rolled right out into my hands. I had a helper watch the shims so I'd know where they all came from. I only had 1, it turns out, so it was pretty easy.

Your bearing caps and your axle will both be stamped to help you keep them aligned properly. Mine were both stamped X, one vertically and one horizontally. The horizontal one was hard to see since it was over other stampings, but it was there. Nevertheless, I also took a lot of pictures just in case :)

Doug
 
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Jack up your front end one side at a time. Place the jack under spring to unload the wheel. You only need your tire up a few inches. Put a pry bar under the front wheel and lift up and down while looking for play in the joints. Then hold the tire at the 9 and 3 oclock position and shake back and forth again, looking for slop and play. Wide tires wear the joints faster, and under ideal conditions they are probably only good for 75K miles (give or take). Age and sitting don't help. If you have play in one joint, replace all four. It is much easier to have someone doing the rocking back and forth and prying while you watch. A BJ press such as this is a worthy investments. You can get less expensives ones that function okay, but I personally think you should never cut corners when getting a BJ. I have a cheap one here, but at home I have a Snap-On BJP1 which is the Rolex of BJ presses.
The full job with seals will require a torque wrench done correctly. Something like the below is adequate.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0002SRGXY/?tag=wranglerorg-20

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00C5ZL1NS/?tag=wranglerorg-20
That OTC does not have all the required adapters for a TJ. See my previous post for the options that do or the supplemental set required to cope with the slope on the TJ knuckle. A BJP1 has the required adapter, as does the Astro Pneumatics, included.

Totally agree on the torque wrench, with the key requirement in my mind being a 250 ft-lb range in order to be able to work on the entire vehicle. A 150 ft-lb will leave you short in a couple cases.

d-
 
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It is a simple enough job. You will be an expert after doing it once. The seals when old frequently leak. Replacing the seals is good preventive maintenance. I highly recommend getting a lube locker for a differential cover gasket. You will have your brakes apart at the same time. Good time to replace the pads if they need it. Just because it is a hobby for me and not an occupation, I'd replace the axle u-joints while I was there if they are original or old. Minimize my chances of having to return soon.

Yeah u-joints are a for sure, and I think y'all have persuaded me to just go ahead and do the seals. I already learned this lesson once when I skipped the radiator during cooling system overhaul only for it to blow 2 days later.
 
...I'd replace the axle u-joints while I was there if they are original or old. Minimize my chances of having to return soon.

That was exactly my thought when I did it - I'm in here now, and getting in again later is going to be a PITA, so might as well do ball joints, u-joints, brakes (pads, rotors, and calipers since I broke a piston), hubs, inner axle seals, and rust-proof paint the whole darn thing while I've got it all apart (in my case, that also included control arms, and the entire steering rack except the pitman arm)...
 
That was exactly my thought when I did it - I'm in here now, and getting in again later is going to be a PITA, so might as well do ball joints, full brakes, hubs, inner axle seals, and rust-proof paint the whole darn thing while I've got the rest off (in my case, that also included control arms, and the entire steering rack except the pitman arm)...

I luckily already did the ZJ steering. I ruined the hubs removing them so those are getting replaced, already got the crown LCA's on deck so that'll probably go on too if I have time. The brakes aren't in terrible shape but I'm not sure that my calipers weren't stuck a little. Have to wonder if soft break line is going even though it looks fine from outside.

Really wish it wasn't my DD so I could do this without feeling rushed but i'd rather do it right the first time.
 
I luckily already did the ZJ steering. I ruined the hubs removing them so those are getting replaced, already got the crown LCA's on deck so that'll probably go on too if I have time. The brakes aren't in terrible shape but I'm not sure that my calipers weren't stuck a little. Have to wonder if soft break line is going even though it looks fine from outside.

Really wish it wasn't my DD so I could do this without feeling rushed but i'd rather do it right the first time.
I've played that game and understand your pain - it is a different story when it is your DD. Mine has been in process for a couple months (I'm ordering parts as I break them during removal!), but I also don't need it.

I will tell you this, to the extent that it matters: of those 2 months I spent on the front end, about 7.5 weeks of it was spent waiting for components, about 2-3 days went into disassembly (I had to cut off the lower control arm bolts, for example), and about 1-1.5 days went into painting the axle and reassembling the whole thing.

If you are willing to "move fast and break things" as you go you can easily get the entire front end (and I mean literally the whole thing) apart in 8-12 hours (faster if yours has had some work - mine was all original with the associated rust bolts) and back together in another 8. I hadn't done most of the work before so spent a lot of time contemplating my plan of attack so I didn't break something else in the process.
 
Watch a YouTube video or two. That should give you a better idea.
Here's one:
I didn't bother verifying the backlash.

And looking at that reminded me: take a photo of your bearing caps so you know how they go back in. They need to be the same cap in the same orientation.

I posted in the inner seal thread but how important is it to verify the backlash. I'm getting mixed results when I look around other posts.

Edit: reading STG's thread now
 
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I've played that game and understand your pain - it is a different story when it is your DD. Mine has been in process for a couple months (I'm ordering parts as I break them during removal!), but I also don't need it.

I will tell you this, to the extent that it matters: of those 2 months I spent on the front end, about 7.5 weeks of it was spent waiting for components, about 2-3 days went into disassembly (I had to cut off the lower control arm bolts, for example), and about 1-1.5 days went into painting the axle and reassembling the whole thing.

If you are willing to "move fast and break things" as you go you can easily get the entire front end (and I mean literally the whole thing) apart in 8-12 hours (faster if yours has had some work - mine was all original with the associated rust bolts) and back together in another 8. I hadn't done most of the work before so spent a lot of time contemplating my plan of attack so I didn't break something else in the process.
New Englanders have an entirely different difficulty level when it comes to wrenching on anything more than 6 months old. I used to keep the torches right there on almost every job. Heating fasteners cherry red was SOP. God I love my Arab Jeep. Not one spec of rust. I have had the same can of penetrating oil for 4 years.
 
New Englanders have an entirely different difficulty level when it comes to wrenching on anything more than 6 months old. I used to keep the torches right there on almost every job. Heating fasteners cherry red was SOP. God I love my Arab Jeep. Not one spec of rust. I have had the same can of penetrating oil for 4 years.
No reason to gloat ;)

I'll just say this - WD40 is near useless, Seafoam Creep works pretty well, Liquid Wrench is a top choice of mine, and while I like how it works, Free All sure smells! Sprayon got good reviews, but haven't cracked that can yet.

I'll also say that grade 8 bolts are a royal pain to cut, drill, or tap. That said, I had excellent luck with the following products if anyone else has the same fun (and yes, this is totally off-topic):
Milwaukee Carbide Tipped Sawzall blade - no kidding, 3 minutes to cut through each side of the LCA bushing/bolt, and still cuts like new. Other than the missing paint you'd never know I used it. My HSS blade did not fare as well.
Viking Drill and Tool Cobalt Jobber Bit - I killed 3 different HSS bits trying to drill out the jounce bumper bolt. These went right through it like it was nothing
Irwin Tap Set - 3 different taps for different depths holes may not be necessary, but it worked wonders retapping the upper shock mount bolt that broke off. My Craftsman tap didn't quite make it.
 
Interesting trick I tried today. 2 of the 4 ball joints (upper driver and lower passenger sides) did not require a press to seat them. The upper literally dropped right in on its own and hand the tiniest bit of play. The lower could be pushed in by hand and had no play. I've had enough of this shit at this point and wasn't trying to wait so I could order and experiment with a problem solver replacement.

We took a spool of thin copper wire, cut it into 3" segments, and then wrapped each individual segment equidistant apart around the lip of the seat and two crimped on the inside lip. We threw on some copper anti seize for good measure and pressed them in. This allowed them to seat firmly and snugly. I'm going to roll with it.
 
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Interesting trick I tried today. 2 of the 4 ball joints (upper driver and lower passenger sides) did not require a press to seat them. The upper literally dropped right in on its own and hand the tiniest bit of play. The lower could be pushed in by hand and had no play. I've had enough of this shit at this point and wasn't trying to wait so I could order and experiment with a problem solver replacement.

We took a spool of thin copper wire, cut it into 3" segments, and then wrapped each individual segment equidistant apart around the lip of the seat and two crimped on the inside lip. We threw on some copper anti seize for good measure and pressed them in. This allowed them to seat firmly and snugly. I'm going to roll with it.

This makes me cringe. I hope it holds, because I can't imagine anything good if it doesn't, especially on the driver side where you are putting a lot of extra stress on the smaller lower ball joint.

d-
 
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Interesting trick I tried today. 2 of the 4 ball joints (upper driver and lower passenger sides) did not require a press to seat them. The upper literally dropped right in on its own and hand the tiniest bit of play. The lower could be pushed in by hand and had no play. I've had enough of this shit at this point and wasn't trying to wait so I could order and experiment with a problem solver replacement.

We took a spool of thin copper wire, cut it into 3" segments, and then wrapped each individual segment equidistant apart around the lip of the seat and two crimped on the inside lip. We threw on some copper anti seize for good measure and pressed them in. This allowed them to seat firmly and snugly. I'm going to roll with it.
If you were going to try and come up with the worst way possible to return an interference fit to a viable state, you hit all the points to do so.

Soft material- check.
Lubrication to help it loosen up- check.

Pull it back out and dimple the body with a sharp center punch in a 1/8" x 1/8" pattern or smaller. Not super deep, just every place it touches when it presses in.

After that is done, get some 638 or 609 Loctite retaining compound and use that to seat the ball joint.
 
Thanks for feedback. I am most worried about that upper one as it had the teeny tiny bit of play. The other one is snug despite being able to force it in with my hands. I'll pull the upper and try your idea @mrblaine.

Would you not recommend the Moog oversize ball joint in lieu of my janky terrible solution, if only as a backup?

To be clear, the axle is still out and nothing else is put back together. I deliberately stopped after finishing the ball joints in anticipation of having to fix at least that one upper.