i just replaced the ball joints on my 97 f350 2wd and noticed when i put the knuckle back on that the eccentric cam for the camber adjustment will not sit flush with the top of the knuckle. i called the parts store to double check that i had the right parts and they said yes. the camber adj. sleeve won't sit flush with the knuckle because it hits the top of the upper ball joint case. i pulled the new ball joint back out to check it against the old one and the two ball joints are exactly the same.

the lower ball joint seems the same as the one that came out as well, except that the groove for the c-clip is a little bit lower. but from the seat to the top of the ball joint stud the distance is the same. i checked to see if there's only threads showing when the lower joint is held in place on the i-beam and it's just thread. none of the tapered shaft is visible so it's in there properly. when the new joint is in the knuckle the c-clip sits about a 1/4" below the knuckle, where with the old one when the c-clip sat almost flush with the bottom of the knuckle.

it looks like if i pressed the lower ball joint up a little bit so the clip is flush with the bottom of the knuckle that the camber sleever would fit all the way in. the problem with this is that the seat on the lower ball joint won't be touching the knuckle at all.

in looking at it it seems like the the whole knuckle is sitting to high in relation to the i-beam. the upper joint is pressed all the way in so it can't go any lower.

i'm at a loss as to what might be wrong. it almost seems that there should be some sort of spacer or washer between the seat of the lower ball joint and the knuckle. i've got a pic but can't post it up right now.

any ideas as to what might be going on here?