Just did my oil change and rotated my tire when I found I had bad ball joint on the passenger side. Having never dealt with this I am left with some grey area. Do I have to replace both side or just the bad side and are there any tips or magic trick I should know before diving in? Also I was planning on replacing them with a set of moogs.

 

I've done the ball joints on my 7.3l, my dad's 7.3l and my brothers 6.0. I did a bunch of reading here and on pirate 4x4 and went with xrf ball joints, they have a million mile warrenty.

I borrowed a ball joint kit from a neighbor that used to work as a mechanic for cal trans. That and an impact wrench made the job much easier. I have a swivel head ratcheting 24" MAC torque wrench and that also makes the job a bit eaier. You will need a good set of snap ring pliers, I ended up buying a set with interchangeable tips and a lever that changes them from inside to outside at my local O'Reileys and they work just fine. I split a 13/16" socket on the first set I did and had a hell of a time finding a 6 point to replace it with.

Some guys say you doin't need to remove the wheel bearings to pull the axle but this is a good time to pull them and inspect them. I had to replace them on one of the three trucks and wouldn't have known it if I hadn't pulled it and been able to spin it on a bench. the axle seals are a ford only item and they are proud of them. plan ahead and make or buy a seal driver. I turned one down from a 3" pipe flange and a 6" long piece of 1 1/2" pipe with a cap on it.

If you do a bit of reading you will find that the standard ball joint press available to rent from autozone and all the other stores won't do the job without some modification. If that is all you can find do the reading and prep first.

not a diffcult job with the right tools.

 

I went with xrf too. Got them from barnonediesel.com

 

These guys have you on the right track. The ball joint press is definatly the most important tool.

Wheel seals you can get at Napa, thats where I got mine. I just replaced everything, probably could have repacked and re-installed, but I wasn't planning on being back in there for some time.

 

Will those fit on a 250? The sit has them listed for a 350.

 

The TTB Dana 50 and Da 60 use the same ball joints.

Hard to beat for $129 shipped to your door, even if you only need 2

 

Yes d50 and 60 will be the same.

 

Just got them ordered. What mod are you talking about? The only thing that I could find is that the press kits don't have a deep enough socket to press them out but can't you just cut the bolt part off and press out?

 

Just got them. Planning on getting them in tomorrow after work.

 

That was quick! Make sure to check all your seals, bearings and u joints while you are in there.

 

Just went to put the old girl back together and the bottom ball joint don't fit. The taper is different then the originals. The xrf kit called for the k80026 but they are not working.

 

Is that number for the bottom? A quick search shows them listed as the top.

 

The k80026 is the top for both the 250 and the 350 but the number for the bottom is k8435 not k8607t.