Is it possible to change the upper ball joints on my 2007 XLT rwd Ranger, or do i just replace the arm itself. I see upper joints on some web site, ford site only has lowers. And how hard is it to change control arm bushings with out a press?

 

From the factory, the upper ball joint is an integrated part of the control arm on a 2WD Ranger. The control arm bushings are built into the control arm also, so if you replace the control arm, you will be replacing the ball joint and the control arm bushings. You will have to tell your parts man if you have a torsion bar suspension or coil springs. If you buy from Ford, that should be accomplished by simply telling him your VIN number.
HOWEVER, there's a situation that has made some parts men get yelled at by the customer and have made the parts man look pretty stupid in the eyes of the customer. Some aftermarket manufacturers have made replacement upper control arms with a replaceable ball joint. So when the customer is told that he should have an integrated ball joint/control arm, the customer thinks the parts man is pretty stupid when he clearly sees that the ball joint is replaceable....only because the previous owner put on a replacement part that has a replaceable ball joint.
Actually, on a difficulty scale, replacing the upper control arm on a 2WD Ranger is fairly simple, the tool that you may not have is a pickle fork and most auto part stores will loan it out to the customer. Just stay away from the super cheap replacement parts that so many people are tempted to buy. My vote is to stay away from the replacement parts that have a replaceable ball joint, but it's your money.
One other thing, the control arm bolts are tightened after the weight is put on the wheel so the bushing can flex an equal amount each way when driving down the road. If tightened with the weight OFF the wheel, there is a lot of one-way flex on these after the wheel is on the ground.

 

Check out the prices on rock auto for full arms. they really arent that bad and you get the new pivot bushings as well. be sure to get the round replacement cam adjustment cams so that it can be aligned when you are done.