I just took my 96 f-150 2 wheel drive auto with 7800 mi to Firestone to try and get an alignment. Well that did not happen due to wore out front end parts.. The right side upper and lower ball joints, Both radius arm bushings, they want 684.28 to fix this. But wait the left side is tight but if the right side is bad wont the left ball joints wear out soon too so if they do the left ball joints, it is another 271.00. But wait my front brakes are shot and need rotors too and that is another 354.64... The grand total for all is 1309.92... yes I about fell over right there when I heard this..

Anyway I am wondering if I would be in over my head if I tried to do this myself. I know they will have to align it no matter what... I am pretty sure I can handle the front brakes. I am pretty sure the parts for me will be much less than 354.64....

The ball Joints may be tricky due to the the camber caster adjuster and the headache of getting it all appart. I have never done this before on this new of vehicle and am wondering if I will be in over my head. Also the Radius arm bushings I have never done before and am a little nervous about that too. I pretty much have to remove everything to do this and the coil spring removal has me very nervous too.. Anyway I am thinking that for 955.28 maybe I should give it a try because I am sure the parts are alot less than that...
I do have a heated garage, the needed tools and the 2 ford service manuals. I look at the manuals and think there sure are alot of pieces there . I guess in short I am asking should I try it? To be honest I do not really have 1309.92 dollars laying around to spend on it right now....
If anyone has any tips or advice to make this easier please reply.

 

You are your own best judge as to whether or not you can do this or not, so I can't say "go for it!". It seems like you have the right equipment and a shop to do the work in. With all the parts that you are wanting to replace, I would collect all the replacement parts before beginning the tear down. Nothing I hate more than getting into a job just to have to wait for parts to be shipped. With the aid of the manuals and labeling parts for correct re-assembly if needed, you should be able to make a good weekend project out of this and save some dollars in the process. Read the manuals, write a plan of attack so you don't have to undo something you just did to do something else you need to do, and purchase all the parts--all this before you start and have at it! After installation, you will still need to get a front end alignment.

 

If you do a search, you'll find alot of info on repairing the front end items. You will also hear about the pain, bloody knuckles, and broken tools you get when trying to remove those balljoints. It's not as technical as say rebuilding a motor, so I say go for it. You may be tempted to just pull out the entire frontend, but I would advise working on one side at a time. It can be really tough to align everything back up. Might want to get a buddy to help you that knows what to do, and you do the hard labor. The other option is to go to another alignment shop and get their estimate. Some places want to change out everything all at once, while a few will just repair the items you need fixxed right now. Good Luck!!

 

Also, as far as the radius arm bushings, look into taking off the bracket by cutting off the rivets and rebolting with grade 8 hardware. It could save you from having to pull everything apart. As said above, do some searches on these repairs--there have been plenty--and you can get some idea of the difficulty level. If you can have some downtime with your truck--an extra day or two that you can use another vehicle just in case--it would give you some cushion for those almost inevitable complications that come up doing work on these trucks.

Good luck and post again if you need help.

 

A 96 should have bolton radius arm brackets from the factory. The ball joints are very easy in my opinion as a front end and alignment specialist. But i am curious, you say your truck has only 7800 miles? if so your ball joints should still be fine unless they were defective or really hammered on. I know that certain models are allowed a specified amount of play before they require replacement. The alignment bushings should be the factory ones and try to reinstall them in the same position. (They actually dont have to be removed to pull the ball joint stud out of them). Good luck with your project. Also I would look into the specs on your particular truck. I know some are allowed play, but if a shop is slow, they might call them just to bring in money! Josh Licenced honest auto tech

 

Specified amount of play for 87-04, is .030" (lateral) upper and lower.The factory camber/caster sleeves have a "lip" made into them that line-up with "split" in axle on 2 wd,so it will only go back in the same way it came out.When it comes to balljoints,87-96 2 wd are probably some of the easiest to do if you take your time.You don't have to remove shocks or springs to change balljoints/rad. arm bushings.Agree with Navistar,7800 mi. I don't see any way you need balljoints,maybe radius arm bushings ( due to age).Good luck,Shawn ASE Cert.

 

Josh Shawn and all

I really appreciate the feedback.. My truck I just got a few months ago and it is in very good condition but who knows how hard it was driven they went hunting alot. ( it does have only 78000 miles according to the odometer) As for the play in the ball joints I saw the right side and the lower is definately real loose, way over .030. The top right is a little loose and would probably be in spec but if I do one may as well do both. The left side upper and lower are tight and I cant really see any movement looking with the naked eye but am not measureing..( should I replace them??) The left radius arm bushing is however wore out it sits crooked in there it is pretty obvious. The right one looks ok but probably should do both.. The alignment bushings worry me but now that you say they can remain in to replace the ball joints I am wondering the best method of breaking the ball joints loose. On my 67 Fairlane a hammer was in order but that pinch bolt set up has me hesitant to hit it with a hammer for fear of damage. What is the best way my manual says not to use a pickle fork. My Ford service manual shows where to hit with a hammer hit lower part of axle upward this sound right.
I just went and looked at the radius arm bushing bracket and you are right they are bolted and you just lowered my stress level quite a bit.. Firestone wants 219.00 labor to change those man thanks alot......
I have been lookin at front end parts and am also wondering what the best brand is to buy.. I am planning on keeping the truck because it is the newest and nicest I have ever had even with these problems... I can get Moog, TRW, duralast, also a brand called SPICER I never heard of that brand but at my local machine shop they highly recommend them for quality.. Or do you guys know of better makes... I will not buy parts till I hear from you.... I only wanna do this job once...

Much appreciated Luke

 

After a closer inspection the right side is bolted in and the left side that is wore out has 1 bolt and the rest are rivets holding on the radius arm plate..... What to do??

 

I have replaced the radius arm bushings on the right side but am not sure about the left side would it be alright to cut off the rivets and then bolt it back on with grade 8 bolts.. Before I do that I will try the right side ball joints ( still wondering what brand to buy) they are bad for sure on the bottom and then at least one side will be done..... Any input appreciated...

 

As far as the left side, yes, go ahead and cut the rivets off, rebolting with grade 8 hardware.

 

In ,my experience moog had been the best, but i have never run any of the other brands you mention. As for breaking the bj loose, if it is a pinch bolt style, I would recommend hammering a wide chisel style punch i the slot to relieve the casting pressure and it will simply slide out. Unless you have the tapered stud style where you need either a pickle fork or decent hammer swing! Have fun Josh

 

The left side radius arm bushing is now done. I ground the rivets off and used a punch to remove them. I then got grade 8 bolts and bolted it on. Wasnt too bad to do....
I also now have the right side spindle off and just need to press the joints out and put the new ones in then reasemble. I was lucky just done what you said Navister about the chisel then smacked the bottom joint with a good size hammer and it just fell free...
I will leave it at that for tonight and finish it up tomarrow...
Thanks Again

 

All is now done you were right the ball joints were pretty easy to do. The truck feels different it is a little more rough riding now I Know it does steer better. The clang sound is gone now that the radius arm bushings are replaced with heavy duty poly ones... Anyway it is all aligned too... I even put on my new drilled and slotted rotors with titanium pads , stops better too.... thanks alot everyone.....

 

To Fair 96:

I was wondering what brand ball joint you went with?
What brand radius arm bushings?
My truck is making a popping sound when making slow turning maneuvers, like when I go in reverse turning wheel either way and then I go forward and turn it straight or the other way it will pop very loud. Is this when you noticed your “clang” noise? If not please tell me when you heard the “clang”.

Thanks a lot.

 

I heard the clang when hitting bumps and I am pretty sure it was the radius arm bushings doing it. If you look at them you should be able to see if they look off set or not sitting right. My left one was real bad. If you jack up the truck you should be able to see any movement in the ball joints when you pry up on the tire or like mine pull in and out from top or bottom of the tire( also check tie rods ). I went with TRW heavy duty ( both radius arm bushings(THESE ARE POLY) and ball joints) due to the lifetime warranty and decent price.....