Fordboy2 50-60k is unfortunately a fairly normal service interval for ball joints on the 05-06 trucks. It is weird, they will get just loose enough to start messing up tires, but will not get super super sloppy for another 20k or so. In our fleet, they go out so often that we have gotten the swap out down to about 2 hours in and out( at least on the 2x4's, 4x4s are still and all day affair).

 

Miker67

I agree my company has a large ford fleet and in all of our services trucks the ball joints go out around that milage. In trucks like mine which dont move during the day and have mostly highway milage we get about 75k out of them.

 

miker67, so you will maybe hear noise from them, and will they feel sloppy at all wit the truck up in the air? Where might I find the parts at on here from a sponser?

 

You may hear them, probably not at first though. You may feel some vibration over bumps, though the first visible signs of ball joints being too far gone will likely be some tire cupping. You can check them by jacking the vehicle up one side at a time till the tire clears the ground by about 2 inches. Stick a steel bar or something else sturdy under the bottom of the time coming out from the side of the truck, not the front. Have a friend gently but steadily lift the end of the bar up and down while you observe the ball joints from underneath the truck. If your friend does it too fast, you won't be able to see the movement, but at a smooth steady pace any play in the joints that is visible is indicative of wear. Obviously, teeny tiny bits of movement may mean they are going, but a lot of slop means you need to get it done quick. Either way, unless you have had the opportunity to do lots of front end work, if you see movement I would say fix them right away, or take it to someone who is a pro to get his/her opinion on the seriousness of the problem. Also, this is the time to check your shocks for wear as they too can cause tire wear and strange noises.

You can get the parts you need in a total package from powerstrokeshop.com, who also happens to be a sponsor.

 

I am getting mine dome tomorrow. A friend of mine is doing them since I never did them and they need done ASAP I will pay someone to do them this time. He told me 2 hours a side. He has done pretty meany to know how long and what it takes. Plus I don't have the time to just rip into the truck at this moment. Thanks for all the advice though...

 

Well things dont look good if you have a 2005and later. For my 2006 i can only find spicer profesional with a grease fitting for the lowers. I guess I will wait until they fail and hope they are making the uppersat that point Does anyone know if this is correct or am I getting bad info.

 

Sounds like a FORD problem! Ball joints should last a long time.
I have had to replace one hub assembly so far, and oh the DANA 50 front axel shaft.

Will the ball joints be next?