Acetylene Torch & Exploding Ball Joint
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Acetylene Torch & Exploding Ball Joint
2002 F250 SD 4X4 CC
My son and his friend were changing the driver's side ball joints on my truck today. The castle nut on the upper joint was hard to remove, and the ball joint's shaft began to spin with the nut. ViceGrips, etc did not work, so he used the torch to cut through the shaft, just below the threaded area.
It cut though easy enough. The rubber boot (he assumes) was burning and he extinguished it. He removed the knuckle from the truck and laid it down next to him. Approximately two minutes later .... super loud boom. The remaining part of the ball joint's shaft exploded out the the joint's body, punched through the wood overhead door about 20 feet away, and lodged deeply into the garage's block wall. My son's friend saw the knuckle jump about a foot off of the ground as it happened. Both boys ears' were ringing from the blast (even though they were outside in the driveway).
The knuckle was sitting on the ground between them, as they were kneeling down working on the truck. If that steel projectile would have hit one of the boys in the leg ....... or in the chest ....... or in the head ........
I was in the house at the time. I heard the blast .... thinking that maybe the oxygen tank exploded or something. I said .... Oh My God. Then I heard the boys laughing, and I said .... Thank you God.
I'm only writing this as a friendly precaution to everyone, because I would have never thought it. The ball joints were original .... therefore sealed (no grease fitting). But when things are "sealed," like joints, roller/thrust bearings, etc .... it is done with hard rubber (I think). But, someway, somehow .... the ball joint became so tightly sealed, and I assume the internal grease was cooking from the heat and producing gas/pressure, and it turned into a potentially tragic accident.
Jim
My son and his friend were changing the driver's side ball joints on my truck today. The castle nut on the upper joint was hard to remove, and the ball joint's shaft began to spin with the nut. ViceGrips, etc did not work, so he used the torch to cut through the shaft, just below the threaded area.
It cut though easy enough. The rubber boot (he assumes) was burning and he extinguished it. He removed the knuckle from the truck and laid it down next to him. Approximately two minutes later .... super loud boom. The remaining part of the ball joint's shaft exploded out the the joint's body, punched through the wood overhead door about 20 feet away, and lodged deeply into the garage's block wall. My son's friend saw the knuckle jump about a foot off of the ground as it happened. Both boys ears' were ringing from the blast (even though they were outside in the driveway).
The knuckle was sitting on the ground between them, as they were kneeling down working on the truck. If that steel projectile would have hit one of the boys in the leg ....... or in the chest ....... or in the head ........
I was in the house at the time. I heard the blast .... thinking that maybe the oxygen tank exploded or something. I said .... Oh My God. Then I heard the boys laughing, and I said .... Thank you God.
I'm only writing this as a friendly precaution to everyone, because I would have never thought it. The ball joints were original .... therefore sealed (no grease fitting). But when things are "sealed," like joints, roller/thrust bearings, etc .... it is done with hard rubber (I think). But, someway, somehow .... the ball joint became so tightly sealed, and I assume the internal grease was cooking from the heat and producing gas/pressure, and it turned into a potentially tragic accident.
Jim
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Joined: Nov 2004
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From: sunny fla sometimes windy
It isn't always the big things that do damage and this is another reason the wear
safety glasses or goggles!! Hitting things like steering components with a hammer
is also a dangerous situation and a guy I worked with had his driving career ended
when he was helping someone work on the u-joints of a dump truck, he nailed it
with the sledge and bits of the metal got liberated and took out his eye permanantly
He longer drives since to hold a CDL you have to have both eyes!! So he lost his way
to make money to save a few dollars. Think ahead and think what is the absolute
worst thing that can happen and how can I lessen the potential impact it could have.
There is alot of potential energy stored in mechanical connections and even a nut
and bolt if say the threads are seized and you keep spinning, the nut can come flying
off at a high velocity when the metl gives!!
safety glasses or goggles!! Hitting things like steering components with a hammer
is also a dangerous situation and a guy I worked with had his driving career ended
when he was helping someone work on the u-joints of a dump truck, he nailed it
with the sledge and bits of the metal got liberated and took out his eye permanantly
He longer drives since to hold a CDL you have to have both eyes!! So he lost his way
to make money to save a few dollars. Think ahead and think what is the absolute
worst thing that can happen and how can I lessen the potential impact it could have.
There is alot of potential energy stored in mechanical connections and even a nut
and bolt if say the threads are seized and you keep spinning, the nut can come flying
off at a high velocity when the metl gives!!
