Ok,first of all I havent posted here much but this forum has been invaluable to me,thank you to everyone...Hears my problem..I have a 2002 f350 4 wd,with 80000 miles.I have of recent replaced tires drag link and tie rod ends, shocks and sway arm links also....The problem I have is a "clunk" at times that I feel through the drivers floor board..It usually only happens at I apply the brakes at almost a complete stop and doesnt happen all the time..(I have disconnected the sway links and it still does this)Maybe 5% of all stops.But if I try hard to duplicate it by contantly stabbing the brakes I can duplicate it more often..I dont beleive its a brake issue..No pulling or grinding or pulsating pedal...I have looked under the truck and nothing is loose EXCEPT when I pull on the drivers side u joint it moves (maybe a 16th of an inch,but enough to make clunk noise)and makes the clank I think im feeling..The passenger side is tight with no movement.So I assume there shouldnt be any movement..Do you think its the ujoint itself (which are original )or a main seal in the axle,spindle?Im not a mechanic but have learned alot from this site so bear with me if im misnaming something...Also I plan on doing the ball joints if I have to take this apart even though I find no play at 12 and 6 on the tire but assume if I have to replace something like the ujoint I may as well,right?Sorry for the long post..Please post your thoughts please.... <!-- / message --><!-- BEGIN TEMPLATE: ad_showthread_firstpost_sig --><!-- END TEMPLATE: ad_showthread_firstpost_sig -->

 

just a thought,could it maybe be the hub assembly???

 

anybody?????

 

If you can move the u joint at all, it's time to replace it (this goes for anywhere, drive shaft or axle shaft), there should be no play in them.
If there is no play in the ball joints or hub then there is really no need to replace them, you can if you want tho.

This is something you can do your self but the u joints are very hard to get out (and a u joint press will not work for these), it they haven't been replaced in a long time. It is much easier to have a shop press them in & out for you.

Have you greased the slip in the rear drive shaft? If not, that can cause a "cluck" when breaking. Have a look and you'll find a few post on it. I did mine recently and my "cluck" is gone when stopping.

 

The cluck you discribed is usally from sway bar end link but you ruled that out. Have you looked at the cab mount that is in that area?

 

+1 on the u-joint. They shouldn't have any play.

 

The 02 has leaf springs in the front? Sounds like a bushing or bushings worn out. Dana 60 since it's a 350?

 

If the hub is tight it should be OK. You should grease it though through the abs sensor hole (article in here).

 

think I found it and it makes sense..I pulled on the brake caliper and it moves slightly front to back..when I someone move it and I sit in the drivers seat I can feel the clunk through the floor..And it mahes sence because this aleways happened when I applied the brakes sharply,I think the caliper squeezes the rotor and moves toward the front of the truck banging the outside of the rotor...Now I have to try to tighten it or figure out if something is worn...So hopefully I found it,we will see though....

 

That's it !

 

Well , replaced worn slip pins on drivers caliper( boot was off and one pin was dry)but that wasnt it!! Im sick of chasing this noise, think ill better insulate my floor so i dont feel it.. That will be cheaper than this... Maybe it is a bad bushing on the front leaf spring.. But is that very likely??Back to the drawing board...

 

Well obviously you're trying to eliminate options in order to avoid the pain of replacing the ball joints unnecessarily.

Since you mention the leaf spring bushings, I'd try to mark the connecting bolts relative to the leaf springs with a Sharpie marker, then compare to see if there's any movement between coasting to a stop, versus a hard clunky stop. Its no real effort, and you could get lucky, though I doubt it.


And here's a wild a$$ idea. I know the standard ball joint test is at 12 and 6 o'clock. But when you apply your breaks while driving, the force generated is toward 3 o'clock. If you chock the driver's side wheel then ease forward under power and feel the clunk, you'd have some confirmation...?

 

Ok, well i was back at it today investigating possibilities.. First off i started by sitting in the passenger seat and seeing if Ifelt the same clunk in pass floor board.. Yes its there too... I have been solely searching for things on drivers side because I didnt know the noise was also on pass side.. I jacked pass wheel up and oh before I did that I saw a gap in the upper ball joint.. Then i did the standard 12 and 6 rocking of tire and bingo , it moves 1/4 inch and clunks. I then sat on drivers seat and had my 118 lb wife rock my tire and the feeling in floorboard is duplicated.. Thank god I found it, I was starting to obsess about it. So now I have to take up the unfortunate task of replacing probably all the ball joints because there is 80000 miles on them .. Ugh, I dont look forward to doing this, but from what I read its a 1200-1500 job at ford or 300-400 to do myself.. Thanks to all that replied, I will update when im done, think im going with premium joints from napa and seals ect from ford.. Any thoughts on that??

 

I'd use SKC for all the seals, MOOG or TRW for the ball joints and spicer u joints

 

Congratulations on the "clunk"!