I think its time to replace a lot of the stuff in my front end. The problem is I don't know what anything is not much for technical terms. I know I need new ball joints, what else needs to be ordered for that. What else is in the front that would probably need replaced at 200k? My steering wheel moves about 3 inches each direction before it does anything what needs to be done to fix that. I pretty much want it to be brand new when I am done. Also one more question where can I get traction/ladder bars for a half *** decent price? Thanks guys.

 

I would do a Sway Bar Bushing Set
Riffraff Diesel: Sway Bar Bushings

And slso tighen up your steering box to get rid of the slack you have in your wheel.

 

How do I tighten up said steering box?

 

You might also consider replacing the steering box at 200K

Red-Head Steering Gears, Seattle WA - Red-Head Steering Gears Home

New steering box 350-375
Ball joint kit 300-350
Tie rod ends and drag link 200-250
Sway bar kit 50
alignment 50-60
U joints 100
misc 40

If you did every bit of labor you would be at about 1200 for just parts

 

I was under it the other day and it has spicer u-joints is that the norm or have they probably been replaced?

 

Do the U joints have a grease zerk? If yes then they are not the originals.

 

nope they sure don't

 

I just did ball joints and all of the steering linkages for right at $1,000 installed my self. The drag link, tie rod ends, and main assembly are VERY expensive for what they are, and to top it off, they aren't even painted. The linkages are all Ford parts, not aftermarket. Factory tie rods and drag link were still good, but the dust boots were torn, so I replaced them all thinking the ball/socket was loose.

 

Oh, don't forget to get new front knuckle seals, and yellow o rings for the hubs. IF you get a ball joint kit, it should have those in it already.

 

Yeah just found the ball joint kit for 303 and the tie rod ends for around 200 total. My ball joint seals aren't torn or anything and they are greasable don't even know for sure if they need changed. But my tie rod ends are torn for sure.

 

Where are you buying all this stuff? I will be very interested in how this goes for you since I am looking to do this myself this summer. My steering is way off and I let Ford replace my steering box but it didn't do anything.

 

The truck just seems really sloppy in the front end and I noticed some of the boots are torn. I don't know anything about ball joints I had a shop tell me they were bad but I don't know how to check them. I know they have been changed sometime cause they are greasable so who knows if they are actually bad. I also think that my front hubs just need to be redone or order new ones they making some pretty awful sounds in 4wheel. Also the truck just has a lot of miles on it and there is a lot of weight in the front end.

 

Oh, you are just replacing the tie rod ends only? I replaced all my linkages since then I will have all new front end steering components. I wasn't able to get my tie rod ends to unscrew anyway, and had all new parts so I just threw them in the bed. As far as checking the ball joints, jack the front end off the gound, take a tire iron, or long pipe or something and put it below the tire and pry up while looking at the ball joints. There should be no movement. Also, you can try to move the tire and see if there is any deflection. If there is deflection of the wheel but no ball joint movement, your hub may be shot. I got my ball joints at powerstroke shop .com and rods/linkages at my local dealer.

 

Does your suspension clunk when driving over rough roads? My pass. lower ball joint was actually not tightened right so the nut and stud were turning and wore out the inverted cone contact surfaces. If you do the ball joints yourself, make sure you follow the tightening procedure exactly, or you will have loose ball joints and clunking.

 

Yeah it makes noise when I hit bumps in the road but it sounds almost like something loose in the hubs. I will check to see if they are good or not.