110 Drop arm ball joint-How difficult?

If the kit of parts is the pin, seat spring etc then i have done on on mine, the only bit i couldn't get out was the seat, despite lots and lots of heat! in the end i left that in and just replaced the other parts and all seems ok.

Gary

"gaza" wrote in news:d7ueqm$4kg$ snipped-for-privacy@nwrdmz03.dmz.ncs.ea.ibs-infra.bt.com:

Same here. Just leave the seat in as it seems to be the last bit to wear. Quite do-able. Though having the morphology of an octopus would be handy. Use a small jack to depress the spring and maybe a socket. Can't remember. I definitely did NOT need to remove the drop arm (which is just as well because I gather from Google that can be a bitch), nor did I need any special tools. If I can do it, most here can do it. P.S. Mine was a D90 if that makes any difference.

Derry

Not replacing the upper seat is a false economy. The seat will eventually wear so much that it is impossible to remove and then you will require a new drop arm. If you still have up and down movement in the ball joint after you have fitted the kit then the upper seat is US. The upper seat is easily removed with right tool.

This your steering we are talking about !

I have seen too many of these kits bodged.

pay your local specialist a few quid and get the job done properly.

On or around Sun, 5 Jun 2005 12:40:36 +0100, Marc Draper enlightened us thusly:

buggered if I know what the right tool is. Last one I did I heated the seat with an oxy torch to soften it, and then cut through it with a hacksaw, which made it easy to knock out.

if, of course, you have a suitable specialist...

The way,*without removing the drop arm* is to get a trolly jack,place a small socket on the jack and raise under the plate on the joint.apply alittle pressure pushing the plate up so you can remove the circlip.you can then slowly drop the jack down and remove the retaining plate,outter ball retaining cup,ball joint,rubber ring,and spring.now you have to get the cup out.with a piece of 3/8" threaded rod,appx 6"long.place two nuts,locked together,2"from the top,insert a suitable socket(that will go into the joint from the top)insert into and through the arm from the top place a plate with 3/8"hole under the bottom of the arm,locate a nut on the rod and draw the cup out,by tightening the nut.clean the arm seating throughly,place the new cup and ballDONOT put too much in as it will not compress and draw back through using the ball to seat the cup firmly in its seat regrease replacing all componants,including the rubber seal that most leave out!! by placing the socket on the jack and compressing.make sure the circlip is located correctly.replace nut,washer AND splitpin.torque up hey presto you've done for a few years

"David J. Button" wrote in news:d7vvjf$3oo$ snipped-for-privacy@nwrdmz02.dmz.ncs.ea.ibs-infra.bt.com:

I used a G clamp.

Couldn't get the cup out by any legal means, so left it in. The lip left for the socket to sit on seems to be VERY thin. Yes, there is a special tool...

Can't really see a problem here as it is the ball that wears. Even if the cup does wear, so what? That is not the critical item. It is the spring which prevents up-down movement, not wear in the cup.

BTW, I rather stupidly dismantled the joint to see how it was put together before ordering the new parts! Dismantling is easy. It is re-assembly which is the problem. So have all your new parts and the tools for putting it back together (which involves compressing that spring and inserting the circlip all at the same time) ready before you begin.

Steering specialist? In the north of Scotland? Oh, that will be the Inverness dealership...at over £50 per hour! :(

Derry

Both the sockets (cups) as well as the ball wear, and relatively little wear on the bottom socket will allow the two sockets to touch, so the spring does not stop movement. And not much more wear will allow the ball to drop right though, something you really don't want to have happen. It is worth noting though, that these joints will last virtually a lifetime, PROVIDED THE RUBBER DUST COVER IS UNDAMAGED. As soon as it has the slightest split in it, it lets dirt and water in, and you might as well order a replacement (if you noticed the damage!). When I replaced mine after about 250,000km, I found the dust cover had a split about 1mm long on the front where a stone or a stick had cut it against the lip on the arm. JD

I image M+D's would simply replace the steering box and the drop arm...

I have the correct tool Derry, so when you next need it, shout! Last time I used it the seat was so worn that even it didn't work correctly the first time - I needed to weld blobs onto the seat so that it would catch it and pull it through.

Regards

William MacLeod

Personaly, I've always managed to get the seat out using a drift, well ok, a screw driver. Some use a good dose of heat to help things along. You dont need to take the drop arm off, use a trolley jack as a mobile "bench". When re-assembling, put all the upper components together and fit the drag link - then use a g-clamp with a small socket (remembering to put the circlip round the socket first) to squash things together to get the circlip in. Make sure the slot the the circlip goes in is un-damaged and nice and clean, otherwise a large quantity of Language (Part No. $"£"%"!* - always in stock) will be required.

Richard

snipped-for-privacy@macleod-group.com wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@g44g2000cwa.googlegroups.com:

As usual, Willie, you are very kind. I shall report back after the next

When I "repaired" mine, I found it had not been tightened up sufficiently which is why it was rattling. I think I have the old one in the cupboard with the other spares that have life left in them and I can't bear to throw out. (Waste not, want not).

Re: M&D, I hardly think replacing the steering box and drop arm would be sufficient. Wouldn't it need a complete new front suspension?

Any time you want an introduction to that Discovery, give me a shout and I will fix up a meeting.

Derry

Hey thats my design yer talking about. I put that one on here ages ago, looks like it's served it's purpose for many. Best and easiest way too. Dont forget DONT put too much grease in the cup as you will not suceed in compressing the lot together as hydrolic compression will occur. POP. Dave

To chuck in my 2p's worth, I use a small two leg puller to compress the spring and get the circlip and backplate out (and back in) - far easier than the jack and balanced socket trick ... if necessary, centre pop the ouside of the seat to give a location point for the puller shaft. I usually use the jack as the mobile knocking post with a drift for the top seat but I find that the radiused finish to the end of most sockets makes them useless as a drift - a screwdriver, pin punch or small diameter bar has always been more successful for me. However an old socket or bit of round bar of exactly the right size with a nice square end works best ...