breaking in ball joints?

Vanimal · Feb 7, 2013

my new ball joints are so stiff that driving is VERY sketchy. they're dana 60 joints. any tips on breaking them in faster? i know i should have double nutted them and spun them with my impact, but hindsight is 20/20...
I already beat the shit out of the jeep offroad, didnt help. i'd prefer not to pull the knuckles if i dont have to, but i think i know the answer to that...

whitexj98 · Feb 7, 2013

Im just a dana 30 guy but have done ball joints 6 times or so on my jeep..and I have never had to break them in. Is the steering stiff or what?

Vanimal · Feb 7, 2013

whitexj98 said:
Im just a dana 30 guy but have done ball joints 6 times or so on my jeep..and I have never had to break them in. Is the steering stiff or what?

this really only seems to apply to 1 ton stuff from what i hear.

souske · Feb 7, 2013

Did you grab the sandblaster instead of the grease gun?

MoparManiac · Feb 7, 2013

Overtorque the nuts? Do it in the right sequence?

Vanimal · Feb 7, 2013

MoparManiac said:
Overtorque the nuts? Do it in the right sequence?

guess i'm a noob, didnt know there was a sequence. never had a problem before, but then again it was all small axles

JohnX · Feb 7, 2013

It sounds like you have something else going on, I doubt it is a ball joint issue.I have never had the need to "break in" a ball joint in any application. And I've done a lot.

Vanimal · Feb 7, 2013

it has been narrowed down to the ball joints. no doubt about it. perhaps 1 ton ball joints aren't as much of an issue in a 1 ton truck as they are in a 4000lb jeep? thats all i can think of. they were cheap ball joints too.
from what ive been reading, it is a common issue.

XJLI · Feb 7, 2013

cheap ball joints suck

MoparManiac · Feb 7, 2013

Vanimal said:
guess i'm a noob, didnt know there was a sequence. never had a problem before, but then again it was all small axles

I know that on my '01 Dodge it requires you to do the top nut to 40 lb-ft, bottom to 80 lb-ft, then top to 110 lb-ft.

Or something like that. Can't remember it exactly.

They've always spun nicely even without any weight on them. They shouldn't be stiff.

I'm with Adam. They could be cheap joints? What brand?

Vanimal · Feb 7, 2013

MoparManiac said:
I know that on my '01 Dodge it requires you to do the top nut to 40 lb-ft, bottom to 80 lb-ft, then top to 110 lb-ft.

Or something like that. Can't remember it exactly.

They've always spun nicely even without any weight on them. They shouldn't be stiff.

I'm with Adam. They could be cheap joints? What brand?

i googled that after your last post and saw the sequence, thanks. im going to give that a shot first. i dont even know the brand, they are super cheap, like 15 bucks each. just needed to get it rolling on a budget, but guess that backfired lol

these are dodge ball joints as well, so you were probably right.

blondejoncherokee · Feb 7, 2013

I know you know your stuff van, but how is toe and caster? Im wondering if you used a LP60 that you maybe tried to point the pinion up and sacrificed some caster? Or did you cut and turn the knuckles?

Vanimal · Feb 7, 2013

i cut the knuckles. caster and toe is pretty spot on. might try some more toe though.. it's 1/8" with 37's. probably could stand to add a little.
i did notice one problem today, the caster/camber alignment bushing was a little incorrect for the axle and it was pulling the upper ball joint out of the knuckle. i turned it down to the correct height, but still the same.
i really think it's mostly the locker in the rear magnifying things, but it's not really safe to drive on the street IMO. i'm a bit anal about this stuff.
I'm going to try a steering stabilizer.

Vanimal · Feb 8, 2013

i spun the lower ball joints with my impact per my friend's instructions and now all is well. handles MUCH better. they were stupid stiff

GSequoia · Feb 8, 2013

JohnX said:
It sounds like you have something else going on, I doubt it is a ball joint issue.I have never had the need to "break in" a ball joint in any application. And I've done a lot.

Ah, I thought they called you "Ballgrabber" for a different reason.

Vanimal said:
I'm going to try a steering stabilizer.

For why?

Boatwrench · Feb 9, 2013

Vanimal said:
i spun the lower ball joints with my impact per my friend's instructions and now all is well. handles MUCH better. they were stupid stiff

Never heard of this technique, please elaborate.

Vanimal · Feb 9, 2013

Boatwrench said:
Never heard of this technique, please elaborate.

basically just double nut it (or some ball joints actually have a hex in the end of the stud to spin by) and spin the ball/stud for about a minute with your impact, let it sit for a minute, then spin it for another minute. make sure it has grease in it before doing this. made a HUGE difference in the steering, it can now easily be driven om the street, where before it was downright dangerous.
I think you wouldnt need to do this for dana 30 stuff, but for the size of the dana 60 ball joints, i needed to. plus being somewhat cheap, i think they were stiffer than some.

yossarian19 · Feb 13, 2013

What was the problem before? Hard / lurchy steering? Like, it would resist and then give all at once? Trying to imagine what a stiff ball joint would do...

Comanchedude · Feb 13, 2013

I often say you learn something most every day...

kastein · Feb 13, 2013

Yeah... never heard of this one before. Interesting.

breaking in ball joints?

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