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Spicer ball joints

4x4JeePmaNthINg

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Colorado
Ive been chasing a steering clunk for a while now. the only play I can find is Up/Down on the ball joints, both sides and upper/lower.

Now Ive read NO play is normal, And only up/down play is normal. Can anyone validate this please?

Did box stores stop carrying spicer or something, I cant find any local store that carries their products????
 
You might try looking for spicer components at a shop that builds axles. IOW, look for the shop you would go to if you were looking to re-gear your axles.
 
My local 4Wheel Parts has them in stock. Maybe that's an option if you have one nearby. I've purchased Spicer 706944X from them before.
One time I got them from O'reillys, but they had to order them. Took a day IIRC.
You can get them from amazon, RockAuto, too.
 
The lower ball joints should be tight; only able to spin about it's axis; the lower ball joint does most of the work in keeping everything in place. The upper ball joint only serves to keep the knuckle from flopping around like a wet noodle; some up/down play wouldn't affect it's ability to do this. On earlier models, one of the two sockets had a threaded insert that was used to adjust for manufacturing tolerances that cause the spacing between the two joints to vary. Then someone got smart, or cheap, and eliminated the adjuster by allowing the upper ball joint to float up/down.
 
You're going to have to call around and see if you can find a place that can order them for you if you want to use your FLoPS. I know my local Carquest/Advanced Auto can get them, but I typically order them online from either Rock Auto or Amazon if I need them quick. Many times Amazon can beat the local parts store for delivery time.
 
Look on Ebay...there are several vendors selling them.
 
I'll give eBay a look, I have oreillys trying to see if they can even get the part in. 4-wheel parts is going to want about $40 more than any other vendor, that's just ridiculous. The stealership would probably be double.

I like Spicer products, I'm just surprised that nobody carries these things on hand, like napa.
 
I'll give eBay a look, I have oreillys trying to see if they can even get the part in. 4-wheel parts is going to want about $40 more than any other vendor, that's just ridiculous. The stealership would probably be double.

I like Spicer products, I'm just surprised that nobody carries these things on hand, like napa.

Because the average consumer is just going to go with the cheapest most accessible thing. MOstly the cheapest. Even NAPA at this point is about down to the quality level of all the other big box stores.
 
Well I went and spoke to the devil aka 4WP and they price matched summit. They also had a 3yr warranty for 11$. Bring in the broken ball joint and get a new one, lol I just laughed and said yup. 35s will claim more ball joints and if they will pay 90$+ for them bwahaha deal.

Unfortunately I only got one axle seal, gonna have to locate another, meh. Are inner napa seals reputable?
 
I just recently did a complete rebuild on my front axle and used Spicer ball joints.
People always forget that Summit Racing has LOTS of parts, and they give you free and fast shipping on orders over $100.00.
Make sure you get the OTC tool to make the job easier!


Spicer ball joints:

https://www.summitracing.com/parts/SDH-706944X


OTC tool:

https://www.summitracing.com/parts/OTC-7894


I usually rent a big ball joint kit that has that adapter in it but does a piece of flat stock work pretty well?
 
Something I found unusual that you might want to pay attention to When selecting your ball joint is lubrication. I got one that had a zerk fitting that you had to remove and plug in order for it to clear the U-joint. And the one for the other side was different and had a low profile zerk fitting that requires a needle tip but clears the U-joint.

Same model number, same manufacturer.

If I could go back and do it again I would pick low profile on both.
 
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