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Regular
Posts: 64
| Hi I am currently changing the ball joints and bushes etc on the front end the upper ball joint housing drivers side when I have unscrewed the old ball joint the threads in the housing are virtually non existent ,I have new threaded ball joint the same as I removed ,if I had to guess I would say the old ball joint had been pressed in by the state of the threads on the housing however I did screw it out of the mounting anyone got any input on this issue help appreciated thanks Phil
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 406
Location: Hilltown, PA |
Not sure what the question is . . .
Does the new balljoint screw into the control arm securely? If so install it and move on.
Some of the balljoints I have seen don't appear to have very deep threads when removed, and some of the new ones I've installed don't either. The control arm is NOT threaded, it simply has a blank hole that the balljoint cuts threads into. The real qualifier is how well the new balljoint fits in the arm.
If it doesn't seem secure, install it to it's proper location and weld it to the control arm. At this point if the hole in the arm is stripped oversize the arm is junk anyway, so rather than throw it away if you weld the balljoint to it you are extending the life of the "bad" control arm by the lifespan of the balljoint. Next time you need to service the balljoint get a replacement arm as well.
Gregg
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 352
| It has been a long time since I worked on the bench in a Chrysler dealership, if I remember correctly the thread on the ball joint is a rounded very shallow thread.
Del |
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Board Moderator & Exner Expert 10K+
Posts: 13049
  
Location: Southern Sweden - Sturkö island | Yes, it's a shallow thread, but the profile is triangular.
If the ball joint can be torqued at min 125 Foot-pounds, then it's ok. If the ball joint slips at 125 Foot-pounds or less, then get another control arm.
I would not suggest to weld in the ball joint or control arm. |
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Expert 5K+
Posts: 9672
Location: So. Cal | Because the upper control arm doesn't have the weight of the car on it, it's main stress is side-2-side movement. As such, welding the joint into it should be OK. Never use an air gun to install them or you will destroy the threads. It's best not to use air to remove them either, but sometimes it's necessary if they are really stuck. |
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Regular
Posts: 64
| Hi thanks again for the info I managed to make a box spanner and have screwed the new ball joints in to the housing these were very tight to screw but are all the way in now and I am sure are not going to fail, from one of the other replies I did not realise that the ball joints just cut there own thread into the housing that’s what threw me I was expecting a fully formed machined thread in the housing
Thanks Phil |
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1961 Chrysler Windsor
