ball joint boots

["Robin Giesbrecht" <robings@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

I agree but this is preventative maintenance. The great consolidation of 
parts suppliers has really put a clamp on things. Gone are the days when , 
with a little leg work, one could get just about anything for a reasonable 
price. And you are right about NAPA. In Canada I can ask for part numbers 
that I see listed in the US and they come up not available. Really sucks.

Robin Giesbrecht


>From: W Bell <cbody67tx@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
>Reply-To: mailing-list@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
>To: mailing-list@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
>Subject: IML: ball joint boots
>Date: Sat, 17 Apr 2004 01:22:42 -0700 (PDT)
>
>Considering that if the boot has deteriorated and cracked, it could well be 
>that foreign materials/liquids have gotten inside and might be 
>deteriorating the internal workings too--maybe even allowed some grit to be 
>embedded in the wear surfaces that will cause quicker wear than normal.  
>Considering that if you already have to disassemble things to install the 
>new boot, you're already most of the way "there" to replacing the joint, 
>might it also make good sense to go ahead and replace the joint with a new 
>one and be done with it?  A small investment might lead to greater piece of 
>mind in the future too, even if you need to figure in the cost of a fresh 
>front end alignment into the mix too.
>
>Otherwise, you might find some via the "HELP" parts rack at most auto 
>supplies, or listed in the MotorMite catalog.  I somewhat doubt that they 
>will be of the same quality rubber that would be used by Moog or Perfect 
>Circle or similar.  Maybe you need to find an auto supply with an older 
>catalog and someone that knows how to use it, with all due respect?  In the 
>current times of large scale consolidations and buyouts of auto supply 
>stores and distributors, finding an old line, entrenched auto supply that 
>does a large volume can be a real find, especially if they have "motivated" 
>employees AND a stack of old paper catalogs archived somewhere.
>
>One distributor told me that Moog had a warehouse of nothing but New Old 
>Stock parts they used to make.  Not everyone knew about it either, but 
>those that did dare to go ahead and order some of the older parts from them 
>got things they figured were long gone.  Only restriction is that if it is 
>bought, all sales are final.  I'm not sure if it's still around or not, but 
>it might be worth a try.
>
>As "universal" as NAPA might be, the stores might have some regional 
>restrictions of where they can get some of their parts.  For example, a 
>store owner in East Texas told me that they would not let him buy his 
>AC-Delco items from a warehouse distributor in Dallas (which had more 
>stock, was cheaper, and gave better service) but instead had to use a 
>distributor in a Texas/Louisiana border town (smaller, less stock, poorer 
>order fill rate, etc.).  Similar situations might exist with other product 
>lines they carry too.
>
>Just some thoughts,
>W Bell

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