It's All Good

After much frustration, grimacing, and a little upper body soreness, I have finally seperated the lower ball joints on the truck suspension.

I tried making the specialilty tool shown in the shop manual. I could not apply enough force to make it work. Actually I started to strip the threads on the 3/4" bolt so I gave up.

I had applied penetrating oil to the joint several times over the last week.

Today I heated the joints with a propane touch and then violently tapped on the bolt until the joint released. Unfortunately the threads were mamed. I had to file the deformed end of the bolt so that it would fit through the hole. A few minutes with a file and all was good.

Next: Press the ball joints out of the lower A-arms and perhaps a little more de-greasing.