Removing ball joints on 4wd

[bmacster]

Welp, I'm stuck on yet another fun exciting project with the truck. I cannot seemingly get the lower ball joints out of the knuckle spindle due to the axle boot being in the way.

 

Now according to the FSM and various other sources, it should be possible to remove said ball joint, without going through the pain of removing the axle, yet in various pictures, the axle IS removed. 

 

Am I missing something here? 

 

I will add that I DID NOT remove/unbolt the torsion bar because it did not seem necessary to do so since it is not connected to the ball joints like it is on the 2wd version.

 

Thanks in advance.

[bmacster]

Just in case some one else comes up with this issue, you DO have to remove the axle in order to get the ball joints out. The boot will not allow clearance. Pretty easy, the passenger side took about 2 hours with some cleaning from start to finish. 

 

I would highly recommend doing the entire front suspension and steering when you do the ball joints. It makes a world of a difference!

 

I do need to do the steering box. Mine appears to be completely worn out. Even adjusting it does not make much of a difference. 

[broncoman2000]

First post here.  Been lurking for awhile, but here I go.

 

I just did the suspension on an 85 4x4 720.  When tackling the lower ball joints, I didn't remove the entire axle, all I did was remove the Jesus ring locking it in place, removed the lock nut assy, and slid the axle back less than 2 inches.  All you need to do is get the boot back far enough to angle the ball joint past the axle boot and you are home free.

 

Good luck, not a hard job, just aggravating.

 

David