gomer
Extreme
Well, the other day I am pulling the uppers out of the a-arms(while still attached to the spindle, cause I'm lazy) so I could paint the arms, and I slipped with the IR Thunder Gun full throttle in reverse. 
Outer housing of the ball joint got dinged and is now bound up. So, I call the dealer. Figured I'd get 2 because I always replace stuff like that in pairs. $88. OK. Each. Whooooooaaaa!!!! Jumped online and found some for $74 each. The wheels started turning upstairs and the pics below are what I came up with. I remembered that the after market a-arms usually just use heim ends, which I have scattered all through my tool box from the racing days. The 5/8ths thread looked pretty close to the bore in the a-arm, turned out it was perfect! No drilling, just ran a 5/8-18 tap through it. Pics show the mach-up aluminum heim without a jam nut, but I ordered chromoly heims with jam nuts for some more strength and a little more misalignment(22 degrees). So, for less than $60(heims, bolts, tap) I'm going to have new upper "ball joints". Open to any and all feedback. Let me know what you guys think.
Outer housing of the ball joint got dinged and is now bound up. So, I call the dealer. Figured I'd get 2 because I always replace stuff like that in pairs. $88. OK. Each. Whooooooaaaa!!!! Jumped online and found some for $74 each. The wheels started turning upstairs and the pics below are what I came up with. I remembered that the after market a-arms usually just use heim ends, which I have scattered all through my tool box from the racing days. The 5/8ths thread looked pretty close to the bore in the a-arm, turned out it was perfect! No drilling, just ran a 5/8-18 tap through it. Pics show the mach-up aluminum heim without a jam nut, but I ordered chromoly heims with jam nuts for some more strength and a little more misalignment(22 degrees). So, for less than $60(heims, bolts, tap) I'm going to have new upper "ball joints". Open to any and all feedback. Let me know what you guys think.Attachments
mach9
TY 4 Stroke Master
I just replaced upper ball joints on my 09.
Yes the OEM items are pricey and wear too fast.
Can you upload bigger photos?
Kinda small, my eyes are getting bugged out.
Yes the OEM items are pricey and wear too fast.
Can you upload bigger photos?
Kinda small, my eyes are getting bugged out.
gomer
Extreme
I tried for an hour last night, anything bigger and my computer was freaking out. I put some on PhotoBucket.
http://s834.photobucket.com/albums/zz268/VigilanteMotorsports/?start=all
Will also post some new pics when the new heims arrive and when I put everything back together.
http://s834.photobucket.com/albums/zz268/VigilanteMotorsports/?start=all
Will also post some new pics when the new heims arrive and when I put everything back together.
mach9
TY 4 Stroke Master
Cool, thanks.
I guess you now have fully adjustable camber too boot.
PS: I almost didn't read this topic, the title made me think it was the same old machine 2.5mm off. You should change (add to) the topic title to have "aftermarket" in it.
I guess you now have fully adjustable camber too boot.
PS: I almost didn't read this topic, the title made me think it was the same old machine 2.5mm off. You should change (add to) the topic title to have "aftermarket" in it.
Crewchief47
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mach9 said:
Good point! I modded the title for the OP.
gomer
Extreme
Crewchief47 said:mach9 said:
Good point! I modded the title for the OP.
Good call guys!
Nikolai
TY 4 Stroke God
Good thinking, might have to do this to mine. Where did you get the heims from?
arteeex
TY 4 Stroke Master
I looked at doing this too - for the same reasons. However, I wasn't convinced there would be adequate thread engagement with the rod end extended to match the stand-off position of the OEM part. Were you able to find rod ends with a center-to-end length greater than the usual 2-5/8"?
Also, the 22-deg range of motion seemed a little tight but I've not measured the OEM part (even though I've had one on my desk all summer). I know there are units with 38 to over 60-degrees of swivel available if needed.
Also, the 22-deg range of motion seemed a little tight but I've not measured the OEM part (even though I've had one on my desk all summer). I know there are units with 38 to over 60-degrees of swivel available if needed.
gomer
Extreme
Nikolai, you can get hiem ends from Summit, Jeg's, or any other off-road/racing performance company.
arteeex, I used standard length heim ends. There is approximately 7/8's of an inch of thread in the a-arm. That's over half of the 1 1/2 inch threaded shank. I believe with a good quality heim end that will be plenty. As for the 22 degrees, I am hoping that will be good also. When the heims arrive and I get some time I will put one side together to check range of motion.
Thanks for the feedback.
arteeex, I used standard length heim ends. There is approximately 7/8's of an inch of thread in the a-arm. That's over half of the 1 1/2 inch threaded shank. I believe with a good quality heim end that will be plenty. As for the 22 degrees, I am hoping that will be good also. When the heims arrive and I get some time I will put one side together to check range of motion.
Thanks for the feedback.
arteeex
TY 4 Stroke Master
With 7/8" you'll be just short of a diameter and a half of thread engagement, which I would say is on the edge. Two full diameters would obviously be better. Keep an eye on these to be sure they stay tight in the threads.
I'll measure the swivel angle of the stock unit I have at the office on Monday.
I'll measure the swivel angle of the stock unit I have at the office on Monday.
Here is where I get all my aftermarket rod ends.Thanks Gomer going to try this on Phazer also.
http://www.rodendsupply.com/
http://www.rodendsupply.com/
arteeex
TY 4 Stroke Master
I get a swivel angle of 54-degrees (+/- 28 from vertical) on the stock upper ball joint. I don't know if that much is necessary, but you can check by running the a-arms through their range of motion with the shocks and roll bar disconnected. Be sure to test with the steering centered and at the turned to full lock.
AKrider
TY 4 Stroke God
I like the idea of this mod, but what is going to prevent the heim from twisting? The stock piece is held in place by the tabs on the a-arm. Seems like the heim should be mounted like on a sport quad a-arm with a nut between the eye and a-arm and another nut on the back side of the a-arm.
gomer
Extreme
Thanks for the comments and thoughts. Both the swivel angle of the hiem and whether it was going to twist, even with a standard nut vs. the skinny jam nut and a bolt threaded in from the back side to "pinch" it, had me a little worried. I was like, yeah this is going to work, buuuuuuttt. Just wasn't 100% confident. Riding down a groomed trail I think everything would have been fine. I got thinking about all the off-camber road and water crossings. Plus those times you get major air off that diversion ditch you didn't see in the dark, and bottom everything when you land. Snow is coming, I hope, so I conned 2 new ball joints out of my dealer under warranty. Yes, I am a bad person. Didn't want to miss any riding time if things didn't work out. Figure I will pick this mod up and do some refining, maybe testing on the machine, in the spring when the trails are shot but I can ride around the house some.
We did a similar mod on our quads but used a different joint.To lock the joint a Nordlock was used.These things dont ever come loose and are used to keep JackHammers together.Still allowed adjustment without disassembly.
http://www.nord-lock.com/
http://www.nord-lock.com/
