Again and again :(

[HawkRod]

do you think I should do the bottoms and keep the tops?

Look, you're probably going to get a lot of comments and opinions here - here's mine:
The bulk of the work is digging in to the suspension be able to replace part of it. Overall, the bushings and ball joints are cheap, the labor and front end alignment is hard and expensive.

IMHO, once you dig in, replace ANYTHING suspension and steering related that is even remotely suspect. Then get it aligned with as much caster as you can get and enjoy a well handling Mopar that works well.

As a side note: I have seen quite a few beautifully restored cars that handle like s**t. People don't give enough respect to the lowly suspension parts that aren't sexy (who here has bragged about their new ball joints or bushings on their signature line? It's all engines, etc.). But suspension makes a big difference in the enjoyment of the car. Do it right and you'll be much happier down the road....

Just my $0.02

Hawk

 

[KiwiKid72]

I just replaced the ball joints on my (March) 1972 Satellite. The upper took the 1-59/64" socket. There was more than 2mm play in the lower ball joints with the left-hand side particularly bad.

But of course swapping them out and getting back on the road within a day was just a dream.

The upper ball joints that were sent to me were the wrong size and needed a larger socket. I was also sent two left-hand lower ball joints with one of them belonging to a completely different vehicle. I returned them and the company took full responsibility and made good with sending me the correct items the next day.

Upon removing the outer tie rods I found they were completely flogged out with plenty of grease but severe wear. This forced me to check the inner tie rods. They were fine, thankfully. New Moog outters replaced the old ones.

I suspect the last time the outer rods were changed the sleeve clamp might have been tightened while there was no weight on the suspension, so the rod perhaps permanently sat at an odd angle when weight was put back on it.

I then noticed some rust and pitting on the left caliper piston so took them both off for inspection. I then noticed that the bleeder screws were just rounded and rusted little nubs sticking out and there was no way I was going to get them out no matter how many YouTube videos I watched.

After a closer look I decided to drop them off at a brake shop to have them reconditioned. New seals, pistons, pads, bleeder screws, cleaned and greased, I was outta there $400 ($US 260.00) lighter.

Wheel bearings and races were fine but had minimal grease. The grease in there was probably doing more harm than good judging by the state of it. So cleaned and repacked with high-temp wheel bearing grease and cleaned the gunk out of the hub.

I was getting excited that I was finally almost back on the road, but when bleeding the brakes, fluid was coming out the threads of the new bleeder screws. Thread sealant stopped it. Just need to book in for a wheel alignment now.

This was my experience doing a quick replacement of ball joints to save myself a few bucks.

 

[KiwiKid72]