Ball Joint Flip Problem

[TEN36VX]

I am trying to do the BJ flip going by Triathletes instructions from an old thread.
My problem is that after getting the castle nut off of the BJ shaft I cant get the darn A-arm to release. Penetrating lube + repeated whacks with a 3# sledge and nuthin'...

Any suggestions?

[Triathlete]

Hit it harder...it will come. I used an 8 pound sledge I think. They can get wedged on there pretty good. The Control arms are pretty durable, you probably are not going to hurt them.

[Jonnie]

Thats my same problem to get at the CV axle. Spazz said to just go for the lower arm bolts, but that scares me for some reason.

Jonnie

[tomdietrying]

I did a mini lift on my VX. I put the OME 912 springs and turned the nut to raise the toursion bar. I did not flip the ball joint. My question is should I and what is it for?

I did Moab again this year and the vehicle preformed great doing 3.5 and 4.0 rated trail without the flip. Was I lucky that nothing happened in Moab?

Peace.
Tom

[Triathlete]

Tom,
The only thing the ball joint flip really does is allow for an easier allignment of the front end. If your allignment went smooth (the guy was able to do it and didn't come in and tell you it wasn't allignable) then you really don't need to worry about it.

[E-ZooZoo One]

Yep - the Ball Joints can be a real bugger to break loose…

Whenever I do it, I always leave the castle nut on there, hanging-on by a few thread-turns… That way, when the BFH finally persuades it to let loose, everything stays put.