| Author |
Message |
Bob Campen (Bob308gts)
Member
Username: Bob308gts
Post Number: 810
Registered: 9-2001
| | Posted on Friday, October 24, 2003 - 12:36 pm: | |
Their price is about $3 less than Ferrari UK, for that I would buy from a sponsor |
Verell Boaen (Verell)
Intermediate Member
Username: Verell
Post Number: 1297
Registered: 5-2001
| | Posted on Wednesday, October 22, 2003 - 10:27 pm: | |
BTW,
Anyone know of a better price on the upper ball jonts than superformance.co.uk has?
I plan on rebuilding my suspension this spring. Have everything for the front except upper joints. |
Verell Boaen (Verell)
Intermediate Member
Username: Verell
Post Number: 1284
Registered: 5-2001
| | Posted on Wednesday, October 22, 2003 - 12:09 pm: | |
"lowly GT4 types"
Heck, I'll associate with a P* owner if he knows how to maintain it properly.
Maybe you could bring a gallon of that oregon antifreeze(LOL)...
|
Hans E. Hansen (4re_gt4)
Intermediate Member
Username: 4re_gt4
Post Number: 1747
Registered: 4-2002
| | Posted on Wednesday, October 22, 2003 - 12:17 am: | |
One of these days, Verell, one of these days.
I'll be in NE area and we'll have to meet.
Assuming you'll associate with us lowly GT4 types. |
Verell Boaen (Verell)
Intermediate Member
Username: Verell
Post Number: 1277
Registered: 5-2001
| | Posted on Tuesday, October 21, 2003 - 8:25 pm: | |
Hans,
That's why you don't drill all the way thru the plastic, but rathar cut the final section out.
It's really not as critical as you might think tho. The ball fits very tightly against the plastic seat so there isn't much room for any chips to squeeze in. Also, drill chips tend to be pretty big compared to these gaps.
Also, metal on plastic bearings have the interesting property that any metal chips quickly get buried/embedded into the plastic & out of the way.
Lastly, if you grease the joint before putting any load on it, the grease will tend to wash out any tiny chips along with the old grease.
Way back when the 1st 'permanantly lubricated' u-joints came out, the cross-piece actually came pre-drilled & tapped for a zerk fitting. I'm pretty sure I've seen ball joints with the empty zerk holes also. Think about sand, etc working its way up thru the empty holes into the joints... |
Hans E. Hansen (4re_gt4)
Intermediate Member
Username: 4re_gt4
Post Number: 1744
Registered: 4-2002
| | Posted on Tuesday, October 21, 2003 - 2:32 pm: | |
Verell: Won't this get metal shavings inside the ball joint? |
Verell Boaen (Verell)
Intermediate Member
Username: Verell
Post Number: 1273
Registered: 5-2001
| | Posted on Monday, October 20, 2003 - 11:10 pm: | |
re:"how I'm going to get the new grease into the ball joint"
That's the easy part, just install a self-tapping zerk fitting & use a grease gun.
Pick a point that's near the center of the joint & directly opposite the shaft. Drill a hole that will take a self-tapping zerk fitting.
Once you're thru the joint metal, drill very carefully until you can see that the nylon/delrin or whatever the plastic is is getting thin. You could even drill the plastic by hand as the metal body will guide the drill.
Then take a sharpened piece of brass tubing & cut thru the rest of the plastic. The brass won't hurt the hardened steel ball.
Most auto parts stores have the self-tapping zerk fittings. |
lou staller (Lou_staller)
Junior Member
Username: Lou_staller
Post Number: 78
Registered: 12-2002
| | Posted on Monday, October 20, 2003 - 10:38 pm: | |
I think I'm just to cheap! Actually the truth is I'm completely rebuilding my 308. Every single nut and bolt is apart or coming apart. So not knowing what's waiting for me as far as the engine and drive train I'm not looking to throw $$ where I don't have to. I know, you're thinking I shouldn't cut corners... I'm not. I'm just trying to be a little carefully and watch where I'm putting my hard earned bucks. If I find down the road that I have to replace a ball joint, it's no big deal to change them out. But for now, I really have to watch were I'm putting the $$'s. |
john asselta (Cavallo_nero)
New member
Username: Cavallo_nero
Post Number: 8
Registered: 10-2003
| | Posted on Monday, October 20, 2003 - 3:42 pm: | |
why not just get new ball joints anyway, the hard part is gettin them out and replacing (ie: labor). the car probably needs to be re-alligned anyway afterword and that is 4 hours labor at the dealer just for that!! - align it and drive it with new balljoints.............. |
lou staller (Lou_staller)
Junior Member
Username: Lou_staller
Post Number: 76
Registered: 12-2002
| | Posted on Monday, October 20, 2003 - 2:49 pm: | |
Alan & Verell, thanks for your input. The parts cleaner I have is a Safety Kleen type with solvent base cleaner that I bought before it became illegal here in Socal. I think it's going to be OK with the plastic bushing Alan brought to attention. Brake cleaner is great stuff but really nasty on hands and more fragile parts. That's why a good parts cleaner like mine or a citrus based product is invalueable when working on cars. Now, I just have to figure how I'm going to get the new grease into the ball joint! If I just had unlimited funds so I can just buy all new parts! Oh well, this is fun! |
Alan Ing (Alan)
New member
Username: Alan
Post Number: 24
Registered: 2-2002
| | Posted on Sunday, October 19, 2003 - 8:53 pm: | |
Do NOT use Brake Cleaner IN the upper or lower ball joint. I did, and now I have to purchase new ones!. My 308 GTB ball joints were just like yours, boots were torn, but seemed in good shape. I wanted to clean the dirt and grease out of one of them so I squirted brake cleaner in one of them and worked them back and forth to try to flush out the dirt. Well guess what, there is some sort of plastic spacer or bearing behind the ball joint and this white crud started coming out of the joint. I thought it was old grease, but as more of it disolved and came out, the looser the ball joint became and now I can move the joint up and down about an 1/8 of an inch or more. Big Mistake!
My suggestion is just to clean out as much as you can and pack new grease. Brake Cleaner is really agressive, so that might have been my problem. Kerosene might work, but could be risky. |
Verell Boaen (Verell)
Intermediate Member
Username: Verell
Post Number: 1266
Registered: 5-2001
| | Posted on Sunday, October 19, 2003 - 5:42 pm: | |
Lou,
I've always trusted in fresh grease to flush the old grease out. Just kept pumping fresh grease thru until everything coming out was the same color as the new grease.
If I were in doubt, I'd grease thm, then after driving a few hundred miles, I'd redo the greasing. Grease is cheap & there's no risk to using it.
Can't see that a kerosene or stoddard solvent based parts cleaner would hurt. The new grease should displace it.
I use a citrus solvent based parts cleaner that has water in it's formula. Supposedly it's got all kinds of corrosion ihibitors in it. However, after using it for a couple of years, the inside of my parts washer is starting to get a bit rusty.
Probably the fresh grease would still fully displace it, but better safe than sorry. |
lou staller (Lou_staller)
Junior Member
Username: Lou_staller
Post Number: 75
Registered: 12-2002
| | Posted on Saturday, October 18, 2003 - 11:43 pm: | |
Thanks Verell for the parts suppliers. How about cleaning the ball joints? OK to wash them in parts cleaner then repack them? I'm thinking anything less won't get all the old grease out. What do you think? |
Verell Boaen (Verell)
Intermediate Member
Username: Verell
Post Number: 1257
Registered: 5-2001
| | Posted on Saturday, October 18, 2003 - 9:31 pm: | |
I'm sure that Ferrari.uk has them.
www.owners.ferrari.com
www.superformance.co.uk has them in their catalog:
2883F Ball joint rubber boot �11.60 Each
Most likely all the usual suspects such as
T.Rutlands, Sodacoms, George Evans, etc. |
lou staller (Lou_staller)
Junior Member
Username: Lou_staller
Post Number: 74
Registered: 12-2002
| | Posted on Saturday, October 18, 2003 - 8:27 pm: | |
I have the upper and lower ball joints off my car and they seem to be in great condition, except for the rubber boots. Does anyone know where I can buy just the boots? And while I'm at it, what's the best way to clean out the ball joints and get rid of the old grease? I have a parts cleaner with new solvent. Is it OK to use on the ball joints? It sure will be the best way to clean them. Then once clean, what type of grease do I repack them with? As always your input is appriciated and is invaluable. Thanks. |