Hey Robert, thanks for the tip. If I think of it, maybe I'll take some pictures while I work, maybe I can actually help someone else out for a change. Thanks all.

 

I have ordered the parts that I'll need, but I had one question. Is it a good idea to replace the stabalizer bar/control arm bushing since I'll have to take it apart anyway? I'm guessing yes. Obviously I won't be taking apart the other side, but should I replace those bushings as well? Wasn't sure if those were one of those parts that should be replaced in pairs. Thanks.


Also, the nut that connects the control arm to the stabilizer bar must be torqued to 132 in/lbs. Is it okay to use my foot/lb wrench to torque this nut to 11 ft/lb, which is the equivilent? The wrench I have now only goes up to 90 ft/lbs, so I'm going to have to buy a new one to properly torque the hub nut to 130 ft/lbs. (replacing CV axle at the same time) I don't want to have to buy two new wrenches.

 

I finally started this project today, and I'm embarrassed to say that after five hours I've barely scratched the surface. I decided to order a new lower ball joint for the passenger side (driver's side needs new CV and lower control arm) and replace that at the same time. I figured I'd start on just the passenger ball joint since that would be "easier". Ha ha. How the heck do you separate the tie rod end from the knuckle? Before starting all this, I researched a lot on here, plus my Haynes book, and I found those videos on youtube from 1a auto. On the video, all he does is smack it with a hammer once and it pops right out, same thing to separate the ball joint from the knuckle. Well, I've smacked it like crazy, and it won't budge. In the Haynes, they use a puller to accomplish this. I bought one to use with the torsion bars when I replace the control arm on the other side, but it's way too big for this. Am I going to have to buy another puller for this? I can't hit it anymore, the bolt is starting to get lip on the edge. Looking at all the how tos on here that deal with this step, they all seem to gloss over it so I had thought it was easy. What am I doing wrong here? I left it ti sit overnight soaked in PB Blaster, maybe that will loosen things up.

As a side note, after reading the latest torsion bar thread here, I'm a little nervous about that part of the job. Has anyone had a a puller like this fail on them when removing the torsion bars?

edit: Well, after doing a little more searching on here (like I should have done in the first place), it looks like I need a bigger hammer and to try turning the nut upside down and hitting it like that. Anything else I should try?

 

I am getting really frustrated here. I managed to get that tie rod end off, but the lower ball joint will not separate. I went and got a heavier hammer to use, and it worked well on the upper ball joint. I read some post on here about holding a hammer on one side of the knuckle, and whacking it with the heavier hammer on the other. The upper ball joint came apart with only a couple of hits. THe lower on the other hand will not come apart. I have used a picklefork, I've hit it with the heavy hammer, I've hit the bolt on the bottom, I've tried using the large two jaw puller I have, nothing. I can't believe I was expecting to have this whole project done in two days, haha. Do I really have to go out and get a torch now? WTF!!!

 

I'm not sure I'm understanding what you are hitting with the hammer, but you are suppose to hit the knuckle near the tie rod and not actually hit the tie rod end.

Opps...Sorry just reread what you posted you got the tie rod off. But you must struck the area near the ball joints Hard.usually one hard blow in that sweet spot gets it.

 

Yeah, I've been hitting the knuckle like crazy with three different size hammers, and it's still stuck. The knuckle is starting to get a flat spot from all the banging. Like I said, all it took was two or three good whacks on the knuckle to get the upper joint apart, no problem. I really don't know what else to do. The pickle fork doesn't even seem to do anything. I was hitting it with a small hand held sledge, and nothing. It doesn't even start to wedge itself in between the control arm and the knuckle, it just falls out after I stop hitting it. I need to finish this by the end of this weekend, and I'm at a loss as to what else to try. I of course still haven't even started drilling out the rivets, that should be fun. Sorry guys for being such a noob. Has anyone else had as much trouble with this?

 

Alright, so I finally got that knuckle separated! I had to use this tool from Napa: NAPA AUTO PARTS along with some hammering on the knuckle to finally get it off. I think I broke the tool though, because I couldn't loosen it and had to knock it off with a hammer. I'll see if they honor that "limited lifetime warranty" they have listed there. Honestly, drilling out the rivets was a breeze compared to the headaches I was having with that beast. We'll see if I have as much trouble when I start on the other side. That's the real fun, control arm, CV, the works. I'll probably be back here with more questions, so thank you in advance and thanks for the help so far!!

 

So I finally am in the middle of replacing the control arm/CV axle. About three hours in, and until now, everything has gone well as can be expected, until now. I have been prying at the CV axle with a prybar for 15 minutes, and I can't get it out. The tech article about this says to use a slide hammer which I don't have, or a block of wood. This may be a dumb question, but what exactly do you do with the block of wood? Use it to hammer on the side? It would make sense to hammer from the rear, but I don't see how that's possible. I'll try again with my prybar I guess. I'm worried about damaging the seal though. Hopefully by the time I check in here again I have it out, but is there something I'm doing wrong here?

E: nevermind, I got it. This thread was useful https://blazerforum.com/forum/tech-a...removal-23866/ Had to find it using google, since the forum's search omits "CV" from searches.

Now I'm having trouble getting the new CV in. Probably just need to line up the splines, but it seems as though it's too big to even fit all the way in the opening. When I look in the diff, there is a shiny part of some sort (how's that for a noob description) running diagonally in the path or just beyond the path of where the CV axle goes. Normal? For reference, the axle is Cardone 661311.

 

Alright, this jos is finally done. Aside from having some difficulty removing/installing the CV, I can't believe how easy it was. Time consuming, but very few headaches.

Couple things: I couldn't figure out a way to get the torque wrench in there to tighten the control arm bolts, without exstensions, which I think throws off the torque readings. If the truck was on a lift it would have been possible, I think. The torque is supposed to be 85 ft/lbs, so I just tightened it as much as I could by hand.

Also, if anyone needs to get their torsion bars out, this is the puller I used: Amazon.com: Pro-Grade 18203 8-Inch Adjustable combination 2 & 3 Jaw Gear Puller: Home Improvement Worked very well, was not nervous about it failing at all.