I decided to tackle replacing my own ball joints on my 2002 F-350 7.3 4WD. It's been tougher than I expected even with the right tools. Today I finally got the old joints out and the new ones pressed in.
I mounted the steering knuckle with the new joints and I'm bothered by how tight it is to turn the knuckle by hand (the tie rod is disconnected). It is *much* harder than it was when I took it off. Should I expect this? The old joints were shot and had a bunch of play, but this seems too tight. I've torqued the ball joints to the factory values (69 up top, 150 for the bottom).
Is there a good way to be sure that the steering knuckle has seated all the way properly?
I mounted the steering knuckle with the new joints and I'm bothered by how tight it is to turn the knuckle by hand (the tie rod is disconnected). It is *much* harder than it was when I took it off. Should I expect this? The old joints were shot and had a bunch of play, but this seems too tight. I've torqued the ball joints to the factory values (69 up top, 150 for the bottom).
Is there a good way to be sure that the steering knuckle has seated all the way properly?