Replaced Ball Joints on JBA A-Arms today

[CactusJacked]

The ball joint shaft has a taper and will only go so far into the tapered hole. The spacer is put there to fill a gap and support the boot. Keep in mind, the ball joints are for GM vehicles. They just happen to work on our Jeep, with a little retrofit imagination.

 

[tjkj2002]

The ball joint shaft has a taper and will only go so far into the tapered hole. The spacer is put there to fill a gap and support the boot. Keep in mind, the ball joints are for GM vehicles. They just happen to work on our Jeep, with a little retrofit imagination.

Correct.

Oh and holy coil stacking going on with almost no spring travel before un-seating!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[TwoBobsKJ]

Bear with me for a second here. The way JBA says to install the spacer is ABOVE the knuckle, thus moving the knuckle down half an inch. If you install the spacer BELOW the knuckle, that would effectively just move the nut down enough to use the nut appropriately for the cotter pin hole.

Take a look at my (crudely drawn) picture. The way I see it, the spacer moves the knuckle down just a bit if the spacer is between the ball joint boot and the knuckle. Is that not correct?

For reference, center picture is Bob's OLD setup. Same ball joint, no spacer. Left is his new setup. Unless it's a new ball joint with a different stud length? But then that length would need to be exactly .5" longer.

The spacer doesn't fit tightly around the stud - it is only there to press the boot tighter against the body of the joint so the grease stays in place. It has no affect on how far into the knuckle the stud will go; the taper of the stud determines that.

The alignment is exactly the same as before - she runs straight and true :waytogo:


Bob

 

[TwoBobsKJ]

Correct.

Oh and holy coil stacking going on with almost no spring travel before un-seating!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Haven't bottomed out the springs yet - there's really no coil stacking at all.

Tom's running the same height as me and the springs are fine. Marlin's spec sheet talks about the upper coils being closer together that the lower but that's the way they're designed. The spring rate is much more progressive than the OME's or factory.

Bob

 

[tommudd]

Correct.

Oh and holy coil stacking going on with almost no spring travel before un-seating!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Comparing mine to Bobs
Bumpstops out to fine tune both of them
My 04s sitting with 4.5 inches of lift

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My 03 with 2.5 inches of lift

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[blackhawk]

Recapitulating..... If a wish to install a new JBA upper arms for the stock ones, in a standard KJ (no lifting)... what Will I need not to face alignment problems?

 

[tommudd]

Recapitulating..... If a wish to install a new JBA upper arms for the stock ones, in a standard KJ (no lifting)... what Will I need not to face alignment problems?

Just get the ones for an unlifted KJ is all, they have both . Lifted and non lifted

 

[mightybeet]

something like this.... ignore the typos

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[dude1116]

The ball joint shaft has a taper and will only go so far into the tapered hole. The spacer is put there to fill a gap and support the boot. Keep in mind, the ball joints are for GM vehicles. They just happen to work on our Jeep, with a little retrofit imagination.

The spacer doesn't fit tightly around the stud - it is only there to press the boot tighter against the body of the joint so the grease stays in place. It has no affect on how far into the knuckle the stud will go; the taper of the stud determines that.

The alignment is exactly the same as before - she runs straight and true :waytogo:


Bob

So...you're saying that without the spacer the ball joint sits like so...

 

[CactusJacked]

So...you're saying that without the spacer the ball joint sits like so...

Right, that's why the need for a spacer. The spacer sandwiches the boot to prevent grease blowout.

 

[profdlp]

When did the new spacer come out? Would someone like myself who ordered about a month ago have the spacer already included?

('Cause it's dark and I don't want to go out and look with a flashlight.) :gr_grin:

 

[tommudd]

When did the new spacer come out? Would someone like myself who ordered about a month ago have the spacer already included?

('Cause it's dark and I don't want to go out and look with a flashlight.) :gr_grin:

You have them and they have been being supplied for years now

See should of paid more attention:happy175:

 

[TwoBobsKJ]

So...you're saying that without the spacer the ball joint sits like so...

Correct.

Right, that's why the need for a spacer. The spacer sandwiches the boot to prevent grease blowout.

And, correct.


Bob

 

[dude1116]

You have them and they have been being supplied for years now

See should of paid more attention:happy175:

I wouldn't say years. I believe the spacer was fairly new when I ordered my arms about a year ago.

 

[tommudd]

I wouldn't say years. I believe the spacer was fairly new when I ordered my arms about a year ago.

No I think its been years, I had one of the first sets when they were just the 4.0s and had a spacer , all depends on which UBJ he had at the time
My next ones that were the first sets of the 4.5s didn't have any spacer , then off and on ones we installed here some had them, some didn't over the years , last set I got had them.
Even the " new " JBA UBJ's will have a spacer not quite as thick but will have one

 

[HoosierJeeper]

My original ones from 2012 didn't have them, the ones I got in 2015 have them.

 

[tommudd]

Again all depends on what manufacturer they were using right then.
He buys a lot at a time depending on price's / availability etc

 

[blackhawk]

Just get the ones for an unlifted KJ is all, they have both . Lifted and non lifted

All right . But I've read about some alignment problems after replace the OEM UPPER arms for this ones.

Is that true?

 

[tommudd]

All right . But I've read about some alignment problems after replace the OEM UPPER arms for this ones.

Is that true?

No

 

[blackhawk]

No

ok. But for that purpose of not getting problems with alignment... Do I need the spacer anyway regardless if I have my Libby lifted or unlifted?