CAN ANY TELL ME WHERE I CAN RENT OR GET A BALL JOINT SEPARATOR? I HAVE TO REPLACE THE UPPER AXLE BOOTS, AND I WANT TO SPARE THE AXLES AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE. I HERE IT'S VERY HARD TO REMOVE THEM. ALSO, ANOTHER QUESTION. I LIFTED MY TRUCK (2003 F150 4X4 SCREW) WITH 2-3" TORSION KEYS AND A 2" BLOCK IN THE BACK WITH 33'S. NOW THE PROBLEM IS THE AXLES ARE CONTORTED AND CAUSED A HOLE THE APPEAR IN THE BOOTS. DO YOU THINK IF I REPLACE THE BOOTS WITH NEW ONES IT WON'T HAPPEN AGAIN?. I THINK IT HAPPENED WHEN WE WERE TOWING OUR TOY HAULER WITHOUT USING ANY HELPER BAGS OR LEVELING KIT. WE GOT ONE NOW. HELP PLEASE??????

 

advanced auto rents out the ball joint seperators, and to get the ball joint off easily, soak it in wd40 for a little while, it will pop right off, good luck!

 

Please use lower case letters. Upper case postings in a forum generally denotes yelling, and is just plain painful to read.


As mentioned above, Advanced Auto, Auto Zone, and Pep Boys all rent the tools. If you told us where you are, someone may be able to cite a local source for you.

I'm not sure what you're talking about here. I don't know what you mean by 'upper axle boot'

I'm quite sure the torsion keys alone did not cause the problem with the boots. However, the position that the torsion keys put the torsion bar and front suspension at likely DID cause the torn CV boot. Torsion keys place the front suspension at an extreme angle that the front drivetrain and suspension was not designed to operate at. In my opinion, torsion keys are a complete waste of money. The exact same affect can be accomplished by adding preload to the OEM keys. Aftermarket keys accomplish the same thing. They twist the torsion bars, increasing the preload on the torsion bars and raising the front suspension. They do not allow for more wheel travel, reduce the available down-travel, put more wear and tear on the suspension components (ball joints), and because they put the halfshafts near the end of their maximum range of travel, cause them to wear out prematurely.

Replacing the boots with new ones is a pain in the butt job, and will not prevent it from happening again. A proper lift for the front suspension will relocate the front axle to reduce the operating angle of the halfshafts. That's the correct fix in my opinion.


I don't think the toy hauler with or without bags caused any problem with the front suspension. It can cause issues with the rear very easily, but that's another discussion for another forum.

-Joe