Should I change out my F150 truck's lower ball joints myself? read more below.?

my f150 '98 ball joints have 1" play (+100k miles) and so I want to remove them myself. autozone parts dude says don't do it because it's too tough. I'm a hard headed engineer that does a lot of work on my vehicles and I say...I'm doing it. I'm about to go get a haynes manual but thought I'd ask here first how hard it is with the manual rental tool. the ball joints are $39 each. tool rental is essencially free. Having someone do it is about 450 bucks. any advice for me when I do the repair?Should I change out my F150 truck's lower ball joints myself? read more below.?
Hey. take no notice of the above.



I have a 1976 350 Chevy 1-Ton flat bed.... So what... I fit power steering where there was none, under 2 hours...Changed all the ball joints in under 2 hours and both front brakes in under 2 hours... Get down, do it and and have pride...

Dr A
don't do it because if you get started and you come to a point where it wrong how are you going to take it somewhere and get it fixed? Then you'll be stuck with your truck torn apart.Should I change out my F150 truck's lower ball joints myself? read more below.?
Remember that when you're tearing apart your front end you can expect the truck to be torn apart for a couple of days depending on your work ethic. Also if you are going to change your ball joints you might as well replace or repack your bearings and check your seals and dust covers to see if they need to be replaced. If it is four wheel drive you will have to disassemble your hubs which takes another special tool. It is a lot of work to replace ball joints, but a dedicated weekend or hobbiest mechanic can handle it.
they aren't extremely hard as long as you know/figure out what to do. Basically take the tires off then remove the spindle and then you remove the snap ring on the ball joint. Then if it pushes out from the bottom of the control arm take a sledge hammer knock it out. Finally use the Ball Joint Press to press the new one it put the snap ring on and put back together. Repeat for the other side.Should I change out my F150 truck's lower ball joints myself? read more below.?
with the right tools which can be rented not a bad job. make sure you have all the tools before you start and it can be done. haynes repair manual worth every cent and you make it back with the money you save by doing it yourself. just take it in for a front end alignment when your done. good luck
you sound like me ! i,am stubborn too. ha, ha. well it can be a job but if you have the tools you need to do the job and time to do it then i can,t see why you can,t do it. just get a book like you said and lay your tools out what you need and take your time.