Terrain Tough Xtreme Ball Joints for my lifted 95

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akforceten
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Terrain Tough Xtreme Ball Joints for my lifted 95

Post by akforceten »

Since I,m regearing the lifted 95 van from 3.73 to 4.10 gears I decided to replace my ball joints. In my search, I found these on RockAuto.These ball joints look and seem to be tough for my lifted van
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1997 RWD Astro

1995 GMC Safari 4x4 lifted 5"

Topic author
akforceten
I get chills without my van.
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Re: Terrain Tough Xtreme Ball Joints for my lifted 95

Post by akforceten »

here are some more pics of the top ball joint
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20200217_123344.jpg
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1997 RWD Astro

1995 GMC Safari 4x4 lifted 5"

Captn. Crunch
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Re: Terrain Tough Xtreme Ball Joints for my lifted 95

Post by Captn. Crunch »

Nice find- those certainly look burly enough. Let us know how installation goes.
Captn. Crunch
"I don't beat my rig-I use it to it's maximum potential"
1994 Safari conversion (sold) and miss'n it!
1999 Safari SLE AWD junked
2003 GMC Safari AWD SLT
cast iron Torsen equipped front diff
S-10 leafs-G80 rear w/3.73’s
2” body lift w/Falken Wildpeak AT’s
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Re: Terrain Tough Xtreme Ball Joints for my lifted 95

Post by Herbie »

Captn. Crunch wrote: Sat Feb 22, 2020 5:39 am Nice find- those certainly look burly enough. Let us know how installation goes.
Front ball joints on my 2003 was easily the most frustrating job I've ever done on any vehicle any time. I would rather attempt to rebuild the worlds most finicky automatic transmission on my dining room table than make another attempt at removing the factory ball joints.

Don't get me wrong, I'm glad I did the job (especially because now that they're bolt-in, the next set of BJs should be cake), but that was the most demoralizing failure of a DIY project in my entire life.

I am keen to see how these work. I went Moog on mine, but we all know that lifted vans eat front suspension components, so I'm sure this will be happening again soon...
"My minivan is cooler than your bro-truck"
2003 Astro AWD Astrolander/ZMB - GTRV Top Transplant, 4" OLV Lift, NP233 T-case, evolving interior
1995 Safari GTRV Organ donor - gutted and gone.
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Re: Terrain Tough Xtreme Ball Joints for my lifted 95

Post by Captn. Crunch »

I can vouch for the lack of joy that accompanies stock ball joint removal. At least I didn’t suffer through mine alone as I did mine during the Torsen equipped cast iron diff swap with Rinny by my side. I’ll be making a note of these ball joints though.
Captn. Crunch
"I don't beat my rig-I use it to it's maximum potential"
1994 Safari conversion (sold) and miss'n it!
1999 Safari SLE AWD junked
2003 GMC Safari AWD SLT
cast iron Torsen equipped front diff
S-10 leafs-G80 rear w/3.73’s
2” body lift w/Falken Wildpeak AT’s
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Re: Terrain Tough Xtreme Ball Joints for my lifted 95

Post by MountainManJoe »

the rivets were stubborn. A good drill bit with good technique will do most of the work. A good size sledge, drift, and and anvil will make short work of the rest.

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Re: Terrain Tough Xtreme Ball Joints for my lifted 95

Post by Captn. Crunch »

After a bit of trial and error, I ended up using a small diameter grinding wheel to remove the rivet tops. A whack with a hammer and punch finished the job. After one or two I had it down to a couple of minutes per rivet.
On a different note: akforce... how does your van like breathing through a snorkel? Any drawbacks?
Captn. Crunch
"I don't beat my rig-I use it to it's maximum potential"
1994 Safari conversion (sold) and miss'n it!
1999 Safari SLE AWD junked
2003 GMC Safari AWD SLT
cast iron Torsen equipped front diff
S-10 leafs-G80 rear w/3.73’s
2” body lift w/Falken Wildpeak AT’s

Topic author
akforceten
I get chills without my van.
Posts: 66
Joined: Thu Oct 20, 2011 7:34 pm

Re: Terrain Tough Xtreme Ball Joints for my lifted 95

Post by akforceten »

it's ok I have to finish it one of these days
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I modified the stock airbox the only thing I got left to do is connect the airbox to the snorkel
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1997 RWD Astro

1995 GMC Safari 4x4 lifted 5"
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