I attempted to replace my CV axle and have a thread about that HERE

In a nutshell i'm a novice and this is one of the first fixes i've attempted. I got the new axle in but when putting everything back, I can't get the crown nuts back onto the lower control arm ball joint and the tie rod ball joint. I look to have wrecked the threads on the bolts when removing them with a hammer (since learned to use a balljoint separator tool). The tie rod i figure i can just replace to resolve that one but the lower control arm is a different story I can get the nut on about half way and then it just stops and gets stuck when using my fingers. If i use a wrench the entire bolt then just spins on itself. I've thought about using a different type of but to see if I can get it on although that size crown nuts are extremely hard to find in hardware stores. So i'm thinking i may need to replace the part that the bolt is attached to as a last resort. Can anyone tell me the name of that part and how easy/difficult this would be to replace or point me to any existing guide. Any help would be awesome!

 

It's the lower ball joint. If you don't have a press, you'll need to take it to a shop to have it removed, and the new one pressed in.

Depending on how F'd the thread is, it is common for them to want to spin while trying to put the nut back on. I use a flat head screwdriver between the bottom of the lower control arm and the top of the mating surface of the nut to apply some resistance on the stud while you're turning it on to prevent the stud from spinning freely. I'm sure there's other/better ways to do it too.

 

ive ran into this problem more times than id care to admit ^_-
heres a little trick you can do to maybe save some money-time and get your car back on the road
the nut you say goes on about half way thats great !!!
but then it starts spinning the ball joint ... ahhh !!!

heres how to stop the ball joint from spinning so you can tighten that nut finally ^_^
useing a car jack i want you to place it under the lower control arm as close to the ball joint as you can while still
giving yourself space to get a wrench or your ratchet on the nut
jack up the jack untill the car itself begins to lift
and then tighten the nut !!

with the weight of the car on the ball joint it shouldnt move anymore

let me know if the little trick works for you
it works about 90 percent of the time

goodluck

 

As Marcos said, you can compress the spring using a jack under the lower control arm to reduce the chances of the ball joint spinning while trying to tighten. If you have a die set, maybe try chasing the threads? If not, maybe you can get the nut back on. I've done a lower ball joint replacement on a 2000 Civic (about 10 years ago) using the rental tool from the parts store - it looks like a giant C-clamp. If you search here, you can probably find a thread with details on how to do it. I think I took the knuckle off the car, then put a socket over the old ball joint and hammered it out. The new one presses in with the c-clamp tool you rent. There may be a C-clip you have to remove before pressing the old one out.

For future reference, you can use the "1/2 drive Crafstman socket wrench trick" to separate the lower ball joint. Google it. It works like a charm and means you'll never swing a hammer at the threads on a lower ball joint again.

 

YOU ABSOLUTE BEAUTY! This worked a treat! The ball joint spun at first but I very gently tightened and it stayed in place until i got the nut all the way up. Thanks so much everyone!

 

So... I had a go at taking the other axle out and this time using a ball joint separator. While I had more luck I still managed to do some damage to the castle nut on the lower ball joint doh! (I followed a guide saying to keep the nut on the end of the thread while using the tool) Basically I've bent one of the 'teeth'? at the top of the castle nut so that I can't get my socket over it. The confusion is around the size of that castle nut. I've been using a 17mm socket and found guides referring to a 17mm nut. However I've also seen 12mm mentioned and when preparing for this work i ordered a spare nut from my local Honda dealer that turns out is a 12mm nut that doesn't fit. I'm on Honda parts and it's telling me it's a 12mm nut also:

https://www.hondapartsnow.com/parts-...le.html?PNC=24

I know it's a 17mm nut as I have it in front of me but how can I find a part number for this and make this easy when ordering a new nut?

 

You keep the castle nut on, but you have to make sure the top of the 'castle' isn't any lower than the stud, or you'll squash the... turrets? haha.

12mm refers to the thread size, not the size of the spanner you need to tighten it.

 

yeah, i realized that too late... and ah ok thanks (i'm a newbie at this as you can see) however with the castle nut that came off my car, it has a larger base that acts like a washer i guess??? The nut that came from the dealer didn't have this larger base and looked exactly like the castle nut that came off the tie rod ball joint.

 

The correct part number is '90363-SF1-000'. It should have a flange if it's OEM... It doesn't really matter though, you can still use it if it's the correct size. Just make sure you reinsert the split pin.

The tie rod castle nut is smaller than the lower ball joint castle nut.

What was the part number for the one you bought?

 

Use this method:

 

Ok figured out what is going on, basically the Honda dealer gave me the wrong nuts. For the lower ball joint they've provided 90320-SF1-000 which is an 10mm but and for the tie rod ball joint they've given me 90362-SF1-003 which is an 8mm nut. Not sure what he's done but the 10mm should be the one for the tie rod and I'm missing the 12mm that I need. So back there i'll go tomorrow.

 

So I attempted to replace the other axle today and basically all was going well until it came to putting the same 12mm castle nut back onto the lower control arm. Despite using a ball joint separator this time around, once again the castle nut got a short way up the thread and then started to spin the entire ball joint. I used the same trick of jacking underneath the control arm and all looked to be good as i got about half way up the thread and then the ball joint started turning. It now won't go up or down, its pretty well stuck on there right now Very annoyed!

So i'm looking for some opinions. Taking the entire knuckle off, sounds like it might be out of my expertise but maybe i'll properly read up on it and see if it might be possible. Does anyone else has any suggestions of anything I can try here? I live about 500m uphill from a couple of garages, would it be completely out of the picture to almost free wheel down the hill and try to drive it then in this state? I have BCAA coverage here in Canada, i'm wondering if i could use that to get me towed to a garage, not sure if it covers me for botched home repairs??

On the plus side though I did manage to get my outer tie rods off. I'd read some horror stories about the nuts on those but they loosened pretty easily with the help of a few hammer taps to the wrench, so as soon as those arrive its just this damn lower control arm castle nut that needs to be done!

 

haha oh shucks

so the other side is giving you problems now
alright heres another trick for getting stuck nuts loose
and thats auto trans fluid
dip some on the threads of the ball joint so it soaks into the nut and then leave it alone for about 5 minutes then dab a little more
then useing your hammer tap!! dont smack the nut gently to loosen it up a bit
and then try to loosen it with your wrench or socket
while still having the jack in place to make sure the ball joint doesnt spin


to get it loose turn it up and down a few times fast to clean the threads just left right left right a bunch of times and fast... clean threads and clean nut = no more jamming
this little trick only works about 75 percent of the time ^_-
goodluck

 

what he said, works like a charm for me too

 

impact wrench.

along with tapping the nut, i use a die to cut the threads on the balljoint clean.

 

Having never used an impact wrench before, despite the extra torque, would it still not just cause the balljoint to spin with the nut though? The nut, if I can get it off, is new and clean, the problem.small defect i suspect is with the thread on the ball joint so you're saying I can cut new? threads on the existing ball joint get the nut to thread easily? Do you have more detailed info on the 'die' would that be a die wrench and will i have success with this even with the ball joint attached to the knuckle? Sorry for what are probably stupid questions but i'm very new to anything cars and tools.

 

impact wrench provides a hammer effect that creates a momentary torque before the static friction force is reached, multiple times in quick intervals.

in other words, it works.

 

Ok and I should try that to get the nut ON rather than just off? No risk of doing even more damage I suppose. I don't own one but maybe i'll see if i can rent one from Home Depot this weekend. Thanks.

 

Picked up an impact wrench, I was sceptical having never used one before but it would a treat the first time, up it went, thanks!