Was able to sneak away from the family and crawl underneath the recently purchased 77' and pretty much figured out why it's pulling to the left when I brake...

Anyone know if tie rod ends can still be purchased for my truck? I've got a left one that needs to be replaced.

Thanks, guys.

 

definitely able to order one.

i think its also possible to find a later year model that could be stronger. ask the other guys lol im sorry im no help.


merry christmas!

 

While you are probably right about the guys motivations about the DMV thing, the tie rod end is no big deal.

Here ya go:
http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/raframecatalog.php

You can remove the one that is on there with a pickle fork, set the new one to the approximate correct amount of extension from the jam nut to the center of the ball joint, thread the new one in there and you should be good to go.

 

Merry Christmas!

Even in the wee hours of Christmas Day you guys still come through. Where else can you go to get that kind of help?!

Thank you so much.

 

I'd rather have you safe then flop around with a bad tierod!

 

Even your local auto parts house can order or may have them. I went to AutoZone, and found all the front end parts for less than 300. I don't remember the exact amount but it was everthing.

 

Yeah. I didn't mean that rockauto was the main source of these things by any means. It was just meant as an example. They do have great prices though. A tie rod end for his truck was a little over $17. I didn't see what they wanted to ship it.

 

Old truck,should change out all the steering components!

 

Thanks for pointing me in the right direction guys. I agree with TRUCK ACTION and that it should all be replaced...and it will. Eventually. I just need some time to replenish the funds after all the Holiday spending. The truck, alone, was my gift to myself. But kinda like those electronic gifts that don't include the batteries...sound steering NOT included. It's all good. I'm happy it's in the driveway, regardless.

But for now, even just to drive it to the Smog Test Center - safely, I gotta do the left one a.s.a.p

This morning I picked one up from Napa Auto (Made in Japan) for approx. $30 out the door. If this Bay Area rain slows up tomorrow I'll throw on the jumper and get busy, otherwise it will have to wait till Monday.

It's my first time doing a TRE, so I'm kinda excited. LoL.

 

Right on. They are easy if you aren't going to reuse them. Just takes a pickle fork and a BFH. If you plan to reuse the TRE it can be a pain to get it off without messing up the rubber that holds the grease around the ball joint. You shouldn't have any problems though with a ball joint separator and some brute force.

 

Ok, I know you say to use brute force, I'm afraid I might bend or break something. Again, this is my first time, and I HAVE broken other things in the past not knowing what my limits were. This thing just won't budge. I'm almost worried the thing is suppose to thread in and out. Please note, I'm talking about the end closest to the tire and sits vertical.

I've got a pickle fork and even a mallet handy, but still no luck.

Help.

 

Yeah man. It takes some force. You have to beat it out of there. Sometimes it helps for me if I take a BFH and put it against one side of the steering arm (the one with the tapered hole) for back up (like an anvil) and hit it with another BFH to slightly oblongate the hole. I mean very slightly. Just to break it loose a little. You aren't actually wanting to reshape the thing here. Just give it a solid whack. The pickle fork is gonna have to be hammered in there though. I bet it just takes more force than you are imagining. The only easy way to get one off with a pickle fork that I have seen is with one on an impact driver. Like a pneumatic air hammer. That kind of pickle fork is sweet and pretty effortless.

 

Well, I found this video on YOUTUBE (forgive me - it's not a Yota), which pretty much gives me an idea how much UMPH is needed. Decided to get the brake job out of the way, first. Then eventually ran out of daylight (no garage), plus it's getting chilly outside.

But I'm off tomorrow...

Looks like a hammer and a pickle fork should do the trick.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sQ428hwJn38&NR=1

 

Get a air hammer from Harbor Freight & the fork kit,works great & little money!

 

i usually turn the castlelated nut over and thread it till flush with the stud. a quick whack with a hammer and they pop out.

everytime i've used a pickly fork they tear up the boots.

 

^ what bern said

 

Thats why I was saying he could use a pickle fork, since he has a brand new tie rod end and it doesn't matter if he messes up the boot. I've trashed some castle nuts doing what you and Nam described too so be careful how much you whack it if you hammer directly on the nut!

 

The rubber was already bad long before I took the pickle fork to it. So bad it almost makes the pickle fork useless because the rubber is so far away from the bolt, now. So not much to wedge it against.

I'm a firm believer that some things do happen for a reason. I was all ready to replace the outter tie rod end when in reality I should at least replace the inner tie rod end on that side (driver's) too. Now, again, I know I should probably replace most steering components because it all does look to be original stuff.

But money is tight right now.

So, today I bit the bullet and went ahead and ordered the inner tie rod end. This way I can go ahead and replace both. I assume replacing the inner is the same process as replacing the outter...right??

NOW that I'll have both....maybe I'll be able to pop those suckers off.

Going to try and use a hammer and a few good whacks. If that doesn't work then I'll go and get an air hammer at Harbor Freight.

This is my first time doing this, but if at all possible I'd really like to do it myself rather than pay a shop to do it.

 

You can do this yourself! Don't get daunted. The money you'd pay for an air hammer and pickle fork kit is much less than a shop would charge for this. Look at the comments on the video you found! Shops charging $900 for similar repairs... You'll be stoked when you see how it works. It is a doable thing. With or with out the air hammer. If the pickle fork you have though isn't getting a good fit than maybe you will have to buy a pickle fork kit with a smaller size fork. They do come in some different sizes. I think the one you have will probably work though if you hit it hard enough.

 

what i found is best for these jobs is a kit i got at i wanna say sears or a parts store. no name tool but works great. its the 3 different size fork heads. and they only have a couple inches of arm. then you either thread in a hammer attachment to beat the hell out of or you thread in the air hammer end. i have the harbor friegth air hammer (or atleast their cheapest one if they have a few) and it doesnt have enough kick to get most the ones ive tried to change. however hard you think you need to hit it, do double that. and keep doing it. the right size for head should fit the main post of the new part with a little clearance but not alot. obviously a balljoint one is going to be larger and can often lose some spread on a tie rod. or worse trying to get a balljoint with a tie rod...just wont fit over the post. and if you are doing the inner (as in the one at the center link) i would do it first since its going to try and bounce around if its done after due to the other side being loose. and you can always do inner and outer on the other side when you can if they arent broken.

hopefully that all made sense and helped.