Ball Joint Help!

[Powerman5K]

I'm trying to change out the ball joints on my 1980 F100 today. Upon closer inspection, I have no idea what I'm looking at! I have not seen this ball joint setup anywhere on the internet! I'm not even sure I bought the correct ball joints! Does anyone know how these joints work? Where should I press?

[Powerman5K]

Am I an idiot? Are there no balljoints on this truck?

[Pete Whitstone]

Hard to tell what orientation some of those pictures are, but I am told that 80 and some 81 trucks had kingpins instead of balljoints. I've never seen them myself, but I would guess that is what we are looking at here.

[Powerman5K]

You are correct. I just found out that this had a king pin setup. Follow up question. How do I adjust the camber on it? I don't see the adjusting nuts found with ball joints.

[Goose57]

It’s been a while. But I believe you have to bend the I-beams.

[Powerman5K]

I'm guessing it will be pretty tough to find a shop capable of doing that!

[salans7]

Just for future reference, the 1980-1981 4x2 F100 and F150 had kingpins. The 1980-1986 4x4 F150's however, all had ball joints. The 1982-1986 F150 4x2 trucks have ball joints.

The 1980-1986 F250 and F350 4x2 trucks had kingpins. The 4x4 F250 and F350 TTB trucks had ball joints. The 1986 F350 4x4 with the monobeam axle had kingpins.

This is why it can be confusing as to what trucks had what.

Generally, if you replace the kingpins and the bores in the I-beam aren't wallowed out, you should not have an issue with camber. If you install new kingpin parts and everything is fine with the bores and you still have a camber issue, bending the beam is the only way to correct it and you'll be hard pressed to find anybody who can do it the right way and safely.

[Rembrant]

salans7 wrote

Generally, if you replace the kingpins and the bores in the I-beam aren't wallowed out, you should not have an issue with camber. If you install new kingpin parts and everything is fine with the bores and you still have a camber issue, bending the beam is the only way to correct it and you'll be hard pressed to find anybody who can do it the right way and safely.

I would add that a lot of camber issues have to do with worn out or weak springs (at least in the case of negative camber). Positive camber is a lot harder to fix....this issue usually shows up on lifted 4x4's. The twin I-beam suspension for all it's benefits can also be a pain lol.

I just did the kingpins and bushings in my '52 pickup and had to replace the axle beam because one of the holes was worn. Solid front axle with leaf springs means no camber issues. The twin I-Beam on the other hand is prone to camber issues, or at least the perception of a camber issue.

[Powerman5K]

I just replaced my coil springs and front shocks earlier in the week. Problem is I already had positive camber. Now I have "super positive" camber. My truck would already eat through tires. I can't imagine what it will look like now! No idea what I'm going to do!

[Rembrant]

Powerman5K wrote

I just replaced my coil springs and front shocks earlier in the week. Problem is I already had positive camber. Now I have "super positive" camber. My truck would already eat through tires. I can't imagine what it will look like now! No idea what I'm going to do!

Is it the same on both sides? Or is one side worse than the other?
Are the new springs just aftermarket replacements for stock height?
Is there any movement in the kingpins when you grab the tire top and bottom?

You can swap in a set of later front beams, but you'll need the whole works...radius arms, spindles, hubs, brakes, etc.

Otherwise, try to find a shop that still has anybody old enough that remembers bending the stock beams....and worse yet, still has the equipment to do so.

I talked to a guy at one of the local alignment shops that used to work on the old twin I-beam kingpin Ford trucks, and he told me that they usually came in with negative camber issues, and it was usually because of weak/worn out springs, but he bent a lot of beams regardless, because that's what they wanted. Positive camber I don't know...that's a whole other can of worms. I guess you'll either have to install shorter springs, or find somebody that can bend the beams, or swap in a later front end with ball joints.

[mat in tn]

i would start with making sure the kingpins are in good condition and not housing a lot of play. then i would research a little more to be certain that you have the precise spring set for "your" truck not just any f100/150 . these did get a little specific as to engine and accessories to account for the "sprung weight". when all else fails , slightly shorter/softer springs are easier to shim up than going the other way around. certainly easier on the home mechanic than i beam mods. even ball joints have their limits on adjustability and the setup needs to be as close as possible in order to get it correct.

[Pete Whitstone]

I have all the TTB stuff if you decide you want to do the swap to a later (82-86) front end. I'm in north TX. Probably expensive to ship. Where are you at?

[Powerman5K]

Virginia. A bit of a hike for me! 🤣 Thanks for the offer. I'm going to try to make it work for now before making the swap. I know a guy the runs the auto repair tech school in my county. I'll ask his advice to see if he knows anyone that can bend an I beam and then go from there.

[85lebaront2]

Where in VA? I had a king pin press, but I do not remember it getting found and packed when we were emptying the house and garage in Newport News. I do have what I believe is the proper bushing reamer for them.

[Powerman5K]

Winchester but I don't think they are bad. They have no slop or play in them when the truck is jacked from the frame.