A ball (bearing stud) and a socket make a ball joint. It is quite similar to the human-hip-joint. The purpose of the ball joint is to provide pivoting movement between control arms and steering knuckles of the front suspension. Ball joints help in a smooth and safe ride. A driver can have full control of a vehicle with the help of these.
Ball joint separator work is to eliminate the hardship of removing ball joints from any vehicle. It is used in the repair and replacement work. This is why high-quality ball joint separators are essential for auto mechanics.
In this article, we will discuss how to use a ball joint separator with some safety tips.
What is Ball Joint Separator Tool?
As from the name, you can already guess that a ball joint separator tool separates something. In front-wheel drive vehicles, a ball joint separator’s work is to separate the ball joints from the spindle support arm. For car enthusiasts or for motor mechanics, this tool is like a blessing.
This separator tool makes their work so much easier. Most of the ball joint separator tools are made of steel. If you ever go to any car repairing workshop, then you will find out about every type of ball joint separator/ remover in the world.
Types of Ball Joint Separator
Before we move on to how to use a ball joint separator, it’ll be wise to check out a few common types of ball joint separators. Let’s check out some of them down below to get a basic idea about them.
L-Shaped Ball Joint Separator
The lever action allows the ball joint separator to reach difficult to reach areas, which is super useful in all kinds of scenarios. It also comes with a removable hinge pin. This pin allows for wider jay opening and is used in cars and light commercial vehicles.
Tie Rod Ball Joint Splitter
This type of separator requires hammer blows. Only a few hammer work is needed for the joint to come off. It comes in different sizes. This type of separation tool comes in handy while separating tie rods and ball joints.
Fork Type Long Reach
This is quite similar to the tie rod ball joint splitter. These are usually made of carbon steel bodies. This also requires hammer work. It kinda looks like a fork. So, it is often called a fork splitter.
Knuckleball Joint Separator
There are some knuckle ball joint separators that are specially designed for Land Rover or Range Rover models.
Scissor Type Ball Joint Separator
These types of separators look like scissors. These are ideal for splitting track rod ends and anti-roll bar mountings.
Using Steps
Splitting ball joints have always been a hassle. It becomes a hardship if not used the right tool. On top of that if it happens to be an old rusted car then it becomes a nightmare for mechanics. So, we made a step-by-step guide on how to use a ball joint separator. it is mentioned down below-
- First, you need to wear mechanical glasses and gloves. This will give your hand and eye protection from potential danger.
- You have to loosen the nut on the tie rod end after that.
- Make sure to use lubricant spray on the back of the separator.
- The next thing you need to do is to slide the concave part of the separator between the boot and the tie rod end using a little bit of pressure. The pressure is to make the tool clunk into position.
- Whining the bolt up against the top of the nut is the next thing to do.
- Then you have to get the tool onto the end of the bolt and wind away clockwise until you hear the separation sound.
It is that easy to use a ball joint separator. You should now have the answer to your question about how to use a ball joint separator.
Is it Safe to Use?
Yes, ball joint separators are completely safe to use. In Fact, they were invented for a safe repair work purpose. The traditional way of removing a ball joint is to use only a hammer. There was a time when automobile mechanics or car enthusiasts actually used to rely only on hammers.
Relying on hammers was concerning because hammer work is dangerous if not careful enough. It also can cause damage to the years-old rusted vehicles. Ball joint separators are much safer to use compared to that particular situation.
If we ensure not to tighten the tool unnecessarily to the point that it pops the ball joint loose on its own; ball joint separators are completely safe to use. Moreover, we need to lubricate the tool from time to time for preventing friction-related breakage.
Read More: Socket Sizes in Order From Smallest to Largest
Precautions/Safety Measures
Although ball joint separators are safe to use we recommend you maintain safety measurements. Nothing fancy but maintaining basic safety rules will do the job. Some of those are down below:
You should wear safety gloves (mechanics gloves)
Safety glasses are also recommended use.
While using a tie rod ball joint splitter or fork-type separator, you need to be careful with the hammer.
In rare cases, some super rusty ball joints don’t want to come off even with a separator’s help. Instead of trying hard, we advise you to use the Mobil or other lubricant for safety.
Please make sure not to use any air impact gun with this ball joint separator tool.
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Conclusion
From our article, now you must have gotten an idea about how to use a ball joint separator. You also got to know about different types of ball joint separators and how they work.
You see, when it comes to car repairing and mechanical work, having different types of tools are a must. Because without tools, mechanical works are near to impossible. Moreover, tools make any work easy. It is only foolish to work without tools when with tools the work can be done in less time.
Like with any other tool, we suggest you be careful with the ball joint separators tool. Nowadays, they come in a full package toolkit that ensures product safety. So, we suggest you purchase one of those.
