Ball joint splitter.

[Gwil]

I've got a nice old Sykes-Pickavant ball joint splitter. Sadly it dates from the days of dinky little cars and won't look at the joints on my '97 Isuzu pickup, or my '90 Ducato based camper (things just don't rust here).

Any advice on a bigger one at a reasonable price?

 

[Craig-SM]

I can warn you off the Clarke ball joint splitter that failed on me last month ones first use. I have pan old Halfords ball joint splitter which is hit and miss.

After the Clarke one failed on me I mastered the 2 hammer technique and worked on Shogun and last week on my brothers D-Max

 

[Stupoty]

I've had to use a soft mallet and give them some taps before they pop and also had them just pop after a few minuets of sitting there whilst I figured out what to do next.

Only ever used the generic brand joint splinters.

Stu

 

[bricol]

A variant of the two hammer trick . . . a one hammer trick has worked for me on anything from Caterham 7 to a 2 tonne Dodge for the last 30 yrs.

My pickle fork is somewhere . . . my screw type puller has been purposed as a windscreen arm puller, a job is does very well

 

[JOEPRO]

I have lots of ball joint splitters. Some of which have broken. I work on my S class mercs which have large ball joints.

You want either one of these:



Or for large and very stuck joints hydraulic type are very good I have this exact one



Note - cheaper versions of the same thing are available on ebay if you are so inclined. £35 odd upwards.

This laser one was larger overall than the draper one so may be better suited to your application. I do need the laser one for old S class ball joints which are light HGV sized basically.

 

[JOEPRO]

A variant of the two hammer trick . . . a one hammer trick has worked for me on anything from Caterham 7 to a 2 tonne Dodge for the last 30 yrs.

My pickle fork is somewhere . . . my screw type puller has been purposed as a windscreen arm puller, a job is does very well

Problem with pickle forks is they will tear the boot. OK if you only ever replace bad joints but there will be many times where you need to separate a good ball joint without damaging the boot to get a hub assembly off etc.

Hence I have a pickle fork which does fork all as I find it unsuitable for my work.

 

[JOEPRO]

This is a pic from when I last used the laser one.

Tip - when using a hydraulic ball joint splitter first fully tighten the main bolt like you normally would. Only then start tightening the small inner hydraulic element. They put serious power to the joint highly recommended.



Note this is one lesser splitter in the photo below which broke / bent on this car first!!

Notice the overall size increase on the hydraulic splitters.

 

[colnerov]

Sykes Pickavant do (or did) a larger size for commercial vehicles.

 

[julianf]

I was using a Laser model 2708 yesterday.

It doesn't belong to me. I borrow it off a friend. It's got an adjustable pivot for different sizes.

I doubt theyre expensive, and I've been borrowing the same one for years, so they seem to last. I use it on landrovers.

 

[8ob]

Even the cheap splitters work ok if you only moderately tighten them and then **** the side of the taper housing with a hammer.

Bob

 

[Other Daniel]

Even the cheap splitters work ok if you only moderately tighten them and then **** the side of the taper housing with a hammer.

Bob

Precisely this ^^^

 

[tigdlo]

I have this style, good for smaller stuff but the jaw is too small for bigger stuff.

 

[Gwil]

I have lots of ball joint splitters. Some of which have broken. I work on my S class mercs which have large ball joints.

You want either one of these:

View attachment 404972

Or for large and very stuck joints hydraulic type are very good I have this exact one

View attachment 404971

Note - cheaper versions of the same thing are available on ebay if you are so inclined. £35 odd upwards.

This laser one was larger overall than the draper one so may be better suited to your application. I do need the laser one for old S class ball joints which are light HGV sized basically.

Yikes, £107! I'm off to measure the biggest joint on my collection of beloved old clunkers.

I have used the hammer method in the past, and also a jack under the nut, some heat, and then a tap with the hammer, but age and arthritic wrists/fingers make me favour a tool which involves less....percussion.

 

[Gwil]

This is a pic from when I last used the laser one.

Tip - when using a hydraulic ball joint splitter first fully tighten the main bolt like you normally would. Only then start tightening the small inner hydraulic element. They put serious power to the joint highly recommended.

View attachment 404974

Note this is one lesser splitter in the photo below which broke / bent on this car first!!

Notice the overall size increase on the hydraulic splitters.


View attachment 404975

Oh, I do like the idea of the hydraulic one, I didn't even know they existed. I see, although I haven't found a Europe based supplier, there's a US Pro one at a more reasonable price (£70) available in the UK.

It's more for replacing the rubbers than the joints themselves- the heat (40c today) and the dust seems to trash them regularly.

 

[keithski122]

Never not had one pop out with a belt with a hammer. A good use for a pickle fork is to pop out driveshafts.

 

[Trevorleach]

Used to use a 7lb hammer all the time on the hgvs, get the odd tight sod, but generally they came out, then I discovered the sealey hgv one.

Best thing ever, https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/29505553...UqF8x9zXalCsyGsBhLEbNJ2cKc|tkp:Bk9SR5bJy_CdYg

On cars all I use is a hammer, hit them right place and they are out.

 

[ATGNI]

I have one of those. I call it the wife.

 

[tom2207]

Ive yet to meet one I didnt get undone with a single hammer . Snap on dead blow hammers sort them out swiftly.

 

[8ob]

These bigger versions of the car splitters can handle any of the truck and tractor joints, I still only tighten to a point and then give the housing a tap, never fails. The wedges are ok if you have a drawer full of replacement joint boots.

Bob

 

[Turbo]

This is a pic from when I last used the laser one.

Tip - when using a hydraulic ball joint splitter first fully tighten the main bolt like you normally would. Only then start tightening the small inner hydraulic element. They put serious power to the joint highly recommended.

View attachment 404974

Note this is one lesser splitter in the photo below which broke / bent on this car first!!

Notice the overall size increase on the hydraulic splitters.


View attachment 404975

Those type of splitters only work where the ball joint end points down. On Peugeots it points up & is clamped by a pinch bolt in the hub & the driveshaft blocks access to the end. The pickle fork seems to be the only thing out there to remove this type but it wrecks the boot. I have my own method involving a chisel to open the clamp, a long bar, a chain & my 80kgs to keep pressure on the bottom arm then a long chisel & heavy hammer to get things moving.