as title says what is the trick if any to removing a ball joint on the sp 500? useless manual i have doesn't say anything except to remove it once plate if off and it isn't moving.. tried a little penetrating oil and even heat and it doesn't want to come out. suggestions welcomed.

 

Just my The removal tool is the best with a little heat as it doesn't put a lot of stress on the ball joint as much as a slide hammer does(less tendency to pull the guts out !) But you can rigg up a slide hammer with a welded nut and heat and most times will come out unless the ball joint is extremely worn,then you take the chance on the inner shaft being sucked out! Then you have to do a little welding or tap into the ball joint shell someway to be able to remove! Again just my experience on a bunch of em,give me the ball joint removal tool OR as some have done, fabricated pullers similar to the oem one! OPT

 

ya a sleeve, a washer and nut has worked as a puller. short threads though, have to add spacers as you run out of threads a few times before it's out.

 

Grease gun...

 

well i don't have a ball joint removal tool, so i guess i'll just keep at it w/ back woods know how . grease gun? i'm assuming you mean try to pump grease in the fitting to force out the ball joint might be interesting to see if that would work. i have the A arm on and w/ a bar i was slighty prying down to see if it would pop out, but i guess not. i didn't realize they were in there so good. i'll let you know when i break something.

 

Yep, grease gun SURELY works. In fact, when I changed mine, after I put the new ones in and went to grease them, one side {ball} was so tight it didn't let the grease escape and actually bent the retainer from the pressure! I had to go back in and remove the retainer plate to straighten it then reassemble!

As you are prying down with the bar, give a squirt of grease and it should pop out pretty quickly.

 

thats what i fifured you ment and i'm sure it would have worked good, but good ole heat and more prying and it popped right out. i noticed the new(aftermarket one) does not have a grease hole in the top of it like the oem did. was thinking of drilling a hole in the top to allow grease in.

 

The replacement ball joints are supposed to be "lifetime greased" just like the later model "lifetime" rear swing arm bushings I wonder who was Polaris trying to fool,themselves,the customers OR both OPT

 

well i learned(already knew it) not to buy aftermarket crap. i did drill a hole through the top of it to let grease in(don't know if it will even work)and i had a b@tch of a time to get the new one in and ended up doing a little grinding to get it in but it's together and now finally in a rolling chaise.now i'm waiting for my 2nd(yep it's not a misprint)warn winch to come in as the first one will not fit in the bumper . i get the feeling i've been out of wheeling too long and i'm being punished lol.

 

Put the new one in the freezer for a bit before assembly and it will slide right in. Not sure if the grease zerks are removable on the 500's but I remember taking mine out on my 800 or sticking something in it to keep it open while installing so no pressure would build. Also never noticed much difference in how long they lasted without the grease hole on top.