Nissan Repair: 1987 Nissan truck 2WD ball joint replacement, pickle fork, castle nuts

Question
I am somewhat mechanically inclined, but not a mechanic. How difficult is it to replace the ball joints and do I need any special tools. Thank you!

Answer
John,

It is not too difficult if you have the tools to do the job.  First, you need a pickle fork to get the ball joint off the spindle and you will need a way to unload the control arm.  A couple of floor jacks are a good investment.  You use one to jack the control arm and another one to jack the vehicle.  Once the ball joint is loose you jack the truck up and that unloads the lower control arm.  You'll need a set of metric tools and a pair of plyers and dykes to get the cotter pins out of the castle nuts.  Get a Haynes Manual for the photographs as they show all the steps in pictures.  Once you have replaced the components you will need to get the truck aligned.