Front end suspension question?

[Redmond]

I bought a 77 stepside mid summer, the trucks been lowered 5 front/7 rear, well the camber is way out and I burned through a set of new tires extremely quick, I bought new tires, and took it in for a front end alignment, they said I need new ball joints, my question is, is there a certain type of ball joint that's better then others or that works well with a lowered truck, I know with my jeep moog ball joints are they way to go, they want to charge me 500 for ball joints that I can do in my garage in a couple hours, I figured I would do it my self, save some money, I just want to get the right parts. thank you for your time

[king-918]

http://www.jcwhitney.com/1975-1986-c...75-1986j1.jcwx

Or
http://michiganmetalworks.com/produc.../control-arms/

[bbbc10]

just get some from ur local autozone...I hade stock balljoints on mine an it was lowered 5/6 an never had any problems....

[Redmond]

easy enough then, thank you guys for the reply, I'm going to order some of those moog ball joints. hopefully they hold up.

[SCOTI]

Order your Moog BJ's from Summit. Usually 1/2 the price vs local auto parts stores. $500 to replace BJ's is crazy. Maybe to rebuild everything & an alignment.... but not just BJ's.

[Redmond]

it was 506.34 for lower ball joints and wheel bearings and alignment, from Point s tires. but I did find moog ball joints at my local autoparts store. so everthing has worked so far, those moogs are fairly cheap in price.

thank you guys for the advice

[Redmond]

Can i ask you guys another question, with this truck being lowered like it is, is it normal for the springs to flop around and be lose when you jack the front end up?

[SCOTI]

Originally Posted by Redmond

Can i ask you guys another question, with this truck being lowered like it is, is it normal for the springs to flop around and be lose when you jack the front end up?

Yes, very common when more than 1-coil is cut (or w/super-short springs). It can also occur if the suspension ever extends beyond normal (like a big dip on the highway @ speed). This happened to my old roommate & one of his front coils fell out completely. Unnecessary risk/danger in my opinion.

This is why I always suggest drop spindles first then a shorter coil to dial in the desired height.

[Redmond]

So if i was to go with a 3 inch lowering spring and 2 inch drop spindle, would it fix the flopping spring issue? I bought this truck the way it sits now, im just trying to make it road worthy.

[SCOTI]

Originally Posted by Redmond

So if i was to go with a 3 inch lowering spring and 2 inch drop spindle, would it fix the flopping spring issue? I bought this truck the way it sits now, im just trying to make it road worthy.

That would be better. Spindles are available from 2-3" (2", 2.5", & 3") depending on manufacturer.
I like a 2.5" or 3" spindle w/1-coil cut from a known rate stock replacement front spring (Moog springs).