My riding partner has a 99 Forman 501 (450 before modification). It has 26" Vampires with a Highlifter lift.

Problem - hard pull to the left when riding and loose upper ball joint. We fiddled with this thing for some time trying to correct the pull with tie rod adjustments before I checked the ball joint play.


Question - How loose is acceptable in an upper balljoint on a 4Wheeler? I used to do automotive work on front ends and if this were a car it would be out of tolerances and need replacing. I can move the joint in and out a 1/8 to a 1/4 of an inch by holding the bottom of the drum brake and the top and pushing and pulling. The right side has about 1/2 as much play in the upper ball joint. Both lower balljoint are tight. I have heard the larger tires are hard on the front ends.

Are the ball joints easy to replace?

Does anyone sell a ball joint with a grease fitting for the Foreman?

 

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Weedy, there should be no play in ball joints. They should feel slighty stiff and sticky if anything. If they are loose enough to move without slight force then it's an idea to keep an eye on them, loose enough to feel floppy movement is asking for unstability, peculiar pulling, and potential for catastrophic failure( wheel off type accident- this isn't a craftsman riding mower!)

The ball joints on the rancher( I assume the proccess for the foreman is similar if not identical) are replace-able type, pressed into the steering nuckle on the bottom and the upper control arm on the top. (They also have a snap ring for good measure, but unless the press fit fails the snap ring never see's action.) There is a special tool available to fit the ball joints, but one can improvise if they have some large sockets. The control arm "ball" can be pressed out with an arbor press, the knuckle "ball" with a large bench vise.

After you have a new ball joint installed, buy a "grease needle" , these can be used to inject grease regularly into the boot( to force grit out and provide fresh lube.) A zerk fitting would be good too but I'm not sure if I would want to drill into the top of a new joint.( may not be clearance on the lower joint with the half shaft either )