upper ball joint dust cover

[Silver Bullet]

I was lubing my front end this weekend and notice my PS upper ball joint dust cover has a hole in it about the size of a BB (when the grease is coming out).

I have found out today by calling around that it appears I will have to replace to whole upper control arm to solve this problem.

Any other ideas?

Thanks

[DalDMax]

Ouch.
I did the grease thing two weeks ago, but can't visualize the one you're talking about.
Depending on the hole/tear, any chance an innertube repair patch would work?

[Silver Bullet]

I am guessing no...the hole is close to the top of the rubber and with all the grease I don't think the rubber cement would hold.

[Jelisfc]

Same thing happened to me. They replaced the whole upper control arm under warranty.

[Silver Bullet]

Warranty is long gone...I am going to try a couple things...

- clean as much grease off as possible and apply some rubber cement...I was thinking of something like 3M weather strip adhesive or Goo (or Goop...some stuff I have seen at Home Depot...I have to look into)

- put an innertube repair patch...this might work if I can clean enough grease off...and it doesn't have to hold air! Thx DalDMax!

- sewing up the hole with nylon thread...a couple of stitches might work!

Worst case...if I really screw it up I am out a dollars and I have to replace it.

[jbplock]

Originally posted by Silver Bullet:
...I am going to try a couple things...

- clean as much grease off as possible and apply some rubber cement...I was thinking of something like 3M weather strip adhesive or Goo (or Goop...some stuff I have seen at Home Depot...I have to look into)

- put an innertube repair patch...this might work if I can clean enough grease off...and it doesn't have to hold air! Thx DalDMax!
It's a bummer ... I had the same problem with my 98 K3500 - passenger side lower ball joint. I had mixed success trying to patch the hole. What I found worked best was silicone sealer. I squeezed out as much grease as I could, then cleaned the boot with brake cleaner (non-flammable type). I then applied several coats of Silicone and let it dry over night. It would hold for a few lube intervals and then I would have to change it. Nice thing about the silicone is that it will peel off the boot once if it starts to leak. I also tried the tire patch but it was too stiff to conform and stick to the boot. Good Luck...

smile.gif

[Silver Bullet]

I tried to clean it up today and found the hole is bigger than I thought or it has grown in the last week...it is also at the very top. I picked up some RV Goop last night. I am going to give it try, but I think I will end up replacing it.

[77TransAm]

Silver Bullet, NAPA (among other places) sells replacement grease boots. When we run into this problem on any of our trucks, we generally just buy a new $3 boot, pop the ball joint loose, and replace the boot only. Torque spec is 37 lb ft on the upper ball joint stud nut.

[Silver Bullet]

Thanks TransAm...I'll give them a call.