63 Repro Ball Joint Compare

[Jeff Z.]

[Joe L.]

Re: 63 Repro Ball Joint Compare

Has anyone compared original 63 upper ball joints 3832450 to currently available reproduction units thorough Long Island and America’s Finest? Attached are a few pictures of major differences. The 64 AIM also calls for 3832450 joint.

Also noted 118170 flat head rivets were installed from bottom side of a-arm and squeezed/bucked from top side. Many restorations tend to use round head rivets installed from the top. 118170 rivets also show up through 66 AIM.

Thanks
Jeff

Jeff-----


This does not surprise me in the slightest. It seems like with many reproduction parts they go to great effort to get them 95% correct and then "miss the mark" on about 5%. It would seem that if one goes this far they would want to make sure they got it 100%. Nevertheless, these ball joints are as close as one is going to get to original configuration in a currently available part other than NOS. Of course, the supply of NOS is ever-shrinking.

By the way, it looks like the rivet holes in the original ball joint are oversize, although it might just be the photo. They should be 11/32" for 5/16" rivets. NOS GM SERVICE ball joints had 13/32" holes for 3/8" bolts. In that respect, the reproduction ball joints are closer to original than NOS SERVICE.

[Mike E.]

Re: 63 Repro Ball Joint Compare

Jeff,
I did the same comparison on my '65 and noticed the same thing about the welds. I also riveted the ball joints in myself following Tracy Crisler's instructions. IMO the rivets suppied with the ball joints are too short and the heads formed are to small. So I ordered longer rivets from a rivet supplier in Michigan. Below is what the uppers looks like when finished. I'll change the zerk to a zinc plated one, I don't think the black zerk would be correct for that time.


Unfortunately lowers I bought from CC are really far off even though they are sold as correct. Shown in the last image. They are missing the nubs below the rivet holes and the casting is just not shaped right. The boot is also not correct.

















Mike