When repairing the steering system and the undercarriage of a car, owners often encounter a situation of dismantling ball bearings and rod ends. These structural parts cannot be removed without a special tool. That is the puller for ball bearings. The device is able to simplify the process of extruding parts several times.
To purchase this tool is not difficult - just go to the nearest auto parts store and choose the right puller there. You can also make a fixture with your own hands. Consider the types of pullers, and also talk about choosing these tools.
Types
The modern market of tools for servicing and repairing cars offers the widest selection of various pullers, including several types of tools for dismantling ball bearings and steering rods.
Ball puller can be:
The first devices are considered a more universal solution. They are suitable for servicing any car.
Screw puller
The force in this mechanism is created by screwing the bolt into the housing. The tool body itself is put on the eye in the ball joint. In the process of tightening the bolt, it rests on the finger. The latter is extruded from its landing nest.
Lever
No less effective is the lever puller for ball bearings. However, these tools are large in size. Therefore, they are not suitable for every car. For example, with a lever tool on the VAZ-2107, you can dismantle the upper ball joint, but it will not work to remove the lower one - the working space is too limited. To do this, it is best to use a special tool.
The lever puller is two interconnected in the middle of the lever. On the one hand there is a hole in them. This is where the coupling bolt is installed. For dismantling, you need to install one tool lever between the ball joint and the eye, and the second under the finger. In the process of unscrewing the bolt due to the connecting axis, the two ends of the levers will converge. The finger will begin to be pushed out of its seat.
Such a device can not be purchased - it is easy to make a remover of ball bearings with your own hands. It is collected from improvised means. Let's look at other tools that you can either buy or make yourself.
Wedge
This is the most simple and at the same time quite effective puller. It can not be attributed to any type of mechanism, but in matters of extrusion, this is a good choice. For manufacturing, you need only a grinder or a machine with an abrasive wheel. The blank is a metal plate, the dimensions of which are similar to a box of matches.
At the beginning, the metal platinum is shaped into the so-called wedge - the metal is grinded so that the shape of the part in profile is triangular. Then, with a grinder or with the help of a machine in the middle, a cutout is made. Its length should be approximately 2/3 of the plate. The cutout is made from the thin side. The width of the cutout is made larger than the thickness of the support on the finger. The result should be something like a bracket.
Then a rod is welded to this bracket. With it, it will be possible to use a puller for ball bearings. Working with a wedge is quite simple. It is installed in the gap that exists between the eye and the ball pore body. Then, using a hammer, the wedge is hammered, which leads to the extrusion of the finger.
But there is a significant drawback when working with this tool. In the process of pressing out the support, the boot is damaged. That is why the wedge is used only when replacing tips or supports. It is better to refuse repairs using such a device.
Screw release mechanisms
This is another option that you can make yourself. He well established himself as a puller of VAZ ball bearings (applies to classic models). The design features of the suspension system of these machines are such that both the upper and lower supports are mounted symmetrically to each other. There is not much distance between them.
A mechanism can only be manufactured if there is a drilling unit. The device consists of two parts. For production, a hexagonal or square rod 7 cm long is required. Diameter - 17 or 19 millimeters. A hole is made in the rod and an M8 thread is cut. Then it remains to screw in the bolt - and the tool is ready.
Consider how this ball joint remover works. VAZ-2107 can also be repaired by them. To dismantle the upper support, unscrew the lock nut, but not completely. Then, a puller with a fully screwed bolt is installed between the fingers. Next, hold the device with two keys. Unscrew the bolt until the finger comes out of the socket. After the upper support is replaced, the same operation is done from the bottom.
L-shaped screw puller
What vehicles can this ball bearing puller be used for? 2107, 2105 and 2106 - these are the VAZ cars for which it is best suited. The tool is quite versatile. To make it, you will need a rod of metal - its diameter must be at least 10 mm and its length 15-17 cm. A L-shaped workpiece is made from this rod, the shoulder length of which must be at least 5 cm. So, take a rod, measure on it 5 cm, clamp in a vice and bend at a right angle. A thread is cut on the long part of the element. Find a suitable nut.
Now you need to make a persistent bar. It is made according to the principle of a wedge. A plate with a thickness of at least 5 mm is suitable for the blank. On one side of the plate make a cut suitable for the support finger. On the other hand, they make a hole for the diameter of the rod. Next, put the plate on the long part of the rod and clamp it with a bunny.
This puller works as follows. The nut is twisted until it stops, the plate is installed in the gap between the eye and the pore. The rod is rotated so that its short part rests on the finger. Next, the nut is tightened. The plate works as a stop, and the rod extrudes a finger.
Corner Screw Remover
This steering ball puller is made from a corner by welding. How to make it? Take a corner, the length of which is 7-8 cm. The thickness of the metal can be 3-5 mm. A cut is made in one of the sides of this corner. With it, the mechanism will rest on the eye. Two triangular parts are cut from a steel sheet 3 mm thick. They are welded on each side to the corner workpiece to increase the strength of the structure.
Next, take a 17 mm nut and a bolt for it. The nut is welded at right angles to the cut so that the hole looks at the cut. To make the bolt easily located on the same axis with the finger, a spacer is installed on the corner before welding the nuts. To operate the device, you only need to screw in the bolt.
To do or to buy?
Strippers for ball bearings for domestic cars cost no more than 1000 r. You can purchase the device in any store. It follows that the tool is easier and easier to purchase. For the manufacture of even the simplest tool, blanks, special nuts and bolts with a large thread pitch are needed.
Finding a tool is easier because it saves time. You do not have to do extra business. Perhaps the purchase of the device will cost a little more, but then there is no need to spend time and energy on the manufacture of the tool.