Originally Posted by
rc_square24
The ball end itself will not change the amount of caster you have, the clips that you put in between the upper arm and caster block does that (ones that clip onto the upper hinge pins).
I think the upper ball ends ideally should just be positioned parallel to the top of the ball that is inside it (i.e. perpendicular to the kingpin angle if viewed form the side). If not it might hinder the arm movement.
Heres another question.
On my 5.1, the balls are pretty tight inside the eyelets, are they removable once snapped in? Will replacing with the coated steel balls from AE relieve the problem? Any other tips on freeing them up?
There's a few things you can do...
A. Pop them in and out several times with the pivot ball tool
B. With a kingpin in the pivot ball in the arm/eyelet, squeeze the arm/eyelet with a pair of pliers. It seems to set the ball and free it up.
C. If it is not a new front end, clean everything with a q-tip and motor spray.
I have tried every type of pivot ball for the AE and CRC front end, and the easiest no hassle way has alays been the plastic balls. They always seem to be smoother, and in the AE they lasted forever for me.