D-30 Ball Joints

My 74 cj5 has the original factory ball joints still in place. The jeep has been sitting in storage for several years and not driven at all. I have checked them and they have no looseness at all, tight as brand new with 120k miles on them. The problem is they are are some what stiff when they are rotated full left and right with the tie rods removed. Maybe the grease in them has dried out, with them being 45 years old. They are so tight I am concerned it might affect the steering's ability to return to center on it's own at highway speeds. The factory joints have no grease fittings or any way to lube them that I can see. Was thinking about drilling and tapping them and adding a grease fitting. Would the metal top cap be thick enough metal to support a grease fitting? I hate to replace them as good as they are and with the quality of the new parts now days somewhat in question. experiences and opinions any one? Thanks Jim

 

I'd probably grease everything with a grease zerk in the entire steering system first, to eliminate that possibility. Before I would take a chance on ruining a good ball joint I would carefully drive the Jeep to a remote road and see if the steering returns to center. It may fust need a little "excercise" to loosen up. I understand your concern about the quality of replacements parts, even domestic brands are outsourcing parts due to their inability to produce quality goods at competitive prices. Good luck!

 

Thanks for your reply. I will try that. I have the jeep up on jack stands right now with the wheels and tires off. It would be a good opportunity to swing them L-R several times and see how it goes.