I will be having it in for an alignment check.
This is an old year 2000 truck I bought new. 320k+ on the front steering, axles, ball joints, u-joints etc. Not bad nut it had an easy life and not rough miles. The fuel system was a nightmare for years but it's sorted out. Just had the transmission rebuilt and cylinder head milled and head gasket. Compression is still same as a new truck so it's worth keeping despite the body has Dodge rot.
The reason for the high dollar ball joints is that they're a one time fix. One in the cup never wears out and they're adjustable and completely rebuildable without any more pressing. I believe why folks have issues with replaced ball joints not lasting is because they are installed off center and possibly damaged and I'd wager that they don't get greased once installed. Another offender is the shops who install them may use an abrasive flopper or small wheel inside the ball joint housing. This can change inside dimensions as it removes material. A small wire brush on a drill is a preferred method for cleanup. It's important to not damage the inside of the ball joint housing.
Old second gen dodge ram trucks suffer from weaker drag links and the architecture or design is all in the Y design. I'm going to replace with a newer T type design that is superior in geometry and substantially heavier.
Another thing to look out there when you or a shop work on your truck is to replace your hub/bearing assembly with Timken products. You can can purchase much less costly hub/bearing assemblies but they don't have the same quality and you'll be replacing in short order.
Throwing on a upgraded steering box and I'm going with much heavier adjustable control arms from Core.
I know the common consensus is you don't need upgraded parts unless your running oversized tires. Maybe. Even though my truck is stock height it I need the upgraded components because I have a massive steel bumper fabricated from 1/2" and 1/4" boiler plate with an heavy Ramsey worm drive winch inside. It's really heavy and not like anything a person can purchase. It's survived one impact from a car, one side frontal impact from an brand new SUV that it opened up like a can opener and elk, moose, untold deer. It's saved my life and the truck so it's not going anywhere.
