Hey ya’ll, I need some help with a ball joint problem I am having. I am rebuilding the front suspension on my 2004 ranger. It is a 4x4 with T bars and is pretty much stock. It was making some pretty bad noises and when I looked, there was a lot of bad bushings so I decided to do it all. Here is my issue. The new ball joints are too small. I ordered a kit from rock auto and tried a different set from autozone. Both with the same problem; They go right in the hole with zero friction. I measured and here is what I got:
hole is 44.57mm
old ball joint is 46.31mm
new ball joint is 44.62mm

do I need new lower control arms or is there a way to order and “over size” ball joint. Thanks in advance

 

Are you working on a "North American" Ford Ranger or an "International" Ford Ranger?
The only thing the 2 have in common is the name.

Only asking because one of your posts said something about being in Turkey

 

It is a North American, I was stationed in Turkey but brought the truck from the states

 

Thinking you have after-market lower control arms .

From Rock-auto they have "Oversized Ball Joint; Fits Control Arm With 44.42mm to 44.52mm Inside Diameter" listed

That's smaller than what you claim the hole you have is.