Hello esteemed Vanagon owners. My upper ball joints are beginning to clunk, I think. 

I have an 87 tin top non-synchro.

Are all ball joints created equally? Do any come with grease fittings? 

I'm planning to remove the A-arms and take them to the machine shop to remove and press in the new ball joints. Is this the standard method? Or, is there an easy trick to do this at home?

While I'm changing front end parts, what else needs to be changed? Does anyone (GW, Van Cafe, etc.) sell a complete kit? Should I go with urethane (pros and cons)?

I'm a fairly capable mechanic, but I don't have my own press.

Thanks in advance for your advice!

Ken

Sent from my iPhone