I have. About 4 years ago, I purchased a ball joint from
J.C. wipe me. It worked fine. After 6 months the rubber boot
was riped and needed replaced. If left that way the joint would
not last. So if you go with J.C. wipe me, I would throw out the
new boot and use your old one, if in good shape.

            Eric                   86-VW4x4
            vw4x4@fyi.net          72-240z
            Pittsburgh, PA USA     1936-Chrysler

On Wed, 18 Nov 1998, Thomas D. Hanlon wrote:

> In anticipation of replacing upper ball joints, each, I obtained prices
> from various suppliers:
> JC Whitney                                                  $15.95 plus
> shipping
> Bus Depot (on WWWsite)                           $ 24.95 plus shipping
> VW Dealer (local)                                        $ 82.50
> delivered
>
> Is there that much variance in quality among ball joints to warrant such
> price differentials?  Has anyone had experiences with different quality
> ball joints, and how does one determine the quality differences, if any?
>
> Tom Hanlon
> Palm Springs, CA
> 84 Westfalia
>