Cognito 99-18 Chevy Silverado/GMC Sierra 1500 Alpha Ball Joint for Cognito Upper Control Arms
Can I pick up my order or have it installed at your shop?
Can I pick up my order or have it installed at your shop?
Absolutely. We offer local pickup on most products and full professional installation at our shop in Washington, MO. Whether you just want to grab your parts or have our techs handle the install, we’ve got you covered. Give us a quick call at 636-429-7020 or message us to schedule a visit — we’ll make sure the parts are ready when you arrive.
How do I know if this part fits my vehicle?
How do I know if this part fits my vehicle?
Unsure if it’ll fit? No problem — that’s what we’re here for. Send us your vehicle’s year, make, and model, and we’ll verify fitment before you order. We can also point you toward compatible upgrades or supporting parts if needed.
What if I need to return a product or it’s defective?
What if I need to return a product or it’s defective?
Most unused items can be returned within 30 days in their original packaging. Some products are covered by a manufacturer’s warranty as well. If something arrives damaged or doesn’t meet your expectations, just let us know — we’ll help you get it replaced, refunded, or repaired. (Tracking updates are also emailed automatically once your order ships.)
What's the lead time on custom or fabricated parts?
What's the lead time on custom or fabricated parts?
Many of our parts are built to order — especially fabricated or performance components. These can take additional time to produce before shipping. Lead times vary by manufacturer and demand, but we’ll always keep you updated along the way. If you’re working on a tight schedule, reach out before ordering at 636-429-7020 and we’ll confirm current availability or estimated ship dates.
Description
Description
While ball joints are a wear item, that wear is accelerated by larger tires, high cornering loads, damaged dust/grease boots, and a lack of lubrication. It is well known that most lube shops are not tending to greaseable joints during maintenance, therefore a lack of lubrication causing prematurely worn ball joints has been an issue for the last decade or more. Maintenance free ball joints therefore seem like a great solution, unfortunately there are factors that can cause issues. If a dust/grease boot is compromised on a maintenance free joint allowing contamination inside, grease can't be pumped in from the top to flush out contaminants and re-lubricate the joint. The plastic liner of the joint then wears and creates a squeaky joint that needs replaced. Replacing a traditional press in ball joint takes time and can be a pain in the rear without the proper specialty tools. The patented Cognito Alpha Ball Joint is the next level, end-all be-all solution of upper ball joints. It eliminates the problematic dust/grease boot by using a durable scraper type seal that is not susceptible to damage that a traditional dust/grease boot is. Although the ball joint is firmly sealed and pre-greased, there is a grease fitting at top for any periodic maintenance needed. With a small internal cavity for grease, the joint does not need much at all. The internals are alloy steel, absent of any plastic liner, with alloy races and grease paths. The carburized and surface coated taper pin is a precise fit, has an oversized sphere in the socket for large contact surface providing excellent strength and wear characteristics. With a heavy duty design, this is still a joint and thus still a wear item. Being a press in ball joint, you would think it will be a pain to freshen up, but the Alpha Ball Joint is rebuildable and simple to do with a rebuild kit. The ease of rebuilding stems from the corrosion resistant zinc plated housing of the ball joint remaining in the control arm. The ball joint can be rebuilt in the control arm without even having to remove the control arm from the truck. Once the taper pin is removed from the spindle, the top cap of the ball joint is removed followed by all the internal components. The rebuild kit comes with all new internal alloy races, a taper pin, and new scraper seal. Those items are installed with grease, the cap fastened back in place, and then the taper pin re-fastened to the spindle, and that’s it!
WARNING: This ball joint is not to be used as a droop limiter and was never designed to support suspension components hanging from the ball joint during operation. Doing so will void any warranty and is an extreme safety risk.
