Lug, I have a question about if there is any clearance issues in the area of where you welded the new ball end on? I realize that you already cleaned up the weld (and it looks nice, BTW), but if there were no clearance issues, you could have skipped the cleanup of the protruding bead, leaving more meat for more strength. Not picking at you, just thinking about the next one that someone might need to do.
Carl
I understand your point. The ball sits inside a cup that's about 1 inch deep. The shape of the ball and stem is designed to allow the needed movement. Stick your left thumb loosely inside your right fist and wiggle it. If your thumb were thicker just outside your fist, then the wiggle would be restricted.
The area above the ball cannot be too thick or it will not pivot properly. If the stem contacts the top edge of the cup, then it might snap the ball off.
