CV boots - the easy way

[j.fro]

The good news: Don't bother with the ball joints. It's much easier to drop the cats.
The so-so news: you may have to press the studs from the cat flanges, as the bolts may break...pressing them out takes some serious force!
The bad news: you will need a couple of specialty tools. The bolt holding the axle shaft in the hub takes a 32mm socket, and it is torqued to 340 ft-lbs. My impact wrench wouldn't budge it. I used a breaker bar and set up my floor jack to apply enough torque to get it initially moving ( I covered the jack-bar-socket setup with a heavy moving blanket just in case things came apart suddenly).
Then, you will need a hub puller to press the splined end from the hub.