I added a slug of grease above and below the yolk.
Here is pic of the yolk and the pic of after. Do the springs look ok?
Looks right!
Grease looks good, but the ball and the socket sure looks pretty worn.
The cap is installed correctly but, I agree with Dale. The cap and ball are worn quite a bit. I seriously doubt that the ball is as tight in the socket as it should be. Have someone watch the ball as you shove on one of the front wheels with the bottom of your foot. If the ball moves in the socket then it is not tight enough. To tighten it up you could try installing a new cap but, even that often won't take care of the wear. You might want to consider installing one of these. It's a cap with a spring loaded "cup" that will remove all wear in the ball joint and make everything as tight as it should be. https://www.modeltford.com/item/2736APC.aspx
Stephen
Personally I would tighten the nuts till the springs are compressed, They are not there to provide spring action but to make up for wear in the ball and cap. KGB
Now for the next big question. What would I need to secure the "Radius rod ball spring loaded accessory ball cap" (what a mouth full) to the pan? Use the studs and nuts with the spring totally compressed?
Just saw a shim kit on Ebay. Has anyone used a yolk shim?
Steve, I install the spring loaded caps as you described. You could also use bolts instead of the studs and springs to mount the cap with jamb nuts and lock washers on top. The shims may work sometimes but, they are very thin and unless the ball and socket are only very slightly worn they will not remove all of the play. In my opinion the spring loaded cap is much better and a more permanent fix.
Stephen
If it's not tight enough it'll let you know when it starts to shimmy like it's trying to shake you off the road.
I use one of these and like it better than the shim option.
Originals are easy to find, reproductions are even easier.
I always use the device Dan shows, even if everything is already in good shape. It automatically compensates for wear and eliminates rattles. Rattles are not just annoying. They are a sign that wear will be increasing at an ever accelerating rate as loose parts vibrate in the ever increasing clearance and begin to beat things up even quicker.