I discovered that if you go one step further than these directions here on this site: Changing Isuzu IFS CV Boots

I was replacing ball joints and repacking the wheel bearings as well when I discovered this. First, remove the front brakes and then the disks / wheel bearings. Then, if you have a ball joint press (rented at Shucks / Checker Auto for $6 for the day), and an air impact ratchet, the lower ball joint pops off the hub with no problem.

With the lower ball joint popped loose, you can turn the steering all the way over to the side, and then there's just enough room to remove the half shaft entirely. Actually, I'm not sure if you really need to pop loose the lower BJ, I was in the process of replacing them anyway. Even if you didn't want to pop the BJ loose from the hub, you could always remove the 4 bolts that bolt it to the lower control arm.

The benifits of completely removing the half shaft is it allows you to:

1. Do a much better job of cleaning and repacking the outer CV joint. I stood the halfshaft on end, then filled the joint with Coleman white gas (you could also use paint thinner) and let it sit to dissolve the grease out. Manipulating the joint around, an endless supply of paper towels or shop rags, and flushing it a couple of times with the white gas does a very good job of cleaning all of the gunk out of this joint. After I figured it was clean enough, I drained as much of the white gas out as I could, then used compressed air to blow out the joint...low and behold, some more gunk came out.. Wash, rinse, repeat... I then repacked it with the grease supplied with the Mechatech CV boots from Independent 4X.

2. Clean really well the half shaft where the hub needle bearing runs on the shaft, as well as clean and inspect the seal of the end of the outer half shaft and the inner hub. I also cleaned, inspected, and repacked the needle bearing.

3. Install the outer CV Boot with the shaft off the truck and on the work bench. Makes it far easier to get the clamps tight and the boot properly installed and pressure equalized. The outer boot (and joint) actually undergo the most articulation, as this is the pivot point for the steering as well, and thus get articulated even if the shaft isn't turning. My outer boots were the ones that split, not the inner boots, so this is crucial to get right.

4. Dissassemble, clean, inspect the inner CV joint on the work bench.

5. Install the inner CV boot on the workbench and tighten the small clamp down off the vechicle, then reassemble and repack the inner CV joint.

As I mentioned, I was also repacking the wheel bearings and replacing the ball joints. Ideal time to flip the upper ball joint and install a low profile bump stop as well, as well as inspect your brakes and possibly install new pads if needed.

Air tools make all the difference too!

Thanks