Kent-Moore tool required for ball joints??

My factory service manual for the 98 Suburban (2WD, 1500) says to use a Kent-Moore J-23742 tool to pop out the ball joints from the knuckle. It's a nifty looking thing from the picture, in that it wedges to the opposite ball joint stud nut (e.g. to keep it from turning) and then has a threaded piece that pushes against the ball joint you're trying to remove. Does anyone have experience w/this tool. All i seem to find in searching the web on generic ball joint separators are those damn pickle forks that you wail on with a hammer. Can't be a good approach, IMHO.

Most parts stores have ball joint presses. I have seen them at NAPA.

Auto parts stores don't carry any tool that looks like J-23742. Yes, they carry the presses, and those are for pressing the LBJ back into its tapered hole. The J-23742 is to separate the UBJ or LBJ from the knuckle.

I have seen them in both the Mac and NAPA catalogs.

I wish I could find it in their catalogs. Went online to both Napa and Mac. Mac didn't have anything close (that i could find). Napa carries a lot of things, but nothing close to J-23742. Have you ever seen a picture of that tool. It is in many factory GM service manuals, but that's the only place you'd see it.

I found the one you are talking about in a chevy manual. No I have never seen one like that but I have used both the Snap-on CJ76 and OTC ball joint press and they work well for both removing and installing ball joints and I use them every week.