front shock change...not going well

[don911]

I tried to change the front shocks on my 87 yesterday. I followed the advice from an earlier post. I removed the top nut and tried to rotate the strut out to remove the dust cover. I could not get the strut to rotate enough to clear the fender well. I think the tie rod end was keeping it from rotating enough but it could have been the lower ball joint. Anyone else had a problem with this? I'm thinking of removing the tie rod end next but I need to get a removal tool. My car has been lowered so I'm wondering if that is the problem. Anyone have any tricks/advice. Would it be better to remove the lower ball joint pin rather than the tie rod end??

Thanks, Don