Long arm kit options...

[TwistedCU]

Okay, so I have been looking into long arm kits for my XJ but I have a problem...

With having to replace the heim joint in my RE trackbar I have concluded that hiem joints are not good choices for a DD. So there's condidion one: I want a LA kit that uses rubber or poly bushings and NO HIEMS.

I want to stay with a true 4-link design, although radius arms offer better clearance, I'm not big on the design as I plan to get the most articulation I can out of the kit and I don't want to twist my axle. Hence condition two: A 4-link design.

2 simple conditions, right? Regular bushings and a 4 link design. Can't find one. As a matter of fact, Rusty's has the only LA kit I could find that uses no hiems (optional) but it is a radius setup.

Anybody know of a 4 link, standartd bushing longarm setup for an XJ???

 

[currupt4130]

i would say check tntcustoms.com, they have some super great stuff but you dont want a y link set up

 

[TwistedCU]

i would say check tntcustoms.com, they have some super great stuff but you dont want a y link set up

Yeah I looked at their kit. Never heard a bad thing about them and the clearance is awesome. They are both radius and hiems

Right now I'm guessing I have to give on one of the two things I want out of the long arms. I really don't want heim joints... period. I know they are the way to go for flex but I don't want to be replacing joints every year. It would be both a PITA and expensive. So far, Rustys is the only kit I have seen offering standard bushings. Their kit is a radius (or Y link) kit but not nearly the clearance of a kit like TNT, although I do like their replacement crossmember. If I am going to go with a radius setup I might as well reap the benefit of the better clearance.

Too many options and none of them is exactly what I want. Maybe I'll have to start e-mailing some of these manufacturors and ask if they would be available... I wish I was set up to design and build my own. I'm no where near ready for that yet.

 

[TwistedCU]

Clearance with a TNT kit:

 

[Bounty__Hunter]

Have you checked Clayton's kit? I think they have only a radius arm type kit with Y arms, but might be worth looking at. Seems to me the radius arm setup would twist the axle housing less than a true 4-link.

 

[TwistedCU]

Have you checked Clayton's kit? I think they have only a radius arm type kit with Y arms, but might be worth looking at. Seems to me the radius arm setup would twist the axle housing less than a true 4-link.

Yeah Claytons is top notch. Them and TNT are probably the 2 strongest out there. Same dillemma - Radius, hiems.

As for the axle twisting, it's the other way around. A radius arm setup allows the axle to rotate while articulating up and down, while a 4 link holds the caster thoughout the range of wheel travel. When you have one wheel stuffed and the other drooped, a radius setup is putting alot of stress on the axle. I have a D30 so added stress on the axle is not something I want to comprimise.

Kits I like:
Full Traction. 4 link, bolt-on (no welding to thin unibody), but has hiems.
Skyjacker. Great crossmember and arm setup but horrible trackbar, hiems, and waaay too much $$$
Rustys. Great crossmember, bushings are to my liking, but radius arms.

I can't win.

 

[Bounty__Hunter]

I understand how caster stays close to the same throughout the travel of a 4-link, but it seems to me the axle would twist a lot more end to end in a 4-link than it would with a radius arm setup.

If I'm right and the axletubes twist less with a radius arm setup, I would sacrifice the changing caster issue as it only applies when offroad, when complete axle compression is unlikely.

 

[currupt4130]

the tnt kit doesnt use heims, it uses johnny joints and bushings which are fully rebuildable and maintable. they have a lot less slop than a heim and like i said can be rebuilt if they do get sloppy. id go tnt

 

[TwistedCU]

the tnt kit doesnt use heims, it uses johnny joints and bushings which are fully rebuildable and maintable. they have a lot less slop than a heim and like i said can be rebuilt if they do get sloppy. id go tnt

How long could I expect a johnny joint to last? I've replaced that freakin' heim twice since I put that trackbar on. If it were a weekend toy I wouldn't care, but I drive my XJ from PA to near BWI airport 4 days a week.

 

[currupt4130]

i couldnt tell you off right off hand, but i have a buddy who has a RE lift on his xj and it uses johnny joints as well and hes had it on there for a couple of years and just greases them occasionally. ill ask him and get more detail for you if you want

 

[Bounty__Hunter]

I think you'd be happy with the johnny joints, cushion and reliability of a rubber bushing in a flexy like a heim joint package.

 

[TwistedCU]

I think you'd be happy with the johnny joints, cushion and reliability of a rubber bushing in a flexy like a heim joint package.

You could sell those things Bounty :lol:

As for the radius/4 link comparison, a radius arm will rotate the axle bottom toward Jeep when suspension relaxed, and the opposite while compressed. One wheel up and one wheel down, the axle is trying to twist in opposite directions.

With a 4 link the caster stays the same, up or down and therefore less twistie axle.