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WJ Steering Qs

Y

yossarian19

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Grass Valley, CA
I'll preface this: Yes, I've searched. I've been reading about this swap since '07. I'm still asking.

I'm wanting to run WJ TREs or 5/8" heims. I know heims will require more maintenance. My question is would they be comparable in strength? Also - does anyone have experience with whether stock steel wheels would clear crossover steering (under the knuckle) and / or the Akebono calipers?

Next Q - I want to run sway bars. What did you guys do to mount the sway bar on the axle side? Is the raised drag link going to clear the stock mounts, or am I running into problems here?
 
yossarian19 said:
I'll preface this: Yes, I've searched. I've been reading about this swap since '07. I'm still asking.

I'm wanting to run WJ TREs or 5/8" heims. I know heims will require more maintenance. My question is would they be comparable in strength? Also - does anyone have experience with whether stock steel wheels would clear crossover steering (under the knuckle) and / or the Akebono calipers?

Next Q - I want to run sway bars. What did you guys do to mount the sway bar on the axle side? Is the raised drag link going to clear the stock mounts, or am I running into problems here?
Click to expand...

I'm about to switch to 3/4 Heims. In my opinion a Heim of the same shank diameter as a tre are so close in strength that it becomes personal preference...

I run 1-ton over the knuckle and have about an inch between the top of the tre and the rim. You'll have PLENTY clearance utk.

JKS sells extended axle side sway bar mounts to put in the factory location... Since I went OTK I had to seriously modify the factory coil buckets and didn't have a place to put the extended mounts. I had nothing to weld them to... If you're going under the knuckle on both links then I really don't know it they'll clear or not. Seems to me like the drag link would be about 2" lower if you went under the knuckle leaving just enough room for sway bar mounts... Hope this helps.

You'll have to excuse the dirtyness off my junk.

CIMG2590.jpg
 
Last edited:
Sure did.
I'm going to run WJ TREs. Until you said "similar shank diameter similar strength" it hadn't really clicked for me - the 5/8" heims I'd planned on running are 15mm. WJ TREs = 24 mm. To get roughly equal strength out of heims would be a big jump in price.. and they aren't available in parts stores.
From the pic, it looks like going UTK I should be fine with 15" steel wheels at factory back spacing. I might be going 16" or 17" anyway, though.
Sway bar mounts may or may not have to get chopped. Going UTK (I don't need the clearance or angles) ought to clear, we'll see. I probably won't be running the 1.5" OD tube that a lot of guys use, so that will help with clearance.
 
yossarian19 said:
WJ TREs....Going UTK
Click to expand...

Stock WJ TRE's on the draglink are gunna commit suicide. My old WJ'ed 30 had stocker WJ pieces OTK and the TRE at the pitman would bind on full droop or PS flexed. UTK is only gunna be worse. Look into building the draglink with the common "1 ton TRE" draglink pieces, the pitman arm TRE has alot more travel.

I had Teves calipers with a slight grind/smoothing of the casting flash on the caliper and 15" Aluminum rims with ~3.5" of BS. Pic of my old setup just before removal:


2my2s6r.jpg
 
Hmm. Ok, guess I'll go 1-ton TREs on the drag link. Can't be too expensive, being Chevy and all...
What year did these beasts come off of? I'm guessing its a C35 / 3500 truck.
 
ES2234R is the right hand TRE
ES2234L is the left hand TRE

Depending on what you get the run between $12 to $60.

I'm not really sure what bung you would need. I bought all my stuff from WFO concepts. But, knowing what I know now I'd go to RuffStuffspecialties.com. That's where I'm getting my heims from when I round up $300...
 
Searched, found it is 7/8-18 TPI threaded. Good to know!
So, guys - what length track bar / bracket did you wind up with? I'm trying to get everything pre-assembled as much as I can before the swap...
 
yossarian19 said:
So, guys - what length track bar / bracket did you wind up with? I'm trying to get everything pre-assembled as much as I can before the swap...
Click to expand...

I wanna say my trackbar ended up being somewhere around high 20"s. I built a custom, taller axle side TB mount to get a correct angle of the dangle with my big Skyjacker drop pitman arm. Couple of my buddies went with the JKS axle mount and a ZJ pitman arm IIRC. The JKS mount is a nice piece, Ive welded a couple of them onto said axles.
 
I used the JKS bracket.

I'm going to make my own on the 44 I'm building.

It's a shame you're on the other side of the country considering I'm about to sell everything complete bolt in from under the front of my Jeep...
 
i have the JKS bracket and RE drop trackbar bracket, i can get a measurement tomorrow
 
lol, I forgot to measure... and now I'm at work...

Reguardless, everyone elses measurement aren't going to apply to you. You can weld that JKS bracket in a different spot than I did. It' doesn't have a PERFECT home... Keep that in mind.
 
x2. everyones will be different. though not by much. but being adjustable doesnt make it THAT crucial that the bracket be welded in the exact same spot or that your trackbar is the exact same length as someone elses. but at least you have a ball park figure.
 
Exactly - I am looking for ball park figures.

New plan:
Knuckle to knuckle: 1.5 x .25 wall DOM + Ballistic Fab tube adapters, chevy tie rod ends
Drag link: Same
Track Bar: I'm thinking some sort of poly bushing on the axle side and a 3/4x3/4 heim at the frame, mounted single shear. Basically a straightened, shortened RE1600. Why? Because at 2.5-3" lift, I don't need anything more. If I decide I do, I can modify a spare TB bracket I have & mount the same bar double shear. Voila- more droop.
 
That works. That is EXACTLY how mine is setup except I used 1.25" x .250 wall DOM and bored the ends out to 1".

Poly bushing on the axle end and 3/4 heim at the frame end. (mine is in double shear with a rustys tracbar bracket on the frame.)
 
yossarian19 said:
Knuckle to knuckle: 1.5 x .25 wall DOM + Ballistic Fab tube adapters, chevy tie rod ends
Click to expand...

I used the JKS tierod (1.25 x .375 DOM) with the WJ TRE's (which are offset slightly to push the steering linkage away from the axle). On full steering lock either way, the tierod would just barely rub up against my ruffstuff cover. Just something to think about clearnace wise.
 
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