Rustys Long Arms - another breakage

XJoachim · Aug 10, 2004

While rolling down the trailer i heard a few bangs so i stopped to take a look. This is what i saw

2 years ago the same thing happened to my short lower arms at the frame side. At this time Rusty changed the design and added brackets to prevent this.

I called Rusty about this and when i told him that i already replaced the frame side bushings with RE Superflex joints after he asked if i had opened the jam nuts, he told me also to replace the lower bushings with RE joints. No warranty,, no replacement, just telling me that my tires are too big and my axles too heavy.

No more Rustys control arms for me :flamemad:

Urban Redneck · Aug 10, 2004

There was plenty of Rusty's CA carnage at NAC Fest this year. This just adds to the pile.

Stick · Aug 10, 2004

I am thinking about the long arm switch and you just slammed the door on Rusty's .

Thanks for the update.

DaffyXJ · Aug 10, 2004

Been doing some mudding I see.

Serious question,
How does the unibody frame rails hold up to the weight of the D-60/D-70 axles?

Derik

JeepFreak21 · Aug 10, 2004

www.THESQUEAKYWHEEL.com

XJoachim · Aug 10, 2004

I don't need someone to fight for me. I own a shop in germany and i used to sell Rustys products too. But i will not sell anything any more that carries his label. So this is more costly for him than providing me with free replacements.

Luckily i was only rolling down the trailer. I won't imagine what would happen if i had to brake at highway speeds. :doh:

BIG98XJ · Aug 10, 2004

Exact same thing happened to mine I called up rustys and he offered me another pair but I just got my money back and now i have RE

BrettM · Aug 10, 2004

wow, that's just stupid. yeah, stuff breaks, especially with 1-ton axles and 39s(?), but that's messed up that they offered no customer service; no warranty, no refund, not even willing to pay for a Superflex joint.

And if you're still running uppers on both sides, the advice to replace with a Superflex joint is bad advice. A dual-radius arm setup inherently binds and needs to have a fair amount of 'give'. If anything I would add some rubber bushings into the system instead of those stiff poly bushings.

XJoachim · Aug 10, 2004

I'm running just 1 upper arm so the bind is not that big.

THE NEWF · Aug 10, 2004

Speaking from a Machinist's point of view, that is some thin, Fisher Price looking metal!!
I thought that an after market company like Rustys would be using heavier material than that!!

Root Moose · Aug 10, 2004

THE NEWF said:
Speaking from a Machinist's point of view, that is some thin, Fisher Price looking metal!!
I thought that an after market company like Rustys would be using heavier material than that!!

What he said.

- Signed, Newf in exile

r@m

family XJ · Aug 10, 2004

I had the same thing happen last year. He offered a free replacement. Now my upper cracked because of the poly bushing and no way to flex. I am going to Johnny Joints on the top now

XJoachim · Aug 10, 2004

Arms are fixed, placed another RE joint at the axle side too, this should also eliminate any possible bind with my single upper arm.

Redcbr007 · Aug 10, 2004

Dont like the arm, the superflex joints are ok though, Here is a arm I built for a 4 link TJ..

Red

www.JPFabrication.com/Forum

vintagespeed · Aug 12, 2004

Pretty classic case of metal fatigue from too much heat. Bummer.

But ya know, Rusty's a great guy & all........

-jb

REDXJ4FUN · Aug 15, 2004

vintagespeed said:
Pretty classic case of metal fatigue from too much heat. Bummer.

But ya know, Rusty's a great guy & all........

-jb

:sure:

Jaysheep · Aug 15, 2004

XJoachim said:
I'm running just 1 upper arm so the bind is not that big.

If you remove the upper and don't do anything to redistribute the load, wouldn't this cause way too much pressure at that point???? Do you think if you were running this kit the way it was designed and used it on "regular" xj axles ( something more comparable in size and weight) that you would still be having these issues????
What I mean is.....There are many things people replace or beef up as they and there jeeps grow if these arms were intended to be 4 link or with upper radius, probably designed with D30 in mind that might tell you that you might have some problems only running 1 upper and I believe you said D60...
Is the workmanship really 100% to Blame?????

vintagespeed · Aug 16, 2004

Jaysheep said:
.....blah....blah....rusty's my god.....blah....blah......Is the workmanship really 100% to Blame?????

When you see a piece of metal break perfectly ONLY AROUND THE WELD, what exactly do you call it, a good weld? Do you commonly try to weld two different thickness metals and not over-heat the thinner material?

I wont argue the fact that 2link radius arm (the ultimate suspension BTW) bind transmitted into these wimpy and improperly welded bushings may have caused the failure, but the poor workmanship created the weak spot.

-jb

shimmy · Aug 16, 2004

i wouldn't really say running one upper isn't safe... its what i do too. all the second upper does is provide assurance, which sacrifices flex and adds binding. point is... bad weld! thats ridiculous

Jaysheep said:
If you remove the upper and don't do anything to redistribute the load, wouldn't this cause way too much pressure at that point???? Do you think if you were running this kit the way it was designed and used it on "regular" xj axles ( something more comparable in size and weight) that you would still be having these issues????
What I mean is.....There are many things people replace or beef up as they and there jeeps grow if these arms were intended to be 4 link or with upper radius, probably designed with D30 in mind that might tell you that you might have some problems only running 1 upper and I believe you said D60...
Is the workmanship really 100% to Blame?????

XJoachim · Aug 16, 2004

Running one upper is safe as long as it is properly attached on both sides. I see no side negative side effects in this setup. The upper arm adjusts caster (or camber? not sure with the exact phrase) that determines the pinion angle and prevents the axle from rotating while breaking. The main load is on the lowers.

I changed to 1 upper arm because i constantly broke or ripped off the second mount during extreme flex. The 60 front doesn't flex so something had to give. So i decided to run only 1 upper and never had a problem with that again.

The breakage is metal fatigue from welding which will nearly always happen when you try to weld 2 pieces of metal with extreme differences of thickness. You don't heat one side enough to do more than "glue" the weld on it or you overheat the thinner part. The thickness of the RE joints is more adequate to the .250 wall tube so the metal fatigue from welding should be less than before and sholud withstand the forces.

Rustys Long Arms - another breakage

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