Ripped Steering box off frame--> JKS or C-ROCK?

So my drop pitman and 36" tires finally took their toll on my frame and I pulled the upper bolt thru the frame and broke the two lower bolts.

What REALLY ticks me off is that a new front bumper was next on my mod list and would have incorperated a steering box frame brace as well as installing my high steer arms which would have eliminated the drop pitman arm.

So I'm trying to decide if I should just weld up the cracks and reinforce the frame using a homemade C-Rock type plate integrating the steering box bolts and tow hook points or should I go for the JKS plates and weld them in and mount my homemade bumper to that? I wasn't overly impressed with the way a bumper would mount to the JKS plates, I was hoping to have some vertical and horizontal bolts for mounting the bumper.

Anyone have a winch bumper mounted to the JKS plates?

i'd weld up the cracks, add a bumper, plate brace on the inside (c-rock), and also a steering box brace that ties it to the passenger side frame (rustys)

I went to rusty's when I tore my steering box off. he sent me a set of 3/16 plates (inners and outters for both sides) and a few bolts. Stripped the frame rails and welded them up. It takes a while.
I then had Rusty make me a stinger front bumper that incorporated the additional width needed for the 4 plates that were installed. It fit/bolted up perfectly. I moved the tow hook mounts to horizontal on the bumper and then welded the bumper to the new frame supports.
Tossed on a PSC ported box and ram, been working well so far. Tore the box off last Oct.

I ran 42s on a d60 welded with no steering box brace and it never cracked.
the issue is you dont have RAM assist. If you add a ram you shouldent need a steering box brace. Its less work to add a brace then a ram but think of the option. Which fixes the issue and which buys you some more time.

I do have ram assist in the plans but first I wanted to get the high steer setup installed and all the kinks worked out. That way I don't have to do it twice. I just shouldn't have dragged my feet on it for so long.

Thanks for the tip about Rusty's I'll check it out.

I lined my buddy's frame with 1/4" plate steel on both sides and welded it all in.......working great so far!!

He also ripped his box out of the frame, tore all 3 bolts clear through!!!



~Nick

Had to plate mine today.
It had probably 10 to 15 stress cracks that would pop and snap anytime I turned.
The outside of the rail was fine, as my bumper bracket takes care of that.
All the cracks were on the bottom and inside.
As you see in the picture, the plates on the bottom don't match.
That's because I plated a small patch before, as an emergency repair, but now it's all boxed in.
The plate is 3/8" and the bumper bracket is 1/4".
And yes, I know I should have incorporated the steering box bolts into the bumper bracket, but I didn't, soooo......

If you gotta do the work anyway, I'd probably recommend the 4-bolt steering upgrade. 4 bolts are always better than 3 and having a better steering ratio (like ram assist) can't do anything but help.

That is a definite absolutely.
When I re-engineer the XJ, the steering issues will be nil.
The plate was necessary, for now.

I replaced the stock bolts with longer once with 3 fender washer per bolt. I use 3 per bolt because the F washer I can get are very thin. After 3 years like this no problems.
The sway to frame mounting bolts can use some cut down F washers too.
IM a light duty offer and IM sure this helps. But other have tried my cheep fix with good results. That push there rigs a lot harder then I do.

The c-rok engineered reinforment plates have been awesome for me. I'm got then on both the drivers and passengers sides. My front winch bumper ties them both together and it's solid as a rock. No flexing, no cracking. But then again the steering was my first upgrade so I didn't have any stock frame failures occur.

For you the JKS SBS weld in type solution may be the way to go for you. A little more work but what the heck. You got some welding to do already. Put a brace on each side and you'll have a better attachment to the "frame" than what the factory has provided which is not much.

The JSK SBS system is the first modification I did to my XJ. I've never wheeled it prior to installing these braces on both sides. The welded in sleeves also help for strengthening the steering box mounts.

I've had zero problems with the kit and have no clicking/popping/any type of sounds when steering.