LIFT AT LAST! Now steering linkage issues...

Hey guys! My lift is finally on!
HALLELEUJAH!

It consists of Trailmaster drop brackets, 4.5" ZJ RE coils, RE XTRA HD track bar. Good 'ol stock control arms (no binding BTW)

Now, tie rod end on the knuckle end of the drag link is at a pretty ugly angle. It is not completely maxed out yet, but it is close. The lift seems to measure out at a total of 6-6.5", more than I expected.

What are the best ways to reduce this drag link angle? Drop pitman arm is a last resort, IMHO.

Any tips?

If you don't want to do a drop pitman arm, how about crossover steering, something like this:
I don't know about the leverage placed on the knuckle, although they discuss it on the site: http://bulletproofsteering.com/steeringoption.html

Looks stout enough, especially the tie-rod under the knuckle version. Drag link has less leverage on the knuckle in that setup.

The $329 price tag is less than appealing though.

My best idea so far is just to put a small bend in the drag link very near the tie rod end. Not a whole lot, just enough to make the angle a bit less severe. The drag link is solid stock and should handle a slight bend pretty well.

Any cheaper steering conversions out there? I would prefer one with a straight tie rod between the knuckles, with the drag link attaching to the tie rod somewhere in the middle.

Jared

Hey, I just looked at Rusty's on his website. That is just about what I am looking for and is $80 cheaper to boot.

Anybody love/hate this setup? Anybody love/hate any other manufacturers' setups? Any CHEAPER ideas? Love/hate my "bend the darn stocker" idea?

Any and all input is VERY appreciated. Thx for the help when I am in a bind guys! Har har! Get it?! A BIND ?!?

I kill me!

Jared

Putting a bend in it would change the angle where it connects to the tie rod and possibly free that up for more down travel, but wouldn't change the real angle of the drag link at all, and I would think that it would mess up the whole geometry of the stock configuration because the drag link would then be shorter.

You are correct. But, what the angle the tie rod end is at is my big concern here. I don't want to max it out while flexing the suspension on a trail and be stranded.

As far as the angle of the entire drag link is concerned, that isn't such a big deal to me. Geometry should be good as long as angle and length are close to the same as the track bar, which they are.

Also concerning the drag link's length, no prob there. It's adjustable and I don't think that a minor bend would change the length more than a quarter inch or so.

Not trying to shoot you down or anything, just trying to get to the bottom of the problem to find an ideal, but cheap solution.

Thx again, Jared

http://www.xjworld.4wdriver.com/steering.htm

I've got this one figured at about 170 bucks.

Afer mulling over several steering designs (I'm yet to actually "choose" one I like) I've noticed a few things.

If you go with a setup where the drag link attaches to the tie rod (like the link that was just posted) you have a potential "dead spot" in your steering. This occurs when the drag link pushes the tie rod in an attempt to turn the steering knuckles and the entire tie rod rotates a little until it's TRE's run out of movement before the knuckles actually move. This problem is also apparent in the stock inverted Y design however not to bad on a stock truck as the tie rod and drag link are almost parallel. On a lifted truck with the stock steering this dead spot becomes more apparant the higher you lift.

Attaching the drag link directly to the passenger side knuckle eliminates this dead spot but can also cause clearance issues with things like the sway bars and wheel. Assuming you can fix the sway bar link problem yourself and have wheels with less backspacing this drag link mounting seems ideal. You then have two choices.... run the tie rod over the knuckle, or under the knuckle. Over gives more clearance and is shown in the picture posted earlier in this thread. This is not as strong as the under style but seems to work for many. These two styles of steering setup can only be used if you use heim joints so if you're in a snowy area where there is lots of road salt or do lots of mud this style of setup might not be the best idea as heims have a habit of wearing quickly in those conditions. I've heard of "heim boots" to help seal them but I'm yet to see a supplier for boots that fit 3/4" heims.

I'm not going to go into any more detail here as I only wanted to post a couple potential issues for you to think about. It's not only about $$.... you need to consider your lift height, your location, is the rig a daily driver? do you want to go with larger rod ends or stock? do you have wheels with backspacing to handle a different setup? etc.

Thanks will and bender. I like the simplicity of the DIY kit above. Something I could definately fab up myself.

Also thx bender for the heads up on the steering play caused by some setups. I had not considered this and don't really want it either. Looks like 'ol Rusty isn't an option.

I don't think that the "dead spot" should be as bad on the xjworld link above because the drag link is directly above the tie rod, not hooked on the front side of it. Maybe I'm full of crap, who knows?

At this point, the "bend the darn stocker" idea is still most appealing. Am I crazy to do this?

Jared

Jared, if you want some ideas you're welcome to come over and check out my setup. Inverted Y over the knuckle using TRE's and DOM tube. Strong, good angles and DW free.