Anyone using JUST Clayton's Crossmember for long arms??

[Safari Ary]

I'm pondering my own radius arm setup and feel that I have the necessary
skills to fab the arms and brackets and even the x-member. However,
Clayton's piece looks better than what I would end up building and for $250
it looks pretty appealing with it's drop out center section and all. Any
reason I should stop considering this as an option?? Any opinions on where
the arms mount to the x-member??

Here's a pic of the kit, sorry I couldn't find one of just the X-member:
http://www.claytonoffroad.com/cgi-local/corimgprv?has/xjFL_kit

Edit: it seems the pic doesn't work, and the page isn't linkable. If you wanna see the pic, go to www.claytonoffroad.com and look for the XJ kit.

Thanks

Ary

P.S. If anyone has better pics of the Clayton's crossmember, please share!
Thanks again

[PhatXJ]

It's weird how the webmaster set up that page. Notice the XJ in the background of the XJ page? :D

Is this the pic you were trying to get Ary?

http://myweb.cableone.net/twizum007/temp/corimgprv.jpg

[Safari Ary]

Nope, but that works too. Thanks Dave

Ary

[PhatXJ]

Was it this one? Sorry, I'm bored :D

http://myweb.cableone.net/twizum007/temp/corimgprv1.jpg

[Safari Ary]

Yup :D

[azxjman]

Another to consider is rustys the longarm kit they make uses the x-member as a mounting point and it has a one inch drop built in with no lose in clearnce the x-member by itself sells for a little over a hundred bucks.

[Safari Ary]

Thanks for the info. I've seen the pics of Rusty's and honestly don't trust the bolt-on deisgn and don't need the drop(SYE). I've seen Clayton's piece up close before and like it, but am not whole heartedly attached to it if the wisdom of NAXJA points in another direction. Thanks

Ary

[Carpenter]

Matt from Florida did what you are talking about. I can't remember his last name or screen name (mattk maybe?) but he was the one in Tellico with the green xj with the 44 front and 60 rear. He trailered his XJ behind a camper if that rings any bells.

As for the x-member, I don't see how you could go wrong. The price is fair and you'd be hard pressed to match or surpass the craftsmanship. With his x-member most of the headache would be taken care of. Here's the only picture I have of it, you can get some idea of what it looks like installed.

http://www.fototime.com/9AF78CA9C78EC17/standard.jpg

If you need another picture let me know and I might be able to help.

[xj4rocks]

the pockets to mount the arms are part of the crossmember. if you didn't want them there then it's not worth using his crossmember.

i think his stuff is top notch though. I can't say enough about his quality.

[Safari Ary]

Wes and Bob, do you guys hit your X-members much?? Wes I think I've got a pretty good feel for where and how you wheel, and so your opinion definately helps. My biggest worry is that my radius arms will go straight to the center of the axle tubes, as opposed to below the axle tubes on Clayton's setup. I'm just worried that this might cause interference problems with the frame at only 5" of lift. I'm not doing your typical radius arm setup so don't yell at me for putting my mounts above centerline. Wait till I post my design before yelling at me:D THanks guys

Ary

[MrShoeBoy]

I made my own crossmember simmilar to Claytons. I dont kwow what thickness he makes his out of but I used 1/8 to try and save weight. Out at Tellico I slid off the highside of a rock and droped almost a foot stright onto the crossmember and now there's a dent in it along with no paint left where it hit and the whole length of the belly skid from when I drove off of it. It was a hell of a hit seeing as it made me get out and check to make sure I didnt leave any pieces of my Jeep behind. The box tubing is slightly dented but still is stright and bolts right up to where it should go. If it was a factory crossmember I would have been stuck out there waiting on a replacement. Leson learned: Use 3/16" or 1/4" box tubing for crossmembers.

AARON

[xj4rocks]

everything on clatyon's is 1/4" or thicker I believe. i've never gotten hung up on my crossmember that I can think off. certainly nothing that wouldn't have hung up even a stock cross member.

[mattk]

I did what you are thinking. I agree that it would be hard to do a better job on the cross member for less. Just as a piece of advice, use 3/8 wall tube on the arms. I bent my 1/4" arm on slickrock last weekend. With decent fab skills, better arms can be made for less. The only caveat is that you are trusting these arms with your life. If you are not a truly good welder, get one to do the job.
my .02
mattk

[RCP Phx]

Originally posted by MrShoeBoy
I made my own crossmember simmilar to Claytons.
AARON

Lets see the pics!!!!

[Safari Ary]

Thanks guys. I think I'm gonna take this idea and run with it. I'm in a metal fab/welding class right now. I'm not planning on building all of this till the end of the semester at the earliest, so I'll have my instructor supervise me and decide if I should do the welds or find someone to do them. I start learning Inventer(and CAD program) next week, so look for suspension designs in the near future.

Ary

P.S. Regardless of whether or not I make the arms and brackets, I will have someone install the crossmember professionally. I don't feel comfortable welding to the unibody myself.

[MrShoeBoy]

Originally posted by RCP Phx
Lets see the pics!!!!

I dont have any way of hosting them online and am too lazy to go find a free one. I can email you a photo of the crossmember but theres no skids on it seeing as I jsut got done tracking a tranny/transfercase leak.

[QUOTE]originally posted by Ary'01XJ P.S. Regardless of whether or not I make the arms and brackets, I will have someone install the crossmember professionally. I don't feel comfortable welding to the unibody myself.[/QUOTE}

Welding to the Unibody is over rated. If you are in a welding class they should teach you to watch the weld puddle and the surounding metal for correct penatration and such. The same applies to the metal of the unibody. Just make sure you watch whats going on and you will have no problems. I welded my rockers on a long time ago and every wheeling trip I manage to smack them pretty good going somewhere a XJ with 32s open front and rear should go. My long arms have taken a beating at Tellico and they are still holding strong to the "sheet metal" underneath. That and I havent ever taken a welding class;) Death waiting to happen? Probally but we only live once.

AARON

[RCP Phx]

Yeah send pics of the long arms too.Ill try and post them for you(if not maybe I can get Ary to help again)!!!

Ary,what about the loss of ground clearance.Thatsa good reason to look at fabbing some up!

[Safari Ary]

RCP, good reason for fabbing what? the x-member??

Aaron, shoot me the pics and I'll host 'em for ya. Ary01xj@vt.edu

Ary

[RCP Phx]

Yes,the crossmember.I paid too much for lift to give it back!

[Safari Ary]

I don't think the Clatyon's x-member hangs down any lower than my stock one, and I only hit my stock one back in the days of 225s and UC suspension. I admit that one of the biggest reasons I'm going LAs is for the street. I drive too much to put up with this ride much longer. The amount of work I'd put into a x-member wouldn't be worth it if I can get clayton's for 250, which his website says I can. Plus, if I use Claytons and it sits nearly flush with the bottom of my 231 then i can run a flat sheet of aluminum as a skid plate from the X-member back and down the rails. Won't have to make a hump for the 231 in the skid to get hung up on. If I start getting hung up on my T-case skid then I will lift more. I'm only running 4.5-5". So far I'm happy with my 33s and trim job. Just locked the rear-end, so as soon as I get the front end together I'll be locked front and rear, with long arms and 33s. Should take me everywhere I want to go. I'm really just waiting to hear from the guys who run Clayton's member to see if they get hung up on the rear LA mounts. Peace

Ary

[88justin]

im runnig claytons kit with about 5" in the front. rides great. i do 90% of my driving on road. the crossmember does make a great location to mount a skidd. i took the center section of the cross-member out and welded four tabs on.. Two on the front side, and two on the back. i made them out of some 1/4" angle iron... also welded some large nuts on the back so that i could run bolts up from underneath w/o using a wrench on the other side.

[url]http://in.f1.pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/jjvanden/vwp?.dir=/public&.dnm=Dsc00048.jpg&.src=ph&.view=t&.hires=t[url]


I do plan to add a cross-member to the rear of the plate, but i think im safe for now. i dont romp that hard.

[RCP Phx]

I couldnt agree with you more!If you saw my post from this weekend,I wheel with alot of TJ's and Rubi's and XJ's.Well they all drool on mine and one of the guys rolled his new Rubi!By the pics from Carpenter Id say the kit is definately lower than stock,mine is stock!Plus as you already mentioned a possible need for,mine are mounted inboard of the frame rail.That equates to less binding also!
http://hometown.aol.com/rpayne9421/images/mvc-008f.jpg

[88justin]

http://in.f1.pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/jjvanden/vwp?.dir=/public&.dnm=Dsc00048.jpg&.src=ph&.view=t&.hires=t

[Carpenter]

I've never had any real problems hanging up on the x-member. It hangs down some (no more than RCP Phx's) but not much and the arms make a nice leading edge up to them. The only way to make a better design in my eyes is to inboard the arms and make the mounts/skid flat against the frame. That would take alot of forethought and fab work though and I can't see the benefits, at least out here on the east coast. You could spend all that time and effort to tuck the mounts but the arms themselves are still there to hang you up. The only time I have hit the x-member hard was two weeks ago on Rattlerock in Windrock OHV, quite possibly the most technical/difficult trail I have seen to date (in person). I have a piece of 1.5", .120 wall DOM bent into a hoop coming off the back of the x-member drop out section that protects my t-case. I hit the x-member hard enough once to dent the tubing and bend it noticeably upwards. The x-member didn't budge. Long story short, the Claytons x-member is well worth the money.

[Safari Ary]

Thanks Wes, I'm sold!

Ary

[Johann]

Funny you bring up the purchase of the crossmember separately- I had been contemplating the exact opposite! I had not looked close enough at his web site to realize he sold the parts individually.

I like Claytons kit, lots of good feed back here and elsewhere but:

I have a flat clocked D300 for a tcase and want to raise the crossmember against the frame rails to take full advantage of the clocking (and the giant hole I cut in my floor pan to fit it)

Making the crossmember, raising the tranny mount, mounting the arms inboard, all in one fab project is attractive. Doing all the long arm work is less so.

I'll have to see what the arms go for separately. I wonder if splitting a full kit would end up being cheaper? You don't know me but it's just a thought.

[MrShoeBoy]

Ary you have mail. If theres any questions let me know and I will answer them as best I can or I can go and get more photos:D

AARON

[Safari Ary]

Aaron's X-member pics(sorry they're so big, I couldn't get them to resize):

http://filebox.vt.edu/users/arebrahi/Jeep%20pictures/Other%20Jeeps/Aaron1

http://filebox.vt.edu/users/arebrahi/Jeep%20pictures/Other%20Jeeps/aaron2

http://filebox.vt.edu/users/arebrahi/Jeep%20pictures/Other%20Jeeps/Aaron6

Those were the best ones I think. They're so big that I don't wanna post all 6 that Aaron sent me.

Ary

[MrShoeBoy]

Danm thoes are big! Ary, do you want me to resize them on my machine and then send them to you?

AARON

[RCP Phx]

Thanks Ary!!!!Those are some good pics,shows alot of different things.Looks very simular to the Clayton set-up!

[Safari Ary]

Aaron, if you want to, that's fine with me. Your design looks a lot like Claytons. Anything that makes yours majorly different from his functionality wise?? Thanks

Ary

[MrShoeBoy]

He uses square tubing and I used round:) But other than that, I dont think so. The only problem I have found is that it eats upper control bushings on the axle end. Or maybe becasue I had never changed the UCA bushings on the axle end ever (they where dryrotted and cracked before I installed the LA). I plan on budgiting $15 or so for bushings per year just for wear an tear. The UCA work against eachother when at full flex and it tends to do murder on the axle bushings.

AARON

[Safari Ary]

Originally posted by MrShoeBoy
He uses square tubing and I used round:) But other than that, I dont think so. The only problem I have found is that it eats upper control bushings on the axle end. Or maybe becasue I had never changed the UCA bushings on the axle end ever (they where dryrotted and cracked before I installed the LA). I plan on budgiting $15 or so for bushings per year just for wear an tear. The UCA work against eachother when at full flex and it tends to do murder on the axle bushings.

AARON

I was referring to your X-member...

Ary

[MrShoeBoy]

Originally posted by Ary'01XJ
I was referring to your X-member...

Ary

I think they are pretty much the same. As I had said earlyer, use 3/16" or 1/4" box tubing or buy his crossmember because the 1/8" stuff I had is slightly dented on the passenger side.

AARON

[woody]

Where are these $15 axle end UCA bushings? I paid $35 apiece at the stealership for mine this spring.

TIA & sorry for the hijack ;)

[MrShoeBoy]

Originally posted by woody
Where are these $15 axle end UCA bushings? I paid $35 apiece at the stealership for mine this spring.

TIA & sorry for the hijack ;)

www.rockauto.com They have them for $8 something. So I guess I should budget $20-25 to include shipping. Also I thought that NAPA carried them for $6 each or something.

AARON