Long arm Q (not a VS thead)

[robsjeepxj]

The control arms are going to mount in exactly the same places so unless you get a high clearance radius arm kit the ground clearance will be the same with either one.

 

[VAhasnoWAVES]

rusty's advertises one as "high clearance". but ill pass...

 

[RCP Phx]

anything that mounts below the frame rail is going to hinder clearance. i know the clayton kit does. can you name a radius arm setup that mounts inside/above the frame? i dont particularly beat on my jeep, because when monday rolls around it has to get me to work. but im always open to good reasoning.

Yeah,mine and eventually TNT's !!!!!

The control arms are going to mount in exactly the same places so unless you get a high clearance radius arm kit the ground clearance will be the same with either one.

Wrong,period!

 

[3fifty]

I was very afraid of my Clayton kit hanging low since I run 33's on 3" of lift and play on the rocks alot. After taking it out though I found that the long arms act as sliders. The low hanging cross member has not been a problem yet but I could see where it would be when backing up on the rocks without the rear linked as well. I wouldnt be concerned with that. It gets talked up on the internet alot like the unloading does.

 

[ColoradoRaptor]

The true 4 links is the best overall setup to get, I would go for the BDS kit. They are known for good customer service and have an excellent warrantee history.

X2 I run the BDS and it is awesome! There are others but I like BDS the best of the 3 I have seen!

 

[sunburned]

BDS
Full Traction
Rock Krawler (3 and 4 link)
Poly Performance (3 and 4 link)
Skyjacker (mid-arm 4 link)

I included the last one because I wheeled with a guy this past weekend that had the skyjacker setup. It hangs down below the frame, but is far enough forward that it doesn't really matter. It's almost similar to drop brackets, but moves the CA's back a bit too. It definitely worked as this dude was crawling all over the biggest rocks he could find without a problem.

 

[Deadman 94 xj]

God I love these threads. Even with the attempt by the OP to keep the BS out it still turns into a pissing match. There's one of these threads, what? Once a week lol.

Clayton kit. It flexes fine:

Just ran a Black rated trail over the weekend:

Following this guy:

Contrary to what the internet will tell you, my jeep did not fold like a taco. I said, see ya later and drove home.

Their kit is simple and solid with a life time warranty.

If I was going to try another kit, it would be a true 4 link, when I'm ready to take advantage of a true 4 link. Until then, this works. BDS does make nice kits.

Buy what you want.

 

[Deadman 94 xj]

Actually, BDS arms are a little flimsy IMO. I've never seen how well they hold up when bashed off of rocks though. So that's an uneducated opinion.

 

[VAhasnoWAVES]

i like how claytons kit still allows easy access to the tranny/T-case. does the BDS "belly pan" easily remove as well?

deadman, im trying to bump up the ratio to 2 of these threads a week. but in all seriousness, if i were to go radius my choice is clayton. no questions asked. thanks for the input, and im sure my rig wont see the terrain yours does. (OFF TOPIC: where did you get those flares? home brewed?)

 

[Deadman 94 xj]

i like how claytons kit still allows easy access to the tranny/T-case. does the BDS "belly pan" easily remove as well?

deadman, im trying to bump up the ratio to 2 of these threads a week. but in all seriousness, if i were to go radius my choice is clayton. no questions asked. thanks for the input, and im sure my rig wont see the terrain yours does. (OFF TOPIC: where did you get those flares? home brewed?)

VAhasnoWAVES, not a problem. I wasn't directing my comment at anyone in particular.

The flares are bolt on made by a company called Slick rock gear.

There are just a bunch on misconceptions that get thrown around regarding this topic (and many others) that annoys me. Especially when I get 16 yr old kids coming up to me saying, "nice jeep, how's the unloading?" They just read that crap off the internet and I want to beat them because of it.

Anyway, there are many good kits out there IMO. I liked clayton because it had a rock solid reputation in the TJ crowd and I like the design. You hear people all the time talking about clearance. Well, when you're running trails like that ^^ there isn't much that's not going to get caught up. You have what, 20-25" of belly height, 18-23" to the bottom of the CA mount? And then 10-15" to the lowest point on your axle? Common sense dictates that you're going to catch on your axle before any thing else if you can't pick a good enough line.

Hell, that jeep in the pic got hung up. Granted the rock was 4' tall.

I'm not trying to sway you one way or the other. Buy what you like and think will work best for you. I like the simplicity and strength of my kit. But like I said, I will one day upgrade to true 4 links when the jeep becomes much bigger.

There is talk of three links out there too. Great designs and some great bolt on kits. Some will argue them over 4-links and blah blah blah. They''ll say "mine doesn't bind". I'll say, "oh yeah, well I have an extra arm holding my axle on"

The point is, it's all relative to what you want to do. Any one of those kits will do what you want it to do. I'd look at things like warranties and things like what you mentioned about T-case access. Rock Krawler has a nice 3 link that, IIRC, comes with a life time warranty. Check them out too.

 

[VAhasnoWAVES]

its nice when people give me something useful.

i agree on the clearance. with only 31s, open diffs, and relatively no protection, im not one to put myself in the situation where clearance is particularly important. ive done trails, been in hairy situations, but in all honesty the jeep is my DD. so no, im not going to push it to the sheer limits. and im not looking to beat on it. it performs fine as it is (for my needs). will a radius design work, most deffinantly. but as i said before, given the option of a 4 link why would i choose otherwise? im in the market to upgrade a thing or three, i like to know what my options are. and that essentially was the point of starting this thread. i see about twice as many radius arm setups and 4 links, and didnt understand that if the true 4 link is supposed to have better characteristics... no matter by how big or small of a margin. i have my preferences just like anyone else. i want something that is bullet proof, yet simple in design. does it have to look good? id like it to... i think they clayton kit is hideous with the square arms. haha. but i hear only good things about them. along with MANY other companies. idk... i dont care either.

:smoker:



the 3 link is proably the only design i dont like. haha. would i ever break it. no, but given the other options id rather not run one. i like the "extra control arm".

and please describe to me the phenomenon of "unloading". i see it mentioned all the time. and apparently it makes the 4 link design far superior. it causes babys to spontaniously combust, and all other sorts of bad stuff. (lots of sarcasm there) there is so much emphasis on it, and i really dont get it.

 

[ktm racer 419]

Contrary to what the internet will tell you, my jeep did not fold like a taco. I said, see ya later and drove home.

but your doors were on, you were good to go on the taco foldage
http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/I-...unibody-folds-in-half/119985464691108?ref=sgm

There are just a bunch on misconceptions that get thrown around regarding this topic (and many others) that annoys me. Especially when I get 16 yr old kids coming up to me saying, "nice jeep, how's the unloading?" They just read that crap off the internet and I want to beat them because of it.

I used to say the same thing regarding the unloading (i had radius arms). then i built a 3 link to see what all the hype was about, and there is a difference.

both setups crawled over boulders just fine, they both went fast fine, the both drove fine. but when the front end gets light i prefer the 3 link.

 

[Deadman 94 xj]

There are two types of unloading that I am aware of. Butt dyno unloading and hill climb unloading. They're both the same really. Basically the upper arm on a true 4-link will help to keep the front of the jeep close to the axle as the forces want to push the front end up. Ant-squat I believe is the technical term.

Basically when you're climbing something steep, the front end will jump up and the jeep will roll over and really fold like a taco. Butt dyno is when the front end of the jeep will jump up because of pure acceleration. Again, the jeep will fold like a taco.

Unfortuantely, all "long" arm settups experience thise phenomenon from one extent to another. Mid arms or short arms are the only true cure for this.

That said, there are ways out there that can combat this problem as well. Traction bars in the rear can help, suckdown winches, and limit straps all help.

That said, this phenomenon has never hindered my ability to complete an obstical. It more or less falls into the internet world of exaggeration and is greatly feared.

It is my opinion that some kits do this more than others. TnT being a major contributor. That's just my web wheeling experience though.

I agree on the Clayton kit being ugly . Form follows function, or maybe it's the other way around.

If I were you, depending on your lift height, I'd stay stock or upgrade to good solid short arms and spend the cash on something else. Or upgrade to a pretty 4-link and go from there

 

[Deadman 94 xj]

but your doors were on, you were good to go on the taco foldage
http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/I-...unibody-folds-in-half/119985464691108?ref=sgm



QUOTE]

That's why the doors were on

 

[kastein]

97XJ, 4.0, AX-15, 231, 8.25 - RE 4.5" superflex kit.

now, as the title stated, this isnt supposed to be a VS thread. but ive got a question... since i learned of long arms, ive always wanted to upgrade to them. now it looks like they are in my future. my searching has steered me away from RE kit because of the price, im quite partial to the clayton kit for the ease of installation or even the treks for the belly pan design. now from reading the last 124353242 long arms thread ive come to realize that these are radius designs, which differ from the 4 link that BDS makes. i always thought BDS lifts to be exspensive, but it looks like the long arm upgrade is competatively priced. and this has made me rethink my decision on claytons kit...

are there any other companies that produce a 4 link for the front of the XJ instead of the radius arm setup?

all the people running BDS have nothing but good things to say. im very interested.

Way to assume...
I understand. The question was for him.

I wouldnt want to tell him to go buy a big dollar kit just so he could have a 4 link when a radius arm setup would suit him fine. Radius arms are fine for most people in most situations.

Use some sense and stop trying to show your uber jeep knowledge.

I made it easier for you to determine the questions being asked in this thread for you.

Nominated, btw.

God I love these threads. Even with the attempt by the OP to keep the BS out it still turns into a pissing match. There's one of these threads, what? Once a week lol.

Seriously. More like two or three times a week I think.

 

[3fifty]

Thats your input? Really? Haha you make me smile. Really, you do.

 

[VAhasnoWAVES]

If I were you, depending on your lift height, I'd stay stock or upgrade to good solid short arms and spend the cash on something else. Or upgrade to a pretty 4-link and go from there

im on the RE 4.5" super flex kit now. it performs to my desired level i suppose. hell, i dropped a spring out of it one time. but i want long arms in preperation for more height.

 

[djblade311]

Thats your input? Really? Haha you make me smile. Really, you do.

and that was yours? sigh

The radius arm setup would require more bushing replacement than a 3 or 4 link since you have 2 joints connecting to the crossmember. So for strength and maintenance, I'd pick a 4 link anyday. Ive often thought about TNT y-links because of the clearance factor but have been leaning more towards BDS and full traction

 

[winkosmosis]

and that was yours? sigh

The radius arm setup would require more bushing replacement than a 3 or 4 link since you have 2 joints connecting to the crossmember. So for strength and maintenance, I'd pick a 4 link anyday. Ive often thought about TNT y-links because of the clearance factor but have been leaning more towards BDS and full traction

5 link (it's not real 4 link if there's a trackbar) systems have inherent bind unlike radius or 3 link + trackbar or real triangulated 4 link. No one ever mentions that in these threads.

 

[VAhasnoWAVES]

5 link (it's not real 4 link if there's a trackbar) systems have inherent bind unlike radius or 3 link + trackbar or real triangulated 4 link. No one ever mentions that in these threads.

you have my attention... explain.