steering solutions

alright, i'm adding more lift to my current 4.5". i had a few problems with bumpsteer and death wobble. i'll probably get the tires electrically balanced to avoid the DW, but i want to reduce the slack as much as possible. i'm not opposed to buying a new steering conversion, but what type and manufacturer do you guys recommend.? what the hell does inverted T mean anyway. i'm only familiar with rusty's conversion, is that an inverted T.? has M.O.R.E. finished their conversion(probably to expensive, i would like to limit spending to under $300). what about drop pitman arms? has the xj community reached a general consensus on drop pitman effectiveness? any suggestions, experiences, or links would be greatly appreciated.

BTW. i just put new ball joints on my dana 30, so there shouldn't be any slack generated there. i'm running 31's now, going to 33x12.5's. also, could adding a steering box brace help?

Heres mine 86 waggy setup all stock with lifetime warranty for $170 or so. It took a little heating and bending to clear the trackbar mount and had to move the swaybar mounts a little (Heat and bend, and some grinding) the most backspacing you can run is 3.75.

The TREs are really beefy. The TRE at the pitman arm has almost a foot to drop before it binds. and the TR is very strong also.

thanks Gary E, anyone else? i know this is probably a repetative subject, but i really don't want to (or afford to) keep dealing with this. if i'm gonna fix this i want it done right. thanks.:banghead:

Therotically the perfect steering setup would be to have the trac bar and draglink exactly parrell and exactly the same length. this would reduce bumb steer. Also the longer your links are the better. that is why i voted for over the knuckle. But the problem with that is trying to get the trac bar the same length.

A nota about DW. I have a buddy who is fighting this right now. it can be triggered by tire ballance but generally it is caused by an alignment problem. If you have a tape measure you can set you alignment to fix the problem. Set your toe in about .5" this will keep any slack out of the steering linkage and help to keep thing tight.

HTH
Jerm S.

Jerm S. said:

Therotically the perfect steering setup would be to have the trac bar and draglink exactly parrell and exactly the same length. this would reduce bumb steer. Also the longer your links are the better. that is why i voted for over the knuckle. But the problem with that is trying to get the trac bar the same length.

A nota about DW. I have a buddy who is fighting this right now. it can be triggered by tire ballance but generally it is caused by an alignment problem. If you have a tape measure you can set you alignment to fix the problem. Set your toe in about .5" this will keep any slack out of the steering linkage and help to keep thing tight.

HTH
Jerm S.

Click to expand...

No way on that toe-in figure.You would wear the tires out in a week.It should be 0-1/16".

ditto 1/8th to 1/16th

Over the knuckle steering with drop pitman arm is the way to go with high lifts. I currently have the YJ steering converted to fit the XJ (little bending) together with a 3" drop pitman arm and it sure helps but i will go to an over the knuckle steering to help out with the steep steering angles.

ON THE same subject

does anyone have any experience with the performance unlimiteds steering components?? they look VERY good... i think the link is www.performanceunlimited.com

Unless someone has recently came up with a product, there is no way to get an over the knuckle steering setup without custom fabrication. The problem is that the sway bar link mounts and the stabilizer shock mount are in the way when the tie rod is on top of the knuckle. Additionally, the track bar needs to be mounted above the axle to keep it aligned with the drag link to eliminate any bump steer. Even if someone came out with a kit, the new sway bar link mounts and new track bar mount would likely need to be welded on.

An inverted T design is when the tie rod runs knuckle to knuckle and the drag link connects to the tie rod. The inverted T design only works when the drag link doesn't have much of an angle. When the drag link has too much angle there will be a dead spot as the tie rod rotates, which happens before any steering takes place because the high angle causes the drag link to rotate the tie rod to the limit of the TRE's before it actually moves the knuckles. The stock Waggy steering parts, or 3/4 ton truck parts, work real well on high steer setups, but like the old Rusty's design or stock YJ steering links they won't work well on with a tall lift in the stock XJ (under knuckle) location.

If you can do a little fabbing to move the track bar axle mount and sway bar link mounts, there are more and more places that will sell you the steering links, or use the stock Waggy stuff. I've used both custom inverted Y and inverted T designs with good success. I had a custom inverted Y on my over the knuckle D30 setup, and now I have an inverted T on my high steer D44.

I have a full size blazer set up that I am dialing in. I need to re-mount the trac-bar to get it parrallell to the drag-link and put on a stabilizer. Once I do that I will let you know.

thanks guys, i think i'm starting to get a handle on this stuff now. decisions, decisions.

Billy