long arms for $600

so i have $600 and im buying long arms tomorrow.
i am most likely going to buy rock krawlers 3 link long arms. they are $499
what my question is should i buy those and have a little extra money or should i save up and buy something else?
i havent really heard anything bad about rock krawlers system but the 3 link part of it seems a little on the not so sturdy side but then again i have never heard anything about their system not being strong enough or anything.
what other systems are there out there that are around 500-600 if any?
im pretty sure that i have looked at all the systems but wanna make sure i didnt miss any.
i know of:
-TNT
-RE
-Rock Krawler
-Rustys
-Full Traction
i know theres more but anything in the $600 range?
Thanks
-Shomsky

Clayton's.....to add to the list.....

I've heard ALOT of good things about the clayton kit but im pretty sure its weld on...dont know if you want that.

have you considered drop brackets? they work real well and are much cheaper than longarms. I assume you're going to be rock-crawling with this thing? if that's the case, the TNT arms or RE drop brackets would be the only ones I would consider purchasing.

Save up a few more bucks to go with a Clayton long arm setup, and never look back. :eyes:
It is weld-on, but if you eventually move onto another chassis you could disect, clean up and easily re-use the outer mounting brackets.
I'm not sure if Clayton and Adam sell the outer mounting brackets seperately, but it would make transfering it that much easier.
Here's a pic of mine with the front and rear conversion and good bumpstopping at this year's GAJR.

The great part about this system is, when you're ready to convert the rear to 4 link, it all adds onto the original front setup. I ran mine with just the front for two years before doing the rear coil conversion.

Damn, thats some mean flex you got going on there.:thumbup:

id say im very impressed. also i like the look of confidence he has on becasue he knows he has bad ass flex. thats claytons hu? do they make that rear conversion too?

ranrusbal said:

id say im very impressed. also i like the look of confidence he has on becasue he knows he has bad ass flex. thats claytons hu? do they make that rear conversion too?

Click to expand...

It could flex a lot more than what's in the pic, but it's limited with bumpstops so it can still roll, and turn lock-to-lock while on the rocks and not rub.
Those are 36" SX's with 5.5" of lift.

Clayton makes the rear coil conversion to work with his front LA system.
http://www.claytonoffroad.com/get.doc.aspx?qs=LD:Item Spec Sheet&l=partId!make!model!modelEx&p=HAXJRCC!Jeep!Cherokee!XJ

X3 on Clayton's arms. Super beefy, and you can see the flex in the previous post. If you were to break any of his stuff send it back and he will replace it.

Is there a rubber chicked strapped to the front of your rig Mark?

I've been reading up on this a lot lately. And I have to say that I plan on going with the RK 3 link. Sure the Claytons are beefy, and the TNT tucks up nicely. I just cannot justify re-tubing an axle and putting new mounts on it only to run radius arms, which try to either A) twist the axle tube, or B) twist the mounts off of the axle.

Of course I will be using a D-44 and will be trussing and stiffening the long tube, so the torsional stress of hard braking/acceleration isn't a concern. I also have read no signifigant problems with this setup. It is hated by many who don't use it, and loved by those who do.

gnarwall said:

Is there a rubber chicked strapped to the front of your rig Mark?

Click to expand...

Yes, there is . It's in memory of Shane Beard

You should see Mark's rig on the trail...kicks that booty

goodburbon said:

I've been reading up on this a lot lately. And I have to say that I plan on going with the RK 3 link. Sure the Claytons are beefy, and the TNT tucks up nicely. I just cannot justify re-tubing an axle and putting new mounts on it only to run radius arms, which try to either A) twist the axle tube, or B) twist the mounts off of the axle.

Of course I will be using a D-44 and will be trussing and stiffening the long tube, so the torsional stress of hard braking/acceleration isn't a concern. I also have read no signifigant problems with this setup. It is hated by many who don't use it, and loved by those who do.

Click to expand...

x2

The RK 3-link flexes like mad and the arms are made of solid stock, not tubing. Talk about beef.

Also, think of it this way - RE drop brackets are over $300+ shipped, and then you have to buy new upper and lower arms (around $400 for good ones, maybe less). That puts the total for DBs and arms at $700+. The RK 3-link kit is fully adjustable and elimates the hard angles on the arms caused by your lift (same as drop brackets), plus it's $200 cheaper. When I move to new arms, these will get my money.

backpack96 said:

I've heard ALOT of good things about the clayton kit but im pretty sure its weld on...dont know if you want that.

Click to expand...

I believe the RK is also weld on.

thank you guys for all the input. the clayton system looks really nice but its kinda pricy.
i think im going to go with the RK. if i wasnt tryin to get these arms in a limited time frame then i would probably go with claytons. but ive been wanting them for some time now and i have the money.
thanks a lot for the great posts.
-Shomsky

I would honestly look at TNT's Y-link kit. It is way more of a lift then Rock Krawler for the front suspension. You also gain their crossmember which in it self gives you more ground clearance. RK 3 link is a pretty scary looking set up. The lower control arm mounts are held on by a bracket that you weld to the bottom of your uni body frame rail. I have never been a fan of having to depend on one upper arm. If that arm should break for some reason your front axle will come off the Jeep. I know altimatly it's your decision but I would look into TNT's Y-link set up before you purchase RK's kit.
http://www.colorado4x4.org/vbb/showthread.php?t=76000

I had the RE 3.5" kit and the ride was tolerable. Then I added a new shackles and coil spacers and had to do something about the ride, so I decided to go with the RE drop brackets. The ride quality was amazing, but after wheeling with them for awhile I am thinking that I should have went with long arms. I find that I get hung up or land on them all the time especially when coming down off of rocks. The brackets seem to hold up to the abuse, but I would prefer not to get hung up in the first place. Do you think long arms would be a better alternative?

I have been beating on my RK 3 link for over 3 years. The only parts that need to be welded are the LCA mounts. They get pinched between the t-case cross member and the uni-body. You can run stock until you get the mount welded on, then when you are ready bolt the rest of it in and cut the stock LCA mounts off. I have ZERO failures since the axle joint was upgraded. That was over 2 years ago. Here is a flex shot with leaf springs. Not to bad for a out of the box kit.

X2!!

I agree. I have never had any problems with the RK 3-link. I think that it is a great setup up and is very durable.

I am really suprised to see the criticism from someone who is running RK's setup in the rear which uses the same arms and the same joints. (CIC) :gee:

From my experience with the RK setup front and rear, I absoulutly love it.

just my $.02... take it or leave it...

I never had a single problem with my RK setup either. As far as welding to the frame, completely ridiculous. Gotta do some homework once in a while instead of regurgitating what you hear all the time. Not only do you weld it to the frame, it also gets mounted via thru-holes and sleeves, just like TnT's does. IMHO, that's the safest way to do. TnT's rely's on the bolts on the bottom of the skid AND thru-sleeves, RK's rely's on welding to your framerails AND thru-sleeves. I've run both the TnT Y-link and the RK 3-link and both are definitely quality setups! Both are definitely quite a bit different too.

Worrying about the 3-link issue is soo beaten to death... There are guys on here that wheels 10X harder than most that have been running the 3-link and never had a problem. Speaking from people I know, Contact Led about the 3-link. I've known him for quite a while and have never known him to run anything BUT the 3-link up front and a custom (Led/D&C prototype) 4-link rear on a few rigs. It'd be pretty damn tough say it doesn't work so well or it doesn't hold up to abuse if you've ever seen his truggy or the "short bus" in action. There are a few others from the Colorado Springs crew that run it and they don't like to play nicely with their toys. Guys like Aaron (big.xj.flames) wheel the heck out of their rigs then use it for daily driving. I ran the 3-link for a while and decided to turn it into a 4-link with the pasenger side arm able to flip up for wheeling.

Lately, I've been looking into Claytons quite a bit for the new project.

Based solely on my experience with two of your kits listed above (TnT & RK), either route is good.. I think it's just a matter of preference: 3-link or radius arm? do some homework, talk to the mfg's and do some more homework. Bob and Matt are both really helpful at TnT. I can't remember who I dealt with at RK but they were also helpful. I'd take opinions from people that have real world experience with only their particular setup, with a grain of salt. When was the last time you heard anyone say "the setup that I've been using for a while is complete sh!t... don't buy it". Everyone thinks that their current setup is the best out there.

To quote Wally from the Colorado board in a recent thread: "all we have is a pissing match of various lifts, with everyone claiming the lift they run is the superior one". Couldn't have said it better.

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