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Knuckle rotation questions - caster change

Grind the passenger side weld down to the tube. Pull the axle out completely so the knuckle can be welded flat when the axle is positioned vertically and cooled, then flipped and the other knuckle done.

I'm not following this idea. Why does presence of the axle matter with weld positioning?
 
Much progress has been made in the last few weeks. I did a bunch more grinding to prep the axle C's to be welded. XJEEPER also recommended that I get some inner C gussets to help reinforce everything in that area, which meant more grinding to prep for welding. Here is what it looked like after grinding down the original welds even more to get a nice, clean starting point:

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I picked up a set of inner C gussets from Artec Industries, which happens to be a local company, which was convenient. http://www.artecindustries.com/Inner_C_Gussets

XJEEPER came over a couple of Saturdays ago and as we were getting him set to burn everything together, we discovered that the electrician that wired my garage had put a four pronged dryer outlet in my garage instead of a 3 pronged outlet for a welder. After I picked up the right outlet at Lowe's and wired it in place, we were in business.

If it weren't for the gussets, this would have been a relatively quick job, but it ended up taking much of the day. Here are some pics of how it all came together:
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I have started painting everything and will then put everything back together. I realized that I ordered the wrong Spicer ball joints, so until the correct ones arrive, this thing isn't going anywhere. I'm excited to get it on the road in the new few weeks to see the improvement in how it goes down the road.
 
I forgot to update where this thing stands now. After I got everything put back together and on the road, I discovered something that I failed to take into account: by rotating the inner C's, it brought the drag link closer to the axle, resulting in the drag link hitting the stock sway bar axle mount when turning sharply to the driver's side.

After that discovery, I haven't made any additional changes as I haven't had to use the Jeep for anything serious. I'm currently considering raising the sway bar axle mount location using weldable relocation brackets (https://www.morris4x4center.com/syn...r-relocation-bracket-weld-on-ssm-8235-03.html), but haven't decided if this is the best path forward. Any suggestions are welcome.
 
While I'm a huge fan of the WJ knuckle conversion, if you don't want to take that leap, then swaybar endlink relocation brackets will resolve your clearance issues.

Now that you have knuckle gussets in place, you also have more swaybar endlink mounting options......
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How much are we talking to pull off the WJ conversion, and does it require different wheels?
 
Depends on what wheels you have. Most 15" alloy wheels won't fit over the brakes, some 15" steel wheels will. All 16's and 17's are fine.

Depending on how much you scavenge, re-use, quality of parts, etc the WJ swap will cost between $400 and $2000.

SFR sells a 'fab parts' kit and a 'complete' kit, read the instructions and it will give you an idea whats involved.

http://www.stinkyfab.com/jeep-high-steer-big-brake-kit/


You get better brakes, better steering, and with the relocated trackbar better road and trail manners. Its 100% worth the time and money and then some.
 
How much are we talking to pull off the WJ conversion, and does it require different wheels?

The only difficult thing is finding some knuckles. I purchased some new ones from Crown that were machined incorrectly so I returned them a went to the P-n-P. I was able to buy the rest new.
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Depends on what wheels you have. Most 15" alloy wheels won't fit over the brakes, some 15" steel wheels will. All 16's and 17's are fine.

Depending on how much you scavenge, re-use, quality of parts, etc the WJ swap will cost between $400 and $2000.

SFR sells a 'fab parts' kit and a 'complete' kit, read the instructions and it will give you an idea whats involved.

http://www.stinkyfab.com/jeep-high-steer-big-brake-kit/


You get better brakes, better steering, and with the relocated trackbar better road and trail manners. Its 100% worth the time and money and then some.
Before I put that kind of money into polishing a turd, I'll just install D44s. It was a long shot.
 
Is that a different bolt pattern? I see two patterns on the foreground rotor.
 
Is that a different bolt pattern? I see two patterns on the foreground rotor.

WJ's are 5x5 like a JK, and use the same balljoint as a JK. Oddly, a different unit bearing.

You dual drill the rotor to 5x4.5 for an XJ.

There are some formulas using Explorer rotors that don't require that, but they have other hacks to make them work that are really sketchy.
 
I've never heard of one, and its really doubtful. The holes in the rotor are irrelevant once the wheel is bolted down, they are just there to hold it in place for assembly.

The hat being sandwiched between the bearing and wheel is what holds it. I redrill my rotors with a 3/4" hole and use the hat of the unit bearing to center it.
 
I didn't realize you had folks doing this to a 44. I have to ask, why on earth? Whybput a unit bearing on a 44? If i wanted unit bearings on a 44,I'd just buy a TJ Rubicon with its wannabe 44
 
Unit bearings are stronger than 44 bearings and a spindle.

27 or 30 spline unit bearing stubs are stronger than 19 spline hub stubs.

hubs... not strong.

WJ brakes are better than dana 44 half ton stuff.

Crossover steering can be attained either way, but the cost of machining knuckles and buying high steer arms mostly pays for the WJ stuff.
 
That's because WJ's are 5x5 bolt pattern.
 
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