SW86 Posted January 9, 2011 Share Posted January 9, 2011 yup, long arms. ive finally got some cash back in the Mj pot and thats what I'm after. so whats a good company to go with? i was leaning towards Rock Krawler seeing as i have some of their stuff already; however, I'm open to any suggestions or comments. so throw them out there! :cheers: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dirteatr717 Posted January 9, 2011 Share Posted January 9, 2011 I'm pretty sure rock krawler has a lifetime warranty too :brows: I would look into Ironrockoffroad-IRO as well -Nick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SW86 Posted January 9, 2011 Author Share Posted January 9, 2011 yup they do have a lifetime warranty. thats part of the reason i started to buy their stuff. i mean if they're willing to do that, it HAS to be solid stuff. i thought about the iron rock again ever since that guy posted a thread about them. seems solid too and not at a bad price either. still, I'm thinking of the TNT customs long arms a Mj owner here has done. looks great, flexes great, seems to hold up great. well, thats the pickle I'm in. i wish more of you guys had long arms so i could get a owners opinion. i go extreme in my Mj everytime offroad so something that'll take a beating and flex like crazy will be my goal. guess i could always go to cherokee forum and ask :ack: cause i know they have plenty of members running long arms. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
86FUBAR Posted January 9, 2011 Share Posted January 9, 2011 Well I'm runing the Rustys longarms on my manch and like them , they are holding up very well and are built stout. I know some people don't like Rustys but they work and for me it was more of a cost thing as many of the other options were significantly more expensive . They defenetly get the job done and the truck flexes alot so I don't have any complaints , as for other longarm kits I liked the TNT ,RC and Clayton Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Motion Offroad Posted January 9, 2011 Share Posted January 9, 2011 ...i was leaning towards Rock Krawler... :thumbsup: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J B Cuz Posted January 10, 2011 Share Posted January 10, 2011 I am using TNT's long arm set up. Been running it for over a year now, both on and off road with no problems at all. It handles will on road (my daily driver) and has nice flex off road. J B Cuz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xjrev10 Posted January 10, 2011 Share Posted January 10, 2011 I vote TNT or Iron Rock Offroad. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mkbruin Posted January 10, 2011 Share Posted January 10, 2011 I vote TNT or Iron Rock Offroad. x2. Personal vote is for TNT though. By far the beefiest parts you can buy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mnkyboy Posted January 10, 2011 Share Posted January 10, 2011 I would probably go rock krawler or tnt, the iron rock kit is decent and built very strong but I'm not a fan of y links. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TrailReadyMJ Posted January 10, 2011 Share Posted January 10, 2011 Sorry to all the fans, but just a heads up about Rock Krawler. I actually used to be a RK dealer, and have actually seen a few broken flex joints on their setups. I have even seen their steering system break a heim joint in half!!! Just turning in a parking lot... good thing it wasn't at 65 on the highway a few mins later :eek: Now I will say this was a few years ago, and I haven't seen any new stuff to see if it's changed at all, but it didn't leave a great impression. I will say other than the joints, their stuff is real stout (solid stock tube, actually way overkill and heavy!), and they are real good about their warranty. I do really like the 3-link design, and their bracketry isn't a bad design for bolt on (Some welding may be required), but if they haven't improved the flex joints and heims in the last couple years, I'd stay away. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mkbruin Posted January 10, 2011 Share Posted January 10, 2011 TNT Customs: 1.75" X .250" DOM lower links, 1.50" X .250" DOM uppers, IRO: 2" x 5/16" wall DOM lower links, 1.625" x .120 DOM uppers. 1/4" steel belly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Incommando Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 RK, like RC, is not a very good company. They made a Liberty kit that even attempting to install it required a sfa conversion or junking the jeep to fix the mess. There are plenty of stories about their stuff causing problems, even a basic jk lift. But hey, they have a cool logo!!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shelbyluvv Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 RK, like RC, is not a very good company. They made a Liberty kit that even attempting to install it required a sfa conversion or junking the jeep to fix the mess. There are plenty of stories about their stuff causing problems, even a basic jk lift. But hey, they have a cool logo!!!!! Really? I know their stuff was junk about 6 years ago. They scrapped the Libby kit years ago as well. I have not heard a single complaint with RK stuff since Jeremy and the boys redesigned everything some years ago. Do you have first hand knowledge of these failures or just going off what you have read? I just got done installing a RK XJ LA Triple Threat upgrade this weekend. You will not find beefier arms, period. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mnkyboy Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 If I was to do a off the shelf LA kit that triple threat kit would be at the top of my list. :cheers: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
STERLING STINGER Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 whats a longarm for Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garvin Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 The only experience I have with long arms is the Rusty's y-link setup. I ran that on my Cherokee for a little over 2 years and the only complaint I had was that they used poly bushings on both ends instead of a heim on one end. They have since redesigned it slightly to put a heim on one end of each of the links. From a lot of research I've done lately on designing my own, I think that was the only reason why I didn't top 1000 on the RTI ramp. After learning a lot about the geometry and stresses in the kits, I would stay far away from the Clayton kit. They use the factory crossmember bolts to hold the new crossmember in, which hold up fine for the factory cross member but with the stresses of the long arms now, I'm sure they would snap in no time if abused (not like any of us do that...). There is a reason why every other kit includes the side bracing and the crush sleeves inside the frame. I haven't heard anything bad about the new RK kits but I, personally, don't like them either. The mounting brackets hang down a good bit below the frame and will end up getting beat up if you do some actual rock crawling. My person preference, if I was to choose an off the shelf kit, would be the TnT Customs kit. The only issue with that is the radius arm setup (essentially 2 bolts holding the whole front end in). When I get the Chevy 350 all built and test fit it, I'm going to be building a custom 3 link setup. The difference is I'm going to be using 2" x 0.25" DOM tubing on all three arms and am going to set the mounting points up a bit to protect the brackets. No matter which kit you choose, just keep in mind that the lower arms are going to be used as a slider, doesn't matter if you go mudding or rock crawling. Keep in mind that I'm looking at this from both the offroad and daily driven truck as that's what I'm doing with mine, also. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garvin Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 whats a longarm for The long arm setup moves the mounting point of the control arms farther back (most kits have a custom cross member incorporating the control arm mounts). Moving the arms farther back make them longer and more parallel to the ground which removes the binding that short arms cause on the suspension due to their angles from a lift. Long arms also make on-road manners a lot better due to the bumps not forcing the arms straight into the frame (the issue that short arms have), making the springs and shocks absorb and dampen the loads like they were designed to. The only issue with long arms is that once you go long arm, it's a pain to go back to short arm due to having to cut the factory lower control arm mounts off to clear the long arms. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TrailReadyMJ Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 Do you have first hand knowledge of these failures or just going off what you have read? Saw it first hand... fixing customers Jeeps under warranty. The Steering system that broke was on my business partners rig. I was parked next to him and heard it snap as he pulled out! Fortunately that's the only RK steering setup we sold! The breaks in the flex joints were also not catastrophic (like the steering was, that was just scary!), and they "just" chipped at the ends of the cross bar. RK also never had any problem sending out replacements. Now as I noted, this was about 3-4 years ago (but after the big re-design), and we only sold them for about a year (about 8 kits total, 2 with known problems). It IS possible we just got a bad run. I will also note that other than the steering failure, these breaks all occurred off-road, in the rocks, under pretty hard use. It's doubtful you'll have problems, but just keep an eye on the joints! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Motion Offroad Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 The RK joints have recently had a design change not to awful long ago as well. The miss-alignment spacer is now built into the center section of the joint itself. We sell the snot out of RK lifts and components. I think in the last 5 years we've only had 1; maybe 2 warranty claims with any of the RK stuff. I think the RK stuff sits up pretty high compared to 90% of the other XJ/MJ longarm kits on the market; Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SW86 Posted January 11, 2011 Author Share Posted January 11, 2011 damn thanks guys. you've really thrown down some good points. I'm still leaning towards the TNT or RK 3 link. i just stumbled across another guy with the RK kit on here and it seems to be good. those brackets do hang down a bit though and I'm not really worried about sliding around on those long arms. as beefy as they are i think they'll be able to handle it. however now i have a chance to snag a Mj for cheap with only a bad slave cylinder. so if i do that, no more long arms for my trail rig :( but at least ill have a clean new Mj to drool over Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
STERLING STINGER Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 whats a longarm for The long arm setup moves the mounting point of the control arms farther back (most kits have a custom cross member incorporating the control arm mounts). Moving the arms farther back make them longer and more parallel to the ground which removes the binding that short arms cause on the suspension due to their angles from a lift. Long arms also make on-road manners a lot better due to the bumps not forcing the arms straight into the frame (the issue that short arms have), making the springs and shocks absorb and dampen the loads like they were designed to. The only issue with long arms is that once you go long arm, it's a pain to go back to short arm due to having to cut the factory lower control arm mounts off to clear the long arms. thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
STERLING STINGER Posted January 15, 2011 Share Posted January 15, 2011 would i need these for my little 2.5" lift.... will it make it ride better....not so rough... i need new uca/lcas anyways... i just don't wanna spend a ton if i don't need to if i just need stockies, ill get em Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SW86 Posted January 15, 2011 Author Share Posted January 15, 2011 you should be good with your stock arms at 2.5", if you need new ones just buy some adjustable ones so if you want to go higher you can. but i guess you can put long arms on anything you want to and maybe an upgrade in the shock department would help with that ride on a side note, I'm going to buy the RK three link set up. can't wait for it to go on! then its only new muffler/header, front aussie, rear 44, some used 33s and I'm goin somewhere to wheel the wheels off it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
86FUBAR Posted January 15, 2011 Share Posted January 15, 2011 would i need these for my little 2.5" lift....will it make it ride better....not so rough... i need new uca/lcas anyways... i just don't wanna spend a ton if i don't need to if i just need stockies, ill get em No you don't need that for 2.5" lift. The general rule of thumb when it comes to lift height and control arms is stock or aftermarket UCA and LCA are good to about 4" of lift , now from 4" and up yer gona want control arm drop bracket and preferably aftermarket control arms as the ride is gona suffer considerably not to mention the tire is gona get pulled closer to the bottom of the fender during flex and could make contact . Now its not uncommon to see guys running 6+ inches of lift using drop brackets and that's perfectly fine but flex is still hindered and short arms and drop brackets arnt the best for hardcore wheeling and that's when longarms come in and save the day! Now you could possibly run longarms on 2.5" of lift if you wanted to and just chop the hell out of the fenders and slap some 33" tires on there and that would keep the COG (center of gravity) low which is very good for offroading. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mnkyboy Posted January 15, 2011 Share Posted January 15, 2011 I'm running adj arms and drop brackets with 6"+. I have matched or outflexed lots of long arm rigs. I get about 36" of articulation and at that the arms can go further,I have other things keeping me from more flex. As for strength my DBs are 1/4" thick,they are bolted to the stock arm mounts then welded in. Once I finish my braces I doubt most long arm kits will have any significant strength advantage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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