Heim joint vs tie rod end. And brand?

[Tamadrummer]

I'm looking for a steering upgrade. I'm going for a 1-ton set up for peace of mind with 35's in future. My mj sees the road often since the closest trail is a 40 minute drive and I drive it around town here and there. My biggest hold up is going with heims or the traditional tre. I keep finding that the heims are stronger but the tre's last longer for wear and tear. With all the mud and sand the mj sees here, I'm wondering if the heims will get gunked up as soon as I get on the trail. Input on the longevity of heims?

 

There's several companies I'm looking at, figure I'd start a poll to see what you guys have had the best experience with. I was thinking for heims I'd go with Cavfab and tre's I'd do Ironman4x4. I know Stinkyfab uses aluminum rods but why not throw them in the mix too. 

[DirtyComanche]

Heims aren't meant for the street.

 

No other input as I've always built my own steering.

[Jeep Driver]

I would have voted but you left off the option- That S--- doesn't belong on my truck. 

[Tamadrummer]

1 hour ago, Jeep Driver said:

I would have voted but you left off the option- That S--- doesn't belong on my truck. 

Maybe you could have some input to justify spending $550+ on Synergy?

[NHMJXJ]

6 hours ago, DirtyComanche said:

Heims aren't meant for the street

 

      I'm way over my head mechanically, but I can echo that.  Once Heim joints break in, they're loud and loose. 

[Jeep Driver]

1 hour ago, Tamadrummer said:

Maybe you could have some input to justify spending $550+ on Synergy?

I'm not a Destroyer, many of you are, I am not. I don't mean to sound like an @$$ but I simply have no intention of dragging my truck over rocks and stumps, not my idea of a good time. 

 

I want quality, my truck may take me years to complete but every part will be of the best I can afford. 

 

I'd like to have crossover steering, however, I already have my Wilwood brakes, I have already sourced my knuckles and have those prepped, I'm not willing to give up my Wilwood for WJ knuckles and piss-poor braking. 

If I were to build an axle from scratch I'd consider moving the TB.........I'd only do that if I were to consider long arms, I'd only consider long arms with independent uppers and lowers, not the BS combo arms I see everyone with. Trade-offs, you accept one thing at the expense of another. And again I'd have to consider my brakes, I'd have to be able to retain my Wilwoods (I really want the 6 pot and 15" rotors for the JK). 

 

"1 Tons"? I've yet to see a stock Jeep, or any other for that matter, tie rod end shear. Wear out and come apart? Sure, but it's called simple maintenance, every part requires maintenance. 

 

New wheels came a week ago, new tires will be the metric equivalent of 35-12.50. I'm currently looking for a SBC block........I've been back and forth on how I want to build this engine, may go mild in the 350-400hp range with the expectation of a Wipple supercharger which could put me near the 600hp range, if and when I can afford it. 

The only thing I'd change in my current front end is RCV axles.

 

 

Why the Synergy? I looked around, studied what others have done, dollar for dollar, $550 well spent. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Smokeyyank]

9 hours ago, Tamadrummer said:

I'm looking for a steering upgrade. I'm going for a 1-ton set up for peace of mind with 35's in future. My mj sees the road often since the closest trail is a 40 minute drive and I drive it around town here and there. My biggest hold up is going with heims or the traditional tre. I keep finding that the heims are stronger but the tre's last longer for wear and tear. With all the mud and sand the mj sees here, I'm wondering if the heims will get gunked up as soon as I get on the trail. Input on the longevity of heims?

 

There's several companies I'm looking at, figure I'd start a poll to see what you guys have had the best experience with. I was thinking for heims I'd go with Cavfab and tre's I'd do Ironman4x4. I know Stinkyfab uses aluminum rods but why not throw them in the mix too. 

 

For the amount you'll spend on a semi decent OTK or 1 ton you're better off spending more and going with a WJ swap if you want a true upgrade. Really all you are doing with most of the "kits" is polishing a turd. Stock geometry on XJ/MJ's sucks along with the brakes. You're not going to reap a lot of benefits and really you're best bet if you don't want to shell out cash is going with a solid tie rod with fresh TRE's and moving on.  

 

As for the Hiems or TRE question. If you are driving on the street TRE's will be better. Hiems are nice but they ride like crap. 

 

Only hiems worth a $#!& are these. They are stupid expensive but amazingly good. 

https://www.emfrodends.com/

 

The stinkyfab tierod is awesome. Aluminum but that thing takes a beating and bounces right back. 

[AZJeff]

10 hours ago, DirtyComanche said:

Heims aren't meant for the street.

 

That is correct.  Heim joints do NOT have any sort of seal to keep out moisture or grit.    Because of this, they wear out VERY fast in regular road use.

[DirtyComanche]

9 hours ago, AZJeff said:

That is correct.  Heim joints do NOT have any sort of seal to keep out moisture or grit.    Because of this, they wear out VERY fast in regular road use.

 

You can actually buy sealed/greasable rod ends from somewhere like EMF.

 

He would spend more money on just the rod ends than any of the poll options would be as a complete kit.   I can assure you that you are paying for a good product, and if I was to run a "Heim" style joint on the street they would be the only option I'd consider, but I didn't bother to mention them since just saying Heims don't belong on the street is a lot easier.

 

The other downside to a Heim/rod end style of joint is most people just drill the knuckle out and put a bolt through in single shear.  This is an abomination at the best of time, and certainly not what should be used on the street.  There is tapered studs to somewhat alleviate this problem, and those combined with a proper safety washer are actually an overall better setup than a TRE/DLE is, but again this is throwing a lot of money around for minimal gain.  The only reason to want to run that style of joint is so you can use proper double shear brackets in the first place, since that's where the real advantage lies.

 

I don't know what I would do in OP's shoes.  Probably not run a D30 with 35s to start with (expect a JK one maybe), so the steering would be fairly moot at that point.