Pete M Posted July 22, 2021 Share Posted July 22, 2021 can you share a picture of this specific issue area? maybe it's not what's in my head. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
watchamakalit Posted July 22, 2021 Author Share Posted July 22, 2021 Just took some pics. Here is what I'm dealing with. The factory holes are oblong front and rear There is visible slop in the hole to bolt fit. And the bolt is sloppy in the trackbar itself. So I am open to suggestions. Core says I can drill the trackbar if nessecary but it doesnt look like I will need to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete M Posted July 22, 2021 Share Posted July 22, 2021 very common. that metal is just too soft for the task at hand. weld on a washer. I'm confident it'll cure your woes, but at the very least it's free to try. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rokinn Posted July 22, 2021 Share Posted July 22, 2021 Mine was wallowed on both sides as well. I welded a hardened washer on the front side and after several years it's still quite snug. Does the job. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
watchamakalit Posted July 22, 2021 Author Share Posted July 22, 2021 Everyone says hardened washer. Does that simply mean a grade 8 washer like the local hardware store would have? Or is it something I have to special order? Given the amount of slop in the track bar bushing itself I am tempted find a bolt that fits it snug and get a washer to fit said bolt. Then weld on the washer and make a new flag nut. Sound like a solid plan? Am I over thinking this? I don't have immediate plans to wheel this truck but it might see some light to medium trail use at some point in the future. Just want to make sure all is well and reliable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
watchamakalit Posted July 22, 2021 Author Share Posted July 22, 2021 I just checked. The trackbar bushing inner is exactly 7/16". So If I get a new 7/16" bolt, washer , and nut. Drill the holes and make a new flag nut it should solve the issue right? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rokinn Posted July 22, 2021 Share Posted July 22, 2021 New track bars range from $14 to $52 for a Moog on Rockauto. Have a shop weld on a proper size grade 8 washer to the front. Ace or whomever has them. If you frequent a particular shop they might just do it for free or a nominal fee. Get a proper length and diameter grade 8 bolt and nut. You don't need a flag nut. A box end wrench will hold it on the back side. I think I used a lock washer also but I don't remember for sure. Torque the crap out of it and check it every once in a while. Drilling out the holes to match a worn out bushing might be the cheap approach but once the track bar wears out completely it just means problems getting getting things back to spec in the future for you or someone else. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
watchamakalit Posted July 22, 2021 Author Share Posted July 22, 2021 Just now, rokinn said: New track bars range from $14 to $52 for a Moog on Rockauto. Have a shop weld on a proper size grade 8 washer to the front. Ace or whomever has them. If you frequent a particular shop they might just do it for free or a nominal fee. Get a proper length and diameter grade 8 bolt and nut. You don't need a flag nut. A box end wrench will hold it on the back side. I think I used a lock washer also but I don't remember for sure. Torque the crap out of it and check it every once in a while. Drilling out the holes to match a worn out bushing might be the cheap approach but once the track bar wears out completely it just means problems getting getting things back to spec in the future for you or someone else. I don't need a trackbar and the bushing isnt worn. That is a core 4x4 tier3 double shear trackbar. Their bushing seems to be oversized. Time to run to the hardware and fire up the zeus machine and get it over with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PIKE Posted July 22, 2021 Share Posted July 22, 2021 On 7/13/2021 at 5:58 PM, phatton said: claytonoffroad.com offers a track bar repair kit with a larger bushing, bolt and nut for about $50. Ebay has listings for track bar repair kits that have a bolt and replacement nut for around $20. If you drill out your existing nut, you will also need a way to enlarge the bushing hole and a way hold the new nut in place while tightening the new bolt. I believe the torque spec it around 135 ft/lbs. If I had this problem, I would go with Clayton Offroads kit. I also used the Clayton kit. For those that don't have access to welding equipment it is good choice. The kit is well thought out and very well made. It uses a 9/16" grade 8 bolt and locking nut welded to a flange for tightening. https://www.claytonoffroad.com/product/jeep-death-wobble-fix-kit Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
watchamakalit Posted July 22, 2021 Author Share Posted July 22, 2021 Less than $5 at the hardware. New grade 8 bolt, washer, and nut. First was to drill out the hole to 7/16". I only had to remove a very slight bit of material. Next was to test fit.... Tack washer in place And final product. Fresh paint makes the welds stronger. Lol All in all a pretty solid fix in my opinion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghetdjc320 Posted July 22, 2021 Share Posted July 22, 2021 The BMB bolt has the threads on the bolt the same diameter as the shank with makes for a tighter fit. No typical hardware store bolt has this. This issue comes from both a very flimsy metal in the axle side track bar mount as @Pete M mentioned and a poor fitment of the standard factory bolt inside the bushing. The washer fix is a good one. Just need the right size bolt as well (one that does not under size the threads even one .001” vs the shank diameter. Few bolts have those specs, thus the BMB kit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eagle Posted July 23, 2021 Share Posted July 23, 2021 11 hours ago, watchamakalit said: I never ruled out the washer idea. Just wanna makee sure I am fixing the issue as permanently as possible. I don't want to just bandaid it. If the original slop is from the trackbar being loose on the bolt the washer won't fix that. It will if the washer is hardened, and properly sized for the bolt. When I bought the '88 Chief, the trackbar hole was badly wallowed out. My good friend, the VW guru, had a bag full of leftover parts from some VW factory service kit. In the bag of parts we found a double-thickness, hardened fender washer and a hardened nut and bolt the correct size and length for the track bar. He welded the washer onto the face of the factory bracket ... and that was that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeep Driver Posted July 23, 2021 Share Posted July 23, 2021 Bolts explained- Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghetdjc320 Posted July 23, 2021 Share Posted July 23, 2021 5 hours ago, Jeep Driver said: Bolts explained- Too much talk about repairing the damage vs fixing the underlying issue. Jeep did not use the correct bolt for the track bar and the hardware store probably does NOT have what you need. Yes a grade 8 bolt will last a while longer and yes you could use a larger bolt and sleeve size. Still is t the right fastener for the application. Great explanation video Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jesse J Posted July 23, 2021 Share Posted July 23, 2021 1 hour ago, ghetdjc320 said: Too much talk about repairing the damage vs fixing the underlying issue. Jeep did not use the correct bolt for the track bar and the hardware store probably does NOT have what you need. Yes a grade 8 bolt will last a while longer and yes you could use a larger bolt and sleeve size. Still is t the right fastener for the application. Great explanation video so what is the underlying issue? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rokinn Posted July 23, 2021 Share Posted July 23, 2021 Great info in the video. Could have said it in half the time but still good non the less. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghetdjc320 Posted July 23, 2021 Share Posted July 23, 2021 9 hours ago, Jesse J said: so what is the underlying issue? It’s the wrong fastener used. Even the oem bolt is wrong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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