lelandEOD
SILVER Star
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I can tell from the pics that those arms were basically notched to clear the tie rod, removing the upper "T" of the arm. That's definitely going to weaken the arms significantly! It's not necessary to remove that much from the arm and as long as you're not removing any complete portion of the upper "T" it's not going to weaken the arms enough to be a risk.Ticking time bomb, fellas.
This happened to me and @BadReligion on Rubicon last summer.
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Ticking time bomb, fellas.
This happened to me and @BadReligion on Rubicon last summer.
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solid steel, again very heavy only concern is unsprung wieght and now the arms are so strong something else might break i.e. mounts in an impact.
I am out on the boat this weekend, when I get home will take some pics. not to exciting but here is a pic I saw online with the arms not my truck.
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Ticking time bomb, fellas.
This happened to me and @BadReligion on Rubicon last summer.
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The arms are cast into a I beam, If you remove the upper flange of the I beam you definitely have a ticking time bombTicking time bomb, fellas.
This happened to me and @BadReligion on Rubicon last summer.
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It was definitely a good trail fix for a bad situation. That's a rough trail failure and would leave a lot of people stranded. Nice that you had someone in the group with a trail welder.It got us home! And yes, the amount of material he removed from the radius arms definitely led to the failure and he has since replaced them with Delta VS arms. I don't think I saved the close up but if you look closely at the corrosion visible in the first photo, you can tell that a stress crack formed some time ago but it took one good hit to snap the arm in two. Also, the grain structure of the steel really led all of us to conclude the factory arms are cast, not forged. The trail welder @dirtydave agreed and used a fairly ductile filler rod for the scab repair.
I'm not going to debate the how much is ok to remove but rather wanted to raise awareness since many people read topics like these and end up doing something to get themselves in trouble. YMMV.
Also, the grain structure of the steel really led all of us to conclude the factory arms are cast, not forged.
The eimkeith brackets are a nicer design than the MAF ones IMO (if someone were to choose this direction).Just get some MAF drop brackets
In less your going to be hard rock crawling, @eimkeith drop brackets are one of the best way to correct caster and make room for 37s on a small lift.The eimkeith brackets are a nicer design than the MAF ones IMO (if someone were to choose this direction).
There no debate. those arms were hacked.
Whenever something is modified a little common sense is required.
The MAF brackets are beefy. And for the price much easier to install than caster plates. Plus you don't have to hack up the radius arm mounts on the axle. Iron man makes some now as well. I wasted a lot of time trying to fix caster until I bought the brackets. Never had a problem and never got hung up on anything.In less your going to be hard rock crawling, @eimkeith drop brackets are one of the best way to correct caster and make room for 37s on a small lift.
Not sure why they are not more popular!!
I'll be the first to admit it was user error, but sorry for not being a metallurgy expert. I'd argue that my common sense is better than most, but apparently not yours. I clearanced them on the vehicle before a trip and cycled the suspension a few times to make sure the oversized tie rod was not hitting. In hindsight, I probably could have removed a bit less material and not left a sharp notch perpendicular to the top of the arm, which created a stress riser. Now I know. There isn't exactly a "how to" guide on this. They lasted 10 years and multiple trips on the Rubicon, Dusy Ershim, and Moab before failing when 6500lbs of 80 series came down hard on that single arm. Multiple contingencies were in place to get the truck moving again, but in this situation "plan A" worked well.
Lesson learned, fixed likely for good with the Delta Arms. Anything other than castor correcting radius arms on a larger lift and big tires is less than ideal.
The MAF brackets are beefy. And for the price much easier to install than caster plates. Plus you don't have to hack up the radius arm mounts on the axle. Iron man makes some now as well. I wasted a lot of time trying to fix caster until I bought the brackets. Never had a problem and never got hung up on anything.
That's a trip you will never forget. Reminds me of the time my wheel came off lol. Thats my profile picture.
I'm guessing that a pic of a brake caliper (minus tire) buried in dirt/sand