Steering Stabilizer. Which one is King ? (1 Viewer)

[MrMikeyG]

When I first got my 80 in 2017 the OEM stabilizer was over $200. I scooped up a Tough Dog unit from another mud member and have been running that. Had the OEM unit been closer to $100 back then, I would have gone that route. There seem to be more options today though which helps for all the people who wheel somewhat hard.

 

[Marco Lau]

I am running a Toughdog Steering Stabilizer and it sees a fair bit of rock crawling. I am on 4" lift and 37s....no complaints.

 

[JW21]

Grabbed an Ironman during their memorial day sale.

Huge difference over OEM. Regret hesitating for so long.

 

[jaymar]

Grabbed an Ironman during their memorial day sale.

Huge difference over OEM. Regret hesitating for so long.

View attachment 3023579

I spy some other Ironman goodies there. What all are you running, suspension-wise?

 

[JW21]

I spy some other Ironman goodies there. What all are you running, suspension-wise?

Ome 2.5” heavies and shocks

Ironman Drag link, Front & rear panhard, radius arm drop bracket, steering stabilizer, upper lower rear control arms

Delta sway bar drops, rear panhard bracket, 2” front spacers

Doing all this in prep for some dobinson or slinky 3.5” coils and some new shocks!

 

[thatcabledude]

Grabbed an Ironman during their memorial day sale.

Huge difference over OEM. Regret hesitating for so long.

View attachment 3023579

Your intercooler pipe is integral to your crossmember?

 

[JW21]

Your intercooler pipe is integral to your crossmember?

Yes, there is another crossmember to support the 12v

You can see it behind the steering stabilizer

 

[jaymar]

Ome 2.5” heavies and shocks

Ironman Drag link, Front & rear panhard, radius arm drop bracket, steering stabilizer, upper lower rear control arms

Delta sway bar drops, rear panhard bracket, 2” front spacers

Doing all this in prep for some dobinson or slinky 3.5” coils and some new shocks!

How are the other Ironman components working out? Did you run without them at first, or add when lifted?

 

[JW21]

How are the other Ironman components working out? Did you run without them at first, or add when lifted?

No I lifted first, dealt with stinkbug, then added spacers. Hated the wandering.
The drop brackets really helped with caster/wandering. I will still buy the proper length radius arms in time.

In order of correcting steering on a lifted vehicle (I'm 24.75" front & 25.25" rear center hub to fender with 35x12.5" tires):
1. Radius arm drop brackets (however you achieve caster correction is up to you)
2a. Front & Rear adjustable panhards
2b. Front Spacers (too much rake really makes proper geometry difficult)
4. oversized/aftermarket Steering stabilizer
5. Delta rear panhard bracket
6. Sway bar drops
7. Rear control arms

I imagine that the control arms become increasingly important the larger the lift and tires become.

 

[Brian Maenpaa]

Has anyone used the Icon universal steering stabilizer?

ICON Universal Steeering Stabilizer (Single), 2.0 Aluminum Series Shock Absorber ICON Universal Steeering Stabilizer (Single), 2.0 Aluminum Series Shock Absorber - Icon Vehicle Dynamics

ICON Universal Steeering Stabilizer (Single), 2.0 Aluminum Series Shock Absorber ICON Universal Steeering Stabilizer (Single), 2.0 Aluminum Series Shock Absorber - Icon Vehicle Dynamics

www.iconvehicledynamics.com

I just did. It's too short and their support says I may need to modify my truck? Here's an idea. Don't sell it as compatible with my truck in the first place! Back to the OEM for me...

 

[ColoradoLC]

I just did. It's too short and their support says I may need to modify my truck? Here's an idea. Don't sell it as compatible with my truck in the first place! Back to the OEM for me...

No doubt, what a bummer, and it makes them look less capable as a result of that snafu. I ended up going with the Dobinsons. The rest of my suspension is Icon/Slinky with Blackhawk parts thrown in there as well, for a 4" lift on 35s with 4.88 gears. I was told it was a huge difference to go from the OME 2.5" lift to a 4" lift. I needed to rebalance my rear drive shaft, learn how to measure and adjust my pinion angle, and replace my front driveshaft with a double-cardan from Slee, but after all that, I couldn't see going with the OEM steering stabilizer.

I do like the adjustability of this one, but I have not done a lot of playing around with the settings yet.

 

[Brian Maenpaa]

That's a sweet setup.
Yeah, I was surprised as they were well reviewed. I have OME 2" in the front and 3" in the back on 34s. I also went with Icon 2.0 shocks and I'm not at all happy with them. They don't dampen well at all. They seem sturdy and I liked that they could be re-built, but the bounce is disappointing and I'm already looking for an alternative.
Possibly Iron Man foam cell pros.

 

[ColoradoLC]

That's a sweet setup.
Yeah, I was surprised as they were well reviewed. I have OME 2" in the front and 3" in the back on 34s. I also went with Icon 2.0 shocks and I'm not at all happy with them. They don't dampen well at all. They seem sturdy and I liked that they could be re-built, but the bounce is disappointing and I'm already looking for an alternative.
Possibly Iron Man foam cell pros.

Maybe the combination of OME springs and Icon shocks just does not work well together. Not all shocks and springs are a good match for each other.

 

[Brian Maenpaa]

You might be right. I bought the 2" Front (+220 lb) and rear 3" Rear (+440 lb) OME spring to compensate for load and bumpers, so the ride is a little firm and jangling.
That's why I was surprised that the overall results on impact is bouncy. Even when sitting in the driveway. I jump up and down on the bumper and it bounces TWICE before settling. The OEM shocks settled on one bounce. Not sure what to make of it...

 

[COYS]

Still loving my Dobinsons adjustable steering shocks set right in the middle at 6 clicks. OME mediums + BP-51s also PLUSH.

 

[Corbet]

I can report back now at the end of the summer. Just ran the White Rim last week with my Dobinsons set at the max 12 clicks. Found it very comfortable driving all day. Very little steering wheel kickback. I’m happy with the purchase. It’s a splurge on cost but a decent one.

 

[Brian Maenpaa]

Thanks for the referral...Happy Trails

 

[sunrk]

Fancy steering dampers should be a no-no. They are not there to compensate for other things - RTC dampers are an exceptional no-no.

Use a new factory one.

 

[ColoradoLC]

Fancy steering dampers should be a no-no. They are not there to compensate for other things - RTC dampers are an exceptional no-no.

Use a new factory one.

Why do you say that?

 

[Corbet]

Fancy steering dampers should be a no-no. They are not there to compensate for other things - RTC dampers are an exceptional no-no.

Use a new factory one.

I don’t believe you can make such a blanket statement. There is a place for a premium dampener, but yah, it should not be used to correct other problems.

My truck was pretty steady at 130KPH with one finger on the steering wheel with my old blown steering damper and a bad rod end. I don’t have unlaying steering issues. (Replaced rod end with new damper) But the new Dobinsons adjustable damper does provide a less fatiguing driving experience over rough terrain than a stock unit. And if anything at max dampening it prevents RTC. I’m confident I could drive my truck without a steering damper and probably not even notice much.