More control arm angle iron (1 Viewer)

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, Skimlinks, and others.

Joined
May 7, 2005
Threads
302
Messages
2,352
Location
South Jordan, UT
I've been feeling the need to get a Cruiser-mod fix, but the budget has been tight. After seeing Shotts rear control arm reinforcement, I decided that would do the trick without spending much money at all--even if I don't really NEED to beef up my control arms (haven't been really dragging my 80 over many big rocks).
:princess:
Whatever.
Now I've got a little extra steel on my lower rear control arms that makes me feel better about extreme wheeling in the grocery store parking lot: :flipoff2:

$11 worth of 1 x 1 x 1/8 steel angle from Metal Supermarkets.
A hand grinder.
A friend with a welder.
Some paint.


These are my first ever welds.
Some of them look like bird poo, but I think a few look alright. Turns out the nozzle on the MIG welder needed to be replaced too--before he replaced the nozzle, my buddy's welds started to go downhill as well.
Welds.jpg



I decided to spend a little time cutting and grinding the angles to dovetail into the ends of the control arms. Worked out pretty well,
Painted%201.jpg



The rear ends of the angles are not dovetailed completely to the ends--I left the ends more open so any moisture could drain out.
Painted%202.jpg



Cheap, easy, ultimately harmless and potentially useful.
Now I just need to start bashing rocks more.

Hayes
 
Flipers

WHY NOT FLIP THEM OVER, FOR BETTER GROUND CLEARANCE:idea:
 
Yes, that would protect them when the Space Station falls on them.

-Spike
 
BRKLYN1 said:
WHY NOT FLIP THEM OVER, FOR BETTER GROUND CLEARANCE:idea:

I think I lost about 1 cm :confused: of ground clearance under the tubular sections of the arms. The general idea is to beef the arm AND provide a skid of sorts for any unfriendly contact with big rocks ;)

Hayes
 
Hayes said:
I think I lost about 1 cm :confused: of ground clearance under the tubular sections of the arms. The general idea is to beef the arm AND provide a skid of sorts for any unfriendly contact with big rocks ;)

Hayes

Not much 4 wheelin' in Broklyn!

I think your welds look fine. I'm hoping mine will eventually look as good.
 
2 oo's in Brooklyn
 
BRKLYN1 said:
2 oo's in Brooklyn

For some reason, I found that funny!

-Spike
 
Resurrected (tis the season)

Is there any more opinion this mod? Anyone else done this or flogged this set up.
I have been wanting to do this for a while.

Any last words before the sparks fly?


Thanks,,

ken
 
Resurrected (tis the season)

Is there any more opinion this mod? Anyone else done this or flogged this set up.
I have been wanting to do this for a while.

Any last words before the sparks fly?


Thanks,,

ken

Yes some have flogged them and they holdup. Are they as strong as making new arms from heavy tube, IMHO no, but they do add strength for relatively little effort and $$$.
 
Resurrected (tis the season)

Is there any more opinion this mod? Anyone else done this or flogged this set up.
I have been wanting to do this for a while.

ken

I've done this mod some time ago and they've held up just fine. I did seal the seams so moisture doesn't get in and start corrosion. It ain't pretty but sure works !

Cheers,

Ali
 
I went with the idea that actually getting them sealed--and keeping them sealed--would be difficult. Seems like stuff you think is watertight never is, and it just holds onto moisture better. So I left the back end open to let any water drain out. I also painted them before attaching them. I even sprayed a bunch of WD40 up there (through the drain hole) for giggles.

Haven't bashed them yet.


I'd recommend sealing that seam somehow, water is going to get in there and rust the crap out of that angle iron.
 
Cool ;

Did everyone go with the 1x1 x 1/8 ?

Thanks for the replys.

ken
 
Crikeys mate where are youre ARB lower shock gaurds????
Good mod though.
 
Resurrected (tis the season)

Is there any more opinion this mod? Anyone else done this or flogged this set up.
I have been wanting to do this for a while.

Any last words before the sparks fly?


Thanks,,

ken

Opinions? Sure.

I recently did this mod for a frend with a 100 series, out of necessity after he followed me through some rocks... :D Having done it, I can offer the following-

We used some 1.5" x .188" angle. We cut the angle iron just short of the bushing eyes, then eyeball-cut approximately 45 degree angles on both ends. Quick and dirty, and it gave plenty of clearance for the mounts while keeping the skids as long as possible. I only welded the ends of the finished skids to the arms right up close to the bushing eyes, where the angles contacted the arms. I didn't see any benefit to welding spots all along the arm, and I'm leery of welding on suspension parts any more than necessary- I've heard that welding can actually compromise the integrity of some types of steel, and not knowing what Toyota used I chose to err on the side of caution. I can't see any rock tearing off the angle iron if it's tacked well at two points on both ends. We also left it open at the corners of the angle for drainage, and I really don't see rust as a problem in Arizona. For other locales, the skids could have been painted before welding, and touched up easily after. The choice of 1.5" angle was made for us, as I happened to have a stick lying around. It's probably what I would have bought anyway, as the extra 1/2 inch makes a big difference in strength and didn't compromise clearance.

-Spike
 
Last edited:
I'm planning on doing this mod. i don't think you can get away from some exposure to rust with something like this, so bothering with sealing the seam is likely futile.

Allowing however a way for moisture to escape it crucial to help them last as long as possible. What you do want to be careful as is allowing mud and dirt to get into it and not get back out. The trapped mud is going to trap the moisture.

My plan is to try to cut the ends of the angle so that it can be fully welded to the upper eye of the control arm and keep any other opening small enough to keep as much dirt as possible from getting into the space between the arm and the angle, but still allow water to drain out at the lower eye.

Like I said, all you can do is minimize the corrosion factors as much as possible but I don't think it's possible to eliminate it with this mod. If you're worried about the corrosion, you need to do something else, like build or buy new stronger arms.

With as many miles as I have on my truck, this mod will work great and I'm sure will outlast my truck.
 
Has anyone actually tested their modded arms on the rocks? I haven't had occasion to bash mine up yet.
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Back
Top Bottom