September POTM - FJ55TLC (2 Viewers)

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Yes putting Bilsteins on my ride made a huge difference also. Still have sway bar

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Been thinking about this recently and the relation of more weight up higher changing the center of gravity creating more body roll on pavement driving and more pucker during side hill descents and the like. Additional weight up higher like roof racks and the like compounding the issue.


I too ran without a sway bar for years. I thought it performed much better off road without it. But never got too much into nice quality shocks like these.
 
I hear what you are saying. I didn't want a roof rack either. Then I wanted an awning. Then I wanted 3 awnings. Then I wanted to go solar. So here I am. Did my truck seem top heavy out in Utah? I feel like it is very stable. I have had it around 40 degrees of side hill more than once and it didn't feel like it was going over. I wheeled with a sprung over 60 series with no rack but an interior cage. We hit a 40 degree side hill and he went first. He said he felt his truck get really light feeling and I watched the body roll past it's fulcrum point. Luckily he didn't go over since the side hill was short. I took the same line because there was no choice. Mine felt stable. That was before the Bilstein shocks. I feel like it is more stable now with the same flex it had then with cheaper shocks.
 
Regarding the sway bar. I had years ago a '78 pig with a factory bar on the rear. Drove it years on and off road. Lost the truck in a rear end traffic accident and replaced it with a '79 and no sway bar back there. Not even the tabs on the axle. Been driving the pants off that truck for years and note no difference. Both handle like a pig should. Have also have had it on side hills so bad I have let the air out of the high side tires to get it off.
 
I think my pig handles great. Just the other day I had a stop quickly in front of me in a busy intersection that has a traffic camera. The light was yellow and I knew if I stopped I would get a ticket in the mail so I dropped down to 3rd, accelerated into the next lane, passed the stopped car, and back into my lane before any of the other cars could react. Looked like a over grown street racer.
I do think that the sway bar that was on it helped keep it steady with all the trailer pulling this truck has done.
 
With a small lift (shackles and an additional leaf all around) I don't have any concerns off road at relatively low speeds with or without the swaybar. That's with a rooftop tent and a separate rack. Where I did notice a difference while one of my mounts was broken was on the highway when making sharp turns or quick lane changes. Overall, I'm happy to have the functioning sway bar for a daily driver and occasional wheeling. But I've spent 60 years in 4WD learning how to avoid or bypass the stuff some of you do for sport!
 
I want to clarify that I dont mean "don't follow me you might not make it." More like I may have an unintentional "hold my beer" moment that you may not want to be a part of.
 
Megadoomer said:
I want to clarify that I dont mean "don't follow me you might not make it." More like I may have an unintentional "hold my beer" moment that you may not want to be a part of.
Click to expand...
Happy to be the test mule for winches, snatch straps etc. I make the decisions about who I follow. Much fun and many learning opportunities following you and other others at the OPP (Original Pig Party) gatherings.
 
Great vid. We are headed to Idaho this coming June. We are aiming for stanley area. What were your thoughts on Idaho? Thanks,
Mike
 
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