tie rod end...help?!

[worshhim]

I replaced the tie rods a year ago with SOR aftermarket kit. Some forum regulars may remember I had a towing issue that had to do with reverse caster. Is it possible for reverse caster to destroy both outer tie rod ends? I now have a "death wobble" that I believe is a result of these bad tie rod ends. Everything else has been resolved and accounted for. Any suggestions? How long should tie rod ends last? What else can cause TRE's to go bad?

 

[inkpot]

Howdy! Even aftermarket TRE's should last a lot more than a year. Even if you forgot to add grease to them occasionally. Can you feel play in them? There are certainly a lot of other possibilites for the wobble. How bad is it? John

 

[worshhim]

Its pretty bad, I took the cruiser in to my alignment guy to have it checked and he says that the ends are done. I can tell that the dust boots are damaged, and I can also hear that somethings loose, but I've checked everything else.

 

[inkpot]

Its pretty bad, I took the cruiser in to my alignment guy to have it checked and he says that the ends are done. I can tell that the dust boots are damaged, and I can also hear that somethings loose, but I've checked everything else.

Howdy! If the dust boots are damaged, there is another problem. That doesn't just happen by itself. Either somebody hooked up an air powered grease gun and blasted them, or somebody used a pickle fork on them trying to pull them apart. IF this is a long term keeper rig, consider going to 4X4Labs high steer system, as it uses 1 ton Chevy TRE's. They should last forever. I have them and I am impressed. John

 

[sterling]

Have you checked your tires?
I had a friend with a lifted RR county one time that had a death wobble that scarred the hell out of me ..turned out his tires were worn unevenly and trashed
I just replaced my tre's with the CCOT units and hope to get more than a year out of them.
Keep us posted and good luck

 

[90FJ62]

I have gotten 2 years out of my CCOT tre's and they seam to be doing fine. I did have death woble but mine was from a bent rim that is now on the back of the truck. I have heard many recomendations on going with high steer and 1 ton joints or swapping to 80 series joints as both would be an upgrade....


Dave

 

[worshhim]

I am the only one who's greased the thing. And I have a hand pump...so...what else can cause the failure?

 

[lovetoski]

This is kind of a wierd problem. When you say "reverse" caster - have you had it measured by an alignment shop? And, if it was out of spec, have you taken the appropriate steps to return it to spec? For example, if the caster is wrong because of your lift, you need shims. With the wrong caster, you might get (not positive, just guessing) some additional stress on the TRE's so they'd wear faster than normal.

My sense from your post is that the TRE's are the symptom, and you've got to solve the problem.

 

[worshhim]

I put the correct caster shims on with the lift, but installed them backwards. I have since corrected the problem, but would like to figure out if this could have caused the tre's to wear out in a little over a year.

 

[inkpot]

I put the correct caster shims on with the lift, but installed them backwards. I have since corrected the problem, but would like to figure out if this could have caused the tre's to wear out in a little over a year.

Howdy! About the only way you can really damage the TRE's is to force them past the maximum angle of travel they are designed for. Or, they are not installed correctly. I have seen a set of them that went into the tappered seat so far that they had almost no angular travel available. Could be wrong parts or the tappers are worn out and way too loose. John

 

[lcwizard]

or it could just be an inferior brand, what country were they manufactured in?

 

[worshhim]

JAPAN

 

[lehiguy]

A good deal of after market wheels (made with Chevys in mind) may actually hit your TREs. This is what happened to me; the wheel weights ate the boots off the TREs and they were dead within a year from dirt, water etc. Take a look and see if that's what is happening to yours. I don't think that you could have killed the TREs from incorrect caster, but that is what is causing your death wobble, this I know from experience. Even with a mechanicly sound steering and suspension system, too little caster will give you the death wobble like you've never seen it.

 

[worshhim]

I have corrected the caster, alignment is good, original wheels. My thought is that the caster ruined the TRE's, then the bad TRE's caused the wobble. But what I am trying to figure out is if there was another cause for the dead tre's. Everything else checks out: wheel balance, tire wear, alignment, knuckle bearings...etc.