anyone running lower long arms and adjustable uppers. i was just wondering because i've got RockKrawler's long arm upgrade on order? just wondering how it flexed and how it compared to the RE drop brackets because i heavily considered those?

thanks
lincoln

I don't know much about the drop brackets, but it sounds like it would keep more the stock geometry, (kinda like those IFS lifts), probably wouldn't offer all the flex of the long arm. It seems to me the long arm increases the radius of your suspension of your suspension offering more "up and down" travel with less "front and back" travel, seems like a good thing to me. I'd install 'em myself, but I'm afraid they'd get in the way of my leafs :)

chad

any new news on the meet/trail ride in Boone?

Aren't these the kind of questions your supposed to ask before you buy something like a lift kit? Just wondering.

oh i'm a 100% on the order i want and im all for it i was just wondering you guys views and if you had seen the two compared?

as far as the globe trip goes we are planning a meet and greet and a globe run on sat. march 16 so i hope you can come!! im going to do a post on here and on JU real soon so everyone willknow, please spread the word>..

thanks
lincoln

Originally posted by woodkrawler
oh i'm a 100% on the order i want and im all for it i was just wondering you guys views and if you had seen the two compared?

Well, let me know how you like it. I spoke to Rubicon about this the other day. I have no personal experience with running the long arms on an XJ but Rubicon seems to think that you will gain nothing from the long arm vs the drop brackets.

I can't remember the guys name but I guess I should say, "one person, that works at Rubicon, with whom I spoke..." :beer:

I would rather use the drop brackets, becouse when u make the
lowers longer and the uppers pretty much stock length it will bind
more than the stock setup, so that meens less flex. You should
of went with some thing like the RE TJ long arms.

oh well i guess im stuck with the long arms.....i still don't understand the difference though.....the drop brackets essentially do the same thing as long arms, that is put your arms more parrallel to the ground to give a better ride and allow more flex. Rock Krawler seems to think this is a good step-up and i wouldn't think they would go to the trouble to manufature something if it didn't work?

lincoln

All I can tell you about drop brackets is that when your on an obsticle they tend to get hung up (some times). We've got them on our xj & one is already cracked. Tried to repair it even make some sort of brace for it but all it did was make things worse. We've been talking some time now about changing over to the long arm kit ... either RE or Tomken. We probably should've had the kit from the very beginning. We wouldn't think about going to a long arm kit if we were going to lose a lot of flex. We've met a bunch of people who own xj's with the kit & watched them on the trails & flexing doesn't seem to be a problem for them. I wish I could tell ya more but I'm not my husband!:laughing:

TJ Chick :flipoff2:

I am suprised you haven't got more responses...

Of course they build that shit. If they can't distinguish themselves as having something "special" they there would be only one company making lifts for TJs at about a bajillon lifts a year.

I am not saying one lift is better than another, but hey if they were all the same it would be pretty boring.

I don't drive my TJ on the street much (3k in last 6 months) and I have a 4" short arm tomken (bastards). With a 1" BL and 35s I rub the tops of front fenders. I guess that is about all I can ask.

Next week SkyRanRubTerTomCurRokFul Inc. is coming out with 20" lift with 6' long Pentaflex Upper and Lower bendable control arms......... I CAN'T WAIT, I've got TWO on order

Were you looking for a pat on the back? Maybe a High Five?

I've seen the drop brackets get fawked on rocks before. If you build your lower arms stout enough, they can take some really strong hits and act like sliders if you come down on them. The other advantage is the custom crossmember that you are going to need to build. Take the opportunity to tuck that tranny and case up nearly flush with the frame rails and gain some clearance. The bind in droop does occur if the lower arm is too short, but basically copy RE's design of the TJ arms and you should be good to go. Check out Brent's site http://www.jeepinjunkie.com for a few pictures and ideas to get you started.

Originally posted by mountain bronco
I am suprised you haven't got more responses...

Of course they build that shit. If they can't distinguish themselves as having something "special" they there would be only one company making lifts for TJs at about a bajillon lifts a year.

I am not saying one lift is better than another, but hey if they were all the same it would be pretty boring.

I don't drive my TJ on the street much (3k in last 6 months) and I have a 4" short arm tomken (bastards). With a 1" BL and 35s I rub the tops of front fenders. I guess that is about all I can ask.

Next week SkyRanRubTerTomCurRokFul Inc. is coming out with 20" lift with 6' long Pentaflex Upper and Lower bendable control arms......... I CAN'T WAIT, I've got TWO on order

Were you looking for a pat on the back? Maybe a High Five?

WTF are you talking about :rainbow:

I don't have any experiance with the drop brackets, but i wouldn't trade the long arms.

some people have obtained the drop brackets from Trailmaster... which are the same as the RE brackets with out the reinforcement... I have had these brackets on for about a 1 and 1/2 years with out trouble.. the RE brackets come with a reinforcing "slider" that I feel transfers all the torsion from flexing to these brackets..(no more torn off mounts!) I love em'!... any one that wheels with me can vouch that I dont have a problem flexing...I have 10.5 inches on my XJ..with 36's... I noticed after the brackets were intalled that alot of the "creaking" in my jeep went away...they had to have helped!... You would have ot really do something stupid to crack these things.. they are binford! I tossed the idea of long arms around for a while before I did this..The brackets put the lower arms on the same plane as if you put long arms on.. it also lowers the upper arms...

milkman

What I was trying to say was... Long arms are proven to improve the ride, especially on the street. Some say that get hung up on rocks, Some say the help you slide over them.

I just the think it is pointless to discuss what is better xyz or abc companies arms...

Drop brackets discussion.. maybe. They you get into the debate of short vs long. NO one person has the right answer. I'm satisfied with short, but then I haven't driven it on the highway in over a year. I think we all need to evaluate what we are looking for in our "bolt-on" lift kits.

I just hate when people talk smack about Rubicon Express vs Tera vs Skyjacker vs Tomken vs Rokcrawler. Until someone lines up a side by side comparison, I don't think we'll ever know "which is better"

Oh and let me quote:
26. No one here cares if Rubicon Express's control arms are better than Teraflex's... make your own damn it!

:beer: :)

I would go with a longarm kit over the drop brackets. But it also depends on your budget. Not everyone has the cash to spend on a strong kit. I know someone that has the RE drop kit, and flex's really well. The only thing I've been concerned with is land the drop kit on a boulder.

MOUNTAIN BRONCO Hit the nail rite on the head!! 4X4XFAR

Originally posted by milkman
some people have obtained the drop brackets from Trailmaster... which are the same as the RE brackets with out the reinforcement... I have had these brackets on for about a 1 and 1/2 years with out trouble.. the RE brackets come with a reinforcing "slider" that I feel transfers all the torsion from flexing to these brackets..(no more torn off mounts!) I love em'!... any one that wheels with me can vouch that I dont have a problem flexing...I have 10.5 inches on my XJ..with 36's... I noticed after the brackets were intalled that alot of the "creaking" in my jeep went away...they had to have helped!... You would have ot really do something stupid to crack these things.. they are binford! I tossed the idea of long arms around for a while before I did this..The brackets put the lower arms on the same plane as if you put long arms on.. it also lowers the upper arms...

milkman

MILK, you and I both know that your drop brackets were the best thing you ever did to the Krinklecarton. (York notwithstanding )
AS for flex. Heck you got more than Me with tera's long arm kit on my TJ. Sure you have 10" of lift and I only have 8".

My advise is this. DROP KIT, Then before you install it. Strenghten it up (not that it needs it in my opinion) But we already found out that they crack AS stated by TJ chick.

Long arms will bend if they are not Super strong. My right side lower TERAFLEX long arm is now bent in an arc. Thanks to a small rock. Small rock, not large Boulder. :rolleyes:

To see milkman's rig click here then look around, Page 2 and page 4 ...... It's the only white XJ with 10" of lift.


http://www.angelfire.com/pa4/pghrocksurfer/

I used the RE TJ long arms and love them for the ride and the articulation. I don't the the stresses put on the drop brackets and unibody rails with the Drop bracket kit. Plus you are still limited by the uppers.

Here's a pic of mine. I still had a little ways to go and my shocks are definately the limiting factor. I have actually had my spring fall out on the pass side before.

http://imagem.webphotos.iwon.com/1000026620/1000026620_118200274341AM0.9362146.jpg

If you use long lower arms and then factory placed upper arms (adjustable or not) then when you flex it's going to pitch your pinion in funny directions. the arms won't move in the same arc potentially causing driveline probs.

If the UCA's you're talking about mount to the lower arms then you've bascially got the y-setup similar to RE TJ longarms. but i don't think you're talking about this type.

Bob

I have the drop brakctes and i can get my spring to come out too, but i have hit it hard when trying to get over logs or steep rocks. kinda sucks but you get used to it. Either one will make your jeep ride and flex better. The brackets are cheaper, but in the long run the long arms would probably be a better bet.

Hey anyone see a write up about the RE control arm brackets install.....and the problem with long arms is BOA...the arm moounts lower the center of teh XJ about 3"

Originally posted by NothernAZxj
Hey anyone see a write up about the RE control arm brackets install.....and the problem with long arms is BOA...the arm moounts lower the center of teh XJ about 3"

I made my mounts inline with the crossmember so I kept the (almost) flat belly. The arms are almost parallel to my driveline.

And like Brent said, I wouldn't trade my longarms - so far...

I just hate when people talk smack about Rubicon Express vs Tera vs Skyjacker vs Tomken vs Rokcrawler. Until someone lines up a side by side comparison, I don't think we'll ever know "which is better"

Stop your damn whining.....if you cant be helpful on the post then shut the fawk up!


I have ran with both the rockcrawler kit and the drop bracket set up....and did not see any dofference.......as with any kit the limiting factor will be the shock.....even without either I can put the front 33" tire about 3" under the body seam....I will be installing the re drop brackets this weekend and maybe figure out how to install a longer shock into the engine bay.

http://www.fototime.com/{39C2A7E4-71BF-44F7-A3AF-85605F0027CC}/picture.JPG
.
http://www.fototime.com/{11616CA9-C46E-4987-B7A8-530217EB9DA1}/picture.JPG
.
Here is a pic of flexy with a rock crawler kit.
.http://www.fototime.com/{5D3BC4FC-7071-483D-94C6-089D186442DC}/picture.JPG

honestly as long as you are looking for a direct bolt on kit there is no one answer. no company makes teh best all around lift but each company makes certain parts better. I love tomkins longarm bracket design over RE's, no on ecan dispute that RE makes teh best all around longarm LCA/UCA's, etc.

going drop downs will provide better flex than the krawler or teraflex kit simply based on the binding factor in keeping a short upper with a long lower.

the drop kits have been known to rip the mounts off without teh reinforcement bracket, which does cost extra to the RE kit the last time I checked.

I would mix and match kits to get the best results or BUILD YOUR OWN.

if you build your own you will more than likely be happiest with the results and it won't cost you a TON of money to replace when something does break.

I ran the RE drop brackets at 6.5" lift with Currie adjustable upper arms and double jonny jointed lower. The flex was awesome and my only complaint is that I did not buy longer shocks or brakelines. Ride and drive was fine. I already threw handling and ride quality out the window when I took off my swaybars and lifted it.

Originally posted by NothernAZxj


Stop your damn whining.....if you cant be helpful on the post then shut the fawk up!


I have ran with both the rockcrawler kit and the drop bracket set up....and did not see any dofference.......as with any kit the limiting factor will be the shock.....even without either I can put the front 33" tire about 3" under the body seam....I will be installing the re drop brackets this weekend and maybe figure out how to install a longer shock into the engine bay.

http://www.fototime.com/{39C2A7E4-71BF-44F7-A3AF-85605F0027CC}/picture.JPG
.
http://www.fototime.com/{11616CA9-C46E-4987-B7A8-530217EB9DA1}/picture.JPG
.

Here is a pic of flexy with a rock crawler kit.
.http://www.fototime.com/{5D3BC4FC-7071-483D-94C6-089D186442DC}/picture.JPG

Ok now you HAVE to come on our Char gap trip on the 25th

Sweet Pics.

Tucson AZ run on 25th Char gap 9Am, see www.azvjc.org:D

exactly where is the char gap @...being form Flagstaff I might hve to drive 6 hours to get there......

Short arm long arm is kinda a non-issue, both have their strengths. One reason I may in the future do the long arm deal is the fact that long armed rigs can climb from a full droop position, where as a short armed rig won't allow its' suspension to compress because the arms are being pushed backwards.
As far as flex here's a comparison of a rig with 33s, 4.5" XJ coils, RE superflex lowers, and stock uppers...
http://home.earthlink.net/~jdrios/Me%20on%20Predator
...and a rig with 35s, 6" ZJ coils, and TJ long arms.
http://home.earthlink.net/~jdrios/AD_6816_015.jpg

Flex is overrated, get lockers.



:beer:

Jes

Originally posted by Jes

Flex is overrated, get lockers.

Jes

Ahh, but it keeps you balanced. Rolling over is overrated. :p

Originally posted by Herzog


Ahh, but it keeps you balanced. Rolling over is overrated. :p

But it's fun! :D


Jes


BTW... the red XJ(Andy) almost rolled it right there, his left rear was at least three feet in the air. When your suspension unloads, it UNLOADS! :)