I did the search thing as well as read all I could find on woody's site, etc. but still have a question. It seems that some are designed with a shackle on the front attachment point and some are not. What is the function of the shackle? Does it not offer the opportunity for axle wrap? I was planning a rod end in front and two poly bushing attachment points in the rear. Am I missing something? Thanks -D

Sheckle allows better movement of the axle and droop. Unless the single rod was designed perfectly.. Which most are not...

So go shackle. And unless you are planning on running a very large Rod end I would run something more like a Johnny joint. Much stronger..
Rod ends are way to easy to break. Especially if the shackle hangs down below the xmember...

Also if you have the room, put the chackle above the xmember. Makes it much easier to keep safe. And keep you from being indebted to Nolen and his "Box o Bolts"
:flipoff2:


I do have to admit that the texans know how to fix junk on the trail..... :)

I can't believe Mace is answering a question on Wrap Bars :flipoff2:

OK, here's the deal. You CAN use a Johnny Joint or a Heim on the front where the bar attaches to the shackle, but it is not necessary.

The way my bar is designed, it has regular rubber bushings where the shackle attaches to the bar and to the crossmember like a traditional shackle.

I am a fan of simple (says the guy with the *&^% LT-1 that he can't work on yet) and I feel that the less crap to break and wear out the better.

Mine flex's fine in the rear without the Heim or Johnny joints.

I run a 5/8" cheap heim on the shackle end with no breakage or problems. I save my good heims (QA-1) for my steering...heh heh Plus, my shackle hangs down, again no problems, but it's above the skid plate so well protected.

not necessary, but at $10 for a cheap 5/8"heim or $18 for a good QA-1, no big expense either.

Shackle is required since the designs are not perfect during articulation and it compensates for any front-to-back axle movement. The shakle is installed verticle, so any wrap transfers straight thru it and it remains controlled.

If Woody's explanation for the need of the shackle isnt simple enough, look at it like this; as your springs flex, the axle will move closer to the rear of the rig or further away from the rear of the rig. If you were to opt not to use the shackle, you are keeping this natural movement from happening. What would happen if you didnt have a slip joint in your driveshaft? Same principle pretty much.;)
By the way, how is the project going?

Originally posted by Jason M
Rod ends are way to easy to break.

Having flashbacks from Pritchett Canyon??? :flipoff2: :flipoff2:

tp

Originally posted by fj40tom


Having flashbacks from Pritchett Canyon??? :flipoff2: :flipoff2:

tp

Should I be embarassed to say that I never fixed that issue???

Still works just fine.
:D

Or at least it will until I get my new framestands that are in the mail..... Then some slight modifications will have to be made....:evil:

Still works just fine.
:D

Nothing like a little trail side "engineering" to keep you running for 5 months:D :D :D

tp

Originally posted by fj40tom


Nothing like a little trail side "engineering" to keep you running for 5 months:D :D :D

tp
Says the guy whose f'n steering box and shock still aren't fixed after numerous "trail repairs"....gone swimmin' lately?
:flipoff2: :flipoff2:
Wise One

Thanks for the replies, sounds like I need to incorporate a shackle into the design and keep it as high as possible. I appreciate the help.

[i]Originally posted by texican
Says the guy whose f'n steering box and shock still aren't fixed after numerous "trail repairs"....gone swimmin' lately?
Wise One [/B]

Actually the steering box IS fixed and has been since that trip through Poteau Hell!!!!!!!

As far as the shock goes, it was never broken, I just opted to only run three shocks. Needless to say with the current mods, I WILL be running 4 new shocks, so :flipoff2: :flipoff2: :flipoff2:

Swimming, Hell Yea, I've been swimming, with your daughter too!!!!

tp

Also if you keep the shackle up, when your axle torques the traction bar wants to go up. Thus your shackle goes to its highest point and stops your spring rap. If you put it down when your axle torques the traction bar still wants to go up... but your shackle can flip around since the shackle is fighting to keep the traction bar down. Hope I described that correctly

Ok, since I'm still SUA I haven't put a anti-wrap bar on my truck yet and the ones I've seen have all had a shackle at the forward end. To me it just makes sense. But a buddy of mine just bought a '64 FJ40 that has 4" skyjackers and shackle reversal up front and a SOA rear with a anti-wrap bar. There is no shackle on his track bar. It is located very close to the center of the axle and there are heim joints on both ends. The truck seems to work very well, and I'm not noticing any real limitations in his suspension travel. For the modest suspension, he's ramping close to 900 and there doesn't seem to be any drawbacks on the trail.

So what gives? When I first saw the truck I thought "huh, there's no shackle on that ladder bar." What is really happening with this setup. Is it putting undue stress on the springs because they aren't able to move in their natural arc because of the "fixed" ladder bar? I guess I'm an idiot but help me learn so I do it right on mine when the time comes.

hey, I just noticed I'm no longer a f-ing newbie! sweet:flipoff2:

Originally posted by adamto
hey, I just noticed I'm no longer a f-ing newbie! sweet:flipoff2:

actually, that post just proved you still are! lol :flipoff2:

Actually, there are many instances where a non-shackled bar can provide proper articulation and such....but if you remove the bar, you may find the pinion reacts differently. Since it's so easy with a cruiser to locate the bar in the middle, next to the diff, and since the axle generally rotates on the center axis, the actual movement of a traction bar is minimal. It's under FULL droop, both sides, that you may see some limitations.

Bummer, blasted back to "newbie" status for opening my big mouth.:(

Good enough explanation on the track bar. Makes sense. As a general rule is sounds like using a shackle is the way to go just so you don't have to worry about possible headaches of designing one without.