Welcome to the next contribution to the
The Official Pirate4x4.com Jeep Talk Bible (http://www.pirate4x4.com/forum/showthread.php?t=705122)

Topic of the Month Traction Bars
Show us your different traction bar setups to control your leafsprings.

This does not include other suspension link designs. You should be here to add tech post your results, keep the newbie type questions to a minimum.

I have been looking on NAXJA and here for XJ Traction bar pics... I have seen a few pics here and there... I like Timmy's design from way back (square tube)

I don't have any metal shops local that have access to ordering DOM easily (I have asked before and I'd need a 30ft stick or so for an order :( from my favourite supplier I am friends with)

-I want to mount something on the drivers side for relatively ease of installation, I know it won't fight torque to the passenger side, but does it have any other negatives mounting it on the drivers side?

-I would like to use square tube as it is easier for me to purchase... my supplier can get HREW but will I be able to find bungs for it? I haven't uncovered much info on here how that sizing works... I know I can get square bung's through suicidedoors.com

-Materials... I have no idea how thick one of these things should be... I thought about using 1/8" box tube and truss it appropriately, as well, try to make it a "v" shape rather then "y" shaped to help spread the load of the upper link/arm and not place stress on the middle of the traction bar. Thoughts on this?

-I want to run bushings at the axle end and a Johnny or Hiem at the frame mount with a shackle mounted in "tension". I like timmy's "sway shackle" but for simplicities sake I'll stick with what most people use. What I am debating about now is should I build a custom cross member to mount the traction bar or should I make an additional bolt on cross member behind the tcase? The longer the traction bar the better or?

If I build a custom cross member I will be incorporating my link mounts for future long arms...

I went a different route than most people, and it works well... and it's cheap.
I used 1/4"wall 2.5" square, with round 3/8wall 2"DOM inside.
All that's needed for a joint is a simple bushing and solid bracket.



http://i131.photobucket.com/albums/p320/hintonsooner/IMG00258.jpg



http://i131.photobucket.com/albums/p320/hintonsooner/IMG00260.jpg



More on this, here. (http://www.rockhardxj.com/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=2227&start=0&hilit=traction+bar)

what about side load binding? This is something your design does not take into consideration, when you use a fixed bushing without a heim? A seen a lot of toyota guys run a setup like you posted but as the axle travels up and down do we not get very slight rear steer? I am assuming you hope the bushing will deflect enough of that movement not to rip the mount off?

Then put a heim on it.
It's not like I just made this and haven't run it, I know it works.
Maybe it is taking a lot of deflection, but it works, and besides a few shots of wd40 before a run, it's maintenance free.
I've watched it to see how it's holding up and there are no isues at all.

Then again, I'm not running full-bodied either, so it won't see those kinds of side loads you might be thinking of.

I do like the simplicity of it though, I think I may go the heim route to eliminate any possible binding on the front mount...I can't believe you spun the whole diff :eek:

I do like your concept however it might be a little too noisey for a daily driver (at this moment). Winter up here is also an issue in regards to corrosion so without some kind of boot your design wouldn't work that well for me :(

Looking at your pics, did you spin only one side of the diff or did you bust both plug welds?

The tube that the TB is attatched to stayed solid, the spot welds in that side busted and the housing spun and wrapped the p/s spring.
I'm not getting a lot of noise out of it, but you're probably right about corrosion, and an old shock boot (remember those? :D) would fix that.

For front leafs I would do it this way to protect the main leaf.

Some of the old pics dont work.
http://www.pirate4x4.com/forum/showthread.php?t=332171

Like this with bushings at both ends, no slot on the frame side, more vertical separation at the leaf spring center pin, and the closer to the leaf spring frame mount the better. It will make you leaf stiffer, half the leaf spring will have some binding making the other half do most of the spring work.
http://www.pirate4x4.com/albums/stgeorge_2004_tech/afr.jpg

Couple of links I have.

http://pirate4x4.com/forum/showthread.php?t=715483

http://pirate4x4.com/forum/showthread.php?t=672712

http://pirate4x4.com/forum/showthread.php?t=464319

It's not like I just made this and haven't run it, I know it works.


I call BS! :flipoff2:

http://i36.tinypic.com/xntczk.jpg

That's not axle wrap, Opie, that's the spring unloading.

the slip and twist seems like the ideal way to go... it's just a matter of finding the right materials around here...

Ashman, I went through the link you posted, but HOW THE HELL can that not cause binding on the leaf?
As the leaf compresses, it moves further back correct? At least this is my understand of XJ leafs and the factory off set. So if that piece of steel is attached with no slip won't it be pushed and pulled? With enough vertical separation it could be possible without binding but how would I find that out?

Terry, so far you have the best design from the looks of it, and it's compact which is nice, I don't have much room to play with a properly placed shackle from the looks of things. Plus I might be able to mount this on the passenger side to help with torque steer :D

how is that not axle wrap?

Couple of links I have.

Some I have.

http://www.rockhardxj.com/viewtopic.php?f=25&t=2523

That's not axle wrap, Opie, that's the spring unloading.

how is that not axle wrap?

Im not saying it was, im saying that your traction bar works, and that it still flexes.

My traction bar:
4 Large RE joints, 2 at the axle, one welded to the cross member, and one at the end of the bar.

1.75x.120 main tube, 1.25x.120 upper and connector.

Something like 6"-7" of vertical separation at the axle, and the shackle is like 4.5" eye to eye (not sure on the measurements, but that is an approximate guess)

Used a shackle. virtually NO bind because the shackle allows it to move...

I wish the link were flatter, and higher mounted on the axle housing - the rear end stands up a little bit when I'm 'getting it' and I attribute that to the angle of the bar at ride height - but its not annoying enough to deal with...

http://www.opiebennett.com/images/Jeep/Shop42708/stp82796.jpg

http://www.opiebennett.com/images/Jeep/Shop42708/stp82797.jpg

http://www.opiebennett.com/images/Jeep/Shop42708/stp82798.jpg

http://www.opiebennett.com/images/Jeep/Shop42708/stp82799.jpg

Broke right in the middle, where looking back on it, is exactly where it should have broken...
http://www.opiebennett.com/images/Jeep/CalRocs5408/_0739.jpg

http://www.opiebennett.com/images/Jeep/CalRocs5408/_0740.jpg

http://www.opiebennett.com/images/Jeep/CalRocs5408/_0741.jpg


used a 110 flux core welder to fix it -
http://www.opiebennett.com/images/Jeep/CalRocs5408/img_0917.jpg

http://www.opiebennett.com/images/Jeep/CalRocs5408/img_0918.jpg

http://www.opiebennett.com/images/Jeep/CalRocs5408/img_0931.jpg

haven't even taken it off to paint it, its still working just fine with the extra plate on the top and bottom...

ranger, I like how you tucked your muffler out of the way... smart move... I may have to do something like that in the future... Do you think your bar is too short causing the steeper operating angle? Would it have been better to mount it to your skid/cross member? This is what I was planning...

http://photos-c.ak.facebook.com/photos-ak-sctm/v184/242/36/740660296/n740660296_2134970_1616.jpg
http://photos-296.ll.facebook.com/photos-ll-sf2p/v198/242/36/740660296/n740660296_2240739_9610.jpg

Building a cross member like so, and attaching the bar on the back side of it, I realize it does hang down a little bit... I may try to improve on the guys design... to tuck stuff up and out of the way

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v94/jpaddock/Jeep/IMGA0068.jpg

I'd probably stuff it right where the link arms and cross member bolt together. Anything bad about that idea except for the fact that it's held in by 4 factory bolts :eek:

how is that not axle wrap?

Because I don't get axle wrap.:smokin:

;9108356']ranger, I like how you tucked your muffler out of the way... smart move... I may have to do something like that in the future... Do you think your bar is too short causing the steeper operating angle? Would it have been better to mount it to your skid/cross member?
Naw, then it'd be too long. I wish that Id done the shackle hanging down instead, and the long tube of the traction bar off the top of the traction bar for more ground clearance.

If my traction bar ended where the lower RE joint on the cross member is, and the shackle hung down it might work better...

the more I've worked with links in suspensions, the more I've come to notice the flatter the links are, the better the suspension works...

Here is a one I posted on here a while back. Seems to have worked fine for me. I'm glad it's beefy because it's taken some abuse without failure. My biggest complaint is the ground clearance with the crossmember. I am re-doing my cage right now and planned to address the x-member.

http://www.pirate4x4.com/forum/showthread.php?p=7384320#post7384320

In the ideal world, where should the shackle be? Seems most put it behind the tcase output, and in front of the spring hanger.

I did the slip n twist version... seems more logical to me

The steel I found fit together but it was a little snug. I turned the inner tube down a bit on the lathe and turned a grease spiral as well...

I wanted it to act as a driveshaft skid as well as a good non-binding functional anti-wrap bar... It has done all those duties very well for a couple years of beating now...

For your questions...
Material : ~.25" (it's a driveshaft skid)
Joints: I did all bushings
Mounting: Front is even with the t-case yoke (fixed, no shackle).

Note: It's a lot easier to package the front mount when there is no shackle.

keepviper13, I have seen a few of your pics before when I was looking how to fix my front leaf spring hangers... what did you do for the top of the hanger? It looks like you don't have anymore floor :laughing:

I like how you tied it into the subframe brace, looks beefy as hell!

As well your slip and twist looks very good... I like the machine work for the grease package. Nobody here gets any odd side loading that causes binding for their anti-wrap bar? I can't believe that...The more pics I see of the slip and twist the more I like it due to it's compactness. Are a lot of you guys running poly or rubber bushings, which would have more give obviously

;9109361']Nobody here gets any odd side loading that causes binding for their anti-wrap bar? I can't believe that...The more pics I see of the slip and twist the more I like it due to it's compactness. Are a lot of you guys running poly or rubber bushings, which would have more give obviously

Man, put down the keyboard and go wheeling. :laughing:

Only way you'll get side loading is if yer leaf spring bushings are shot...the axle shouldn't be moving sideways at all...

;9109361']keepviper13, I have seen a few of your pics before when I was looking how to fix my front leaf spring hangers... what did you do for the top of the hanger? It looks like you don't have anymore floor :laughing:
I like how you tied it into the subframe brace, looks beefy as hell!

Back when i started on this jeep I tackled the floor/subframe first... Floor was rusted out so I put all new metal in. I was young, inexperienced and I got the first thing that was cheap (nearly free). Gobs of 3/16th plate:eek:. Looking back it was WAY overkill and just started the fattening process of the pig. But it has made mounting some things over time pretty easy... ie.. the front mount for the anti wrap is just tabs coming off the bottom of the floor boxed in and gusseted.



Are a lot of you guys running poly or rubber bushings, which would have more give obviously
I think they were rubber, but can't say for sure.

Man, put down the keyboard and go wheeling. :laughing:

Only way you'll get side loading is if yer leaf spring bushings are shot...the axle shouldn't be moving sideways at all...

Hey now if you want to get technical look at our average post counts :flipoff2:

I'm just asking questions so when shit hits the fan and I listened to everyone else I'll just blame you :laughing:

Plus I don't wheel in the winter... have you ever cleaned frozen mud? Sucks the fart out of my ass, that's how shitty it is! Not to mention the ruts tardbang's leave now are what are are there for good in the spring.

I'll get out there, with my baby full body pos... I just want to build her right before she cracks apart :eek:

Anybody else have a traction bar?

Yep. Mine on the passenger side with stock exhaust and a magna flow muffler.

Well I had some bad axle wrap with my custom bastard leaves. Bent my perches.

http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k51/hadfield4wd/My%20Jeep/axlewrap001.jpg

Had wavy springs. I don’t think they are supposed to be wavy like this.

http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k51/hadfield4wd/My%20Jeep/forkliftflex3.jpg

I bought a new set of BDS springs which I promptly took apart and inserted full length deaver spring liner so I didn’t want to ruin new springs. So I built a traction bar.

To get the dimensions right I had to cut a hole in the floor of the jeep.

http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k51/hadfield4wd/My%20Jeep/cuttingfloor.jpg

http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k51/hadfield4wd/My%20Jeep/tractionbar3.jpg

Here is the bracket on the cross member.

http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k51/hadfield4wd/My%20Jeep/tractionbar2.jpg

I covered it with a bread pan. Yep a bread pan works great then I sprayed it with spray on bed liner. Can hardly see it.

http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k51/hadfield4wd/My%20Jeep/loafpan2.jpg

http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k51/hadfield4wd/My%20Jeep/tractionbar7.jpg

http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k51/hadfield4wd/My%20Jeep/tractionbar9.jpg

Now for the axle side. I had a buddy make me a bracket because I needed it custom fit on the 9”. I also had to get a new muffler. I got the magnaflow you can see in these pics because of its size.

http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k51/hadfield4wd/My%20Jeep/tractionbar6.jpg

http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k51/hadfield4wd/My%20Jeep/tractionbar10.jpg

http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k51/hadfield4wd/My%20Jeep/tractionbar11.jpg

http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k51/hadfield4wd/My%20Jeep/tractionbar12.jpg

Here you can see it doesn’t hang below the axle so it won’t get caught on anything.

http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k51/hadfield4wd/My%20Jeep/tractionbar15.jpg

Helps protect the driveshaft.

http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k51/hadfield4wd/My%20Jeep/tractionbar16.jpg

Here is the bracket on the cross member.

http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k51/hadfield4wd/My%20Jeep/tractionbar2.jpg





I like your set up. It all looks good to me. Your crossmember is really cool. I may have to redo mine.:D

Here's mine, which I've got absolutely no trail time on yet, haha.

To prevent binding at the crossmember mount, I decided on a dual flex joint design using large size Rubicon Express SuperFlex joints. One joint is welded to my crossmember, the other joint is on the end of the traction bar. My DPG belly skid is doubling as the crossmember mount for the traction bar.

http://jeepin.net/photos/d/4518-2/100_1810.jpg

I purchased the axle brackets from DIY4x.com and was able to order them to my specs as far as bolt hole and axle tube size. They're 3/8" thick.

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/216/525753440_9f7d5cb8fb.jpg

The lower part of the bar is 1-1/2" x 1/4" wall DOM tubing. The upper bar (red) is an old SkyJacker RockReady trackbar I had laying around. It is 1" x 1/4" wall and threaded for a 3/4-16 heim joint already, so I got a Boulder Bushing with a 3/4-16 stud on it from M.O.R.E. The lower bushing is a standard Boulder Bushing, also from M.O.R.E. The cross brace is a section of factory XJ tierod, haha.

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1161/557699328_3b51706458.jpg

The traction bar is pretty long, and the upper bar only goes about half way up. This leaves a long section of just the 1.5 x .25" tubing which is where my concern with bending lies. Total length is 45.5". I may go back and sleeve the main tube with some 2" x 1/4" wall tubing.

The shackle plates are actually for a trailer and I got them from Northern Tool for a few bucks. They are 1/4" thick and turned out to be exactly the size and bolt hole spacing I was planning on anyway so I saved some time by just buying them already made.

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1074/525755140_a6b1ffb1e4.jpg

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1012/525842817_9414b63ed7.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3042/2868505183_64346b0147.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3250/2869335750_849898734d.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3002/2869336066_132f55a8d3.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3173/2868506533_db743d53e5.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2005/2869337014_b624a65c6e.jpg

Quick question for you guys that did a slip-n-twist design, do they clunk at all?

Mine doesn't clunk... but what are you thinking would make a clunk noise to begin with?

Mine doesn't clunk... but what are you thinking would make a clunk noise to begin with?

If you didn't have some pretty close tolerances on the slip fit, like how yours is done, it just seems like it might clunk some. Loose (no pun intended) analogy would be how a drawbar insert clunks around inside a receiver hitch because of the loose fit.

Mine doesn't clunk too much.
A little preload on the TB during install helps.


I do have concerns, though, about your upper bar not helping much at all (in a wheeling application).
I see tacos in your future.
Maybe a little more beef would do the trick.

damn some nice designs have been posted up :), looks like my plan to make a custom cross member and make the mount there will need to be changed as the bar will be far too bloody long. After thinking about it, I'm probably going to end up building one with a shackle type design. Only because I don't think I'll be happy with a slip and twist on a DD for some reason I foresee myself kicking my own ass in the near future :laughing:

Mine doesn't clunk too much.
A little preload on the TB during install helps.


I do have concerns, though, about your upper bar not helping much at all (in a wheeling application).
I see tacos in your future.
Maybe a little more beef would do the trick.

Honestly I'm not really worried about the top bar, other than possibly the bushing threads stripping out or something. The lower bar is what I'm concerned will bend because of how long it is and that the upper bar only goes to just past the middle of it. I may go back and sleeve the main tube with some 2" x 1/4" wall tubing to beef it up.

http://i118.photobucket.com/albums/o106/BerzerCo/1168894089.jpg

http://i118.photobucket.com/albums/o106/BerzerCo/1168894195.jpg

Why is the shackle used on the crossmember side mount? Does it move back and forth when axles wrap occurs? I'm new to all this and needing to fab up a traction bar for my Jeep.

Why is the shackle used on the crossmember side mount? Does it move back and forth when axles wrap occurs? I'm new to all this and needing to fab up a traction bar for my Jeep.

It moves back and forth when the suspension compresses and rebounds.

Although this is my first post to Pirate and I am no engineer, I have done some testing with track bars on circle track cars and Dragsters. I realize there are many more torsion forces and much more twisting with crawling rather than left turns or go strait stuff. BUT I have found it causes TONS of spring bind. the spring can't work the way it is designed to. What we have done to fix this is use spring sliders. They mount between the leaf and the axle. It allows the axle to drop and raise without binding the springs. I wish I had a pic to add but I think you can find them on speed way motors or other left turn parts sites. And no I do not work for them, just tying to help shed some light form a different perspective. (I worked my way up to Pro Mod 6 second doorslammers with 2000hp blown alcohol engines):p

FWIW, I sell a 95% bolt on kit for this. I'm not going to intentionally pimp my product since I don't have a yellow star, but for the sake of this thread i'll post up a ton of pics.

That being said, here's my origional design. It worked great, but sacrificed ground clearance at the crossmember side.

The reason is because I made this shifty shackle instead of using a flex joint.

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i273/Timmay822/CIMG8083Medium.jpg

You can see the crossmember mount had to be a little lower here..

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i273/Timmay822/Traction%20Bar/CIMG7961Medium.jpg

All tacked up.

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i273/Timmay822/Traction%20Bar/CIMG7982Medium.jpg

Finished. You can see the evap canister has to be relocated. Easy to do though.

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i273/Timmay822/Traction%20Bar/CIMG8191Medium.jpg

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i273/Timmay822/Traction%20Bar/CIMG8192Medium.jpg

I wheeled and DD'd that setup for almost two years before I built a production one that fixed all the issues I had.

Here's the one I currently run, and sell. It's basically the same design, but streamlined, lighter, and uses a flex joint.

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i273/Timmay822/Traction%20bar%20production/IMG_2352Medium.jpg

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i273/Timmay822/Traction%20bar%20production/P6202195Medium.jpg

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i273/Timmay822/Traction%20bar%20production/overall_Model.jpg

Here's how I went about fixing the exhaust (the first time around) when I put in my 14bff. There wasn't enough room on the driver's side of the housing, so I moved the traction bar to the pass side.

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i273/Timmay822/Paragon%20comp%20pics/CIMG9712Medium.jpg

I used a 4" diam Magnaflow muffler and set it between the traction bar and framerail. Fit perfect.

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i273/Timmay822/Traction%20Bar/CIMG9741Medium.jpg

Then the tailpipe went up and over the axle, around the shock, over the leaf, and dumped under the quarter.

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i273/Timmay822/Traction%20Bar/CIMG9758Medium.jpg

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i273/Timmay822/Traction%20Bar/CIMG9760Medium.jpg

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i273/Timmay822/Traction%20Bar/CIMG9762Medium.jpg

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i273/Timmay822/Traction%20Bar/CIMG9766Medium.jpg

Of course, putting the chevy 60 in and unflipping my 300 allowed my exhaust to come out of the header and run straight back on the driver's side.


Coming from someone who ran the bar on both sides, i'd recommend the passenger side without a doubt. Running it on the driver's side didn't combat the torque of the motor and caused a ton of lift on the street. With it on the passenger side, it cancels out. Works great, plants the power, and I can't say enough good things about it.


I have some more recent pics of the one on my XJ that i'll post up when I get some free time. I've probably changed the design ten times, and posted maybe 3 of them. The current one works fantastic and I don't see myself touching it for a while.

So how much $ are you getting for one of your traction bar kits?

Why are some on the passenger side and the others on the driver side?

I am going to be building one soon and i was just going to put it on which ever side had the longers axletube so it would be closest to the middle. Figure the closest the the middle, the less bind there would be on it. Right?

Also, I am planning on using 1.5" OD .25" wall DOM I had left over from my steering. Will that be strong enough?

Why are some on the passenger side and the others on the driver side?

I am going to be building one soon and i was just going to put it on which ever side had the longers axletube so it would be closest to the middle. Figure the closest the the middle, the less bind there would be on it. Right?

Also, I am planning on using 1.5" OD .25" wall DOM I had left over from my steering. Will that be strong enough?

See Timmy's post ^^
Material should be fine for the application...

What I would like to know is... If you make a Slip and Twist design... will it work well on either the drivers side OR the passenger side? I dropped $140CAD on a Super40 a few years ago and really don't want to drop another $150 on a magnaflow 4" round muffler (just checked through work) because of space constraints if a slip and twist won't give me as much rear lift/anti-squat I'd much rather mount it on the drivers side...

I'd like to know the price of one of Timmay's setups as well!

http://i159.photobucket.com/albums/t136/LEXISS0712/101_0692.jpg
I did not build this, it was on the samurai when i bought it but it deff works great but for an xj i would recommend more beef and the heim is clunky now but flexes great and doesnt bind.

I'm glad somebody bumped this. Good topic.

What do you guys think about this design?
http://www.jeepaholics.com/tech/bambar/

What are the drawbacks to the slip and twist style? It just looks so much easier to build and package and it'd definitely be cheaper for me to build.

Thanks,
Billy

I'm glad somebody bumped this. Good topic.

What do you guys think about this design?
http://www.jeepaholics.com/tech/bambar/

What are the drawbacks to the slip and twist style? It just looks so much easier to build and package and it'd definitely be cheaper for me to build.

Thanks,
Billy

I've done the bambar... it worked fine... May have not eliminated the wrap but it certainly put a huge dent into it...

Drawbacks...
-Needs lots of room above the diff (ie cut floor out to fit)
-All of it gets welded to the cast diff.. (or a truss that needs added)
-It's effectiveness goes down the shorter it gets...
-Can change pinion angle if not designed well or under long travel

Benefits...
-Nothing over a slip n twist but all of an anti-wrap bar...


I have the slip n twist now... it works great

Drawbacks...
-Anyone?
-Maybe the trouble in finding two pieces of metal that fit together? (i cut mine down for a perfect fit on the lathe)

Benefits...
-It works flawlessly
-I would say the key benefit has been using it as a driveshaft skid... I used to rock the driveshaft pretty often but since the slipntwist I haven't really hit it since...

I've done the bambar... it worked fine... May have not eliminated the wrap but it certainly put a huge dent into it...

Drawbacks...
-Needs lots of room above the diff (ie cut floor out to fit)
-All of it gets welded to the cast diff.. (or a truss that needs added)
-It's effectiveness goes down the shorter it gets...
-Can change pinion angle if not designed well or under long travel

Benefits...
-Nothing over a slip n twist but all of an anti-wrap bar...


I have the slip n twist now... it works great

Drawbacks...
-Anyone?
-Maybe the trouble in finding two pieces of metal that fit together? (i cut mine down for a perfect fit on the lathe)

Benefits...
-It works flawlessly
-I would say the key benefit has been using it as a driveshaft skid... I used to rock the driveshaft pretty often but since the slipntwist I haven't really hit it since...

Awesome. I appreciate the explanation.

I'm totally leaning toward the slip and twist style. Your machined "grease spiral" is fawking tits! http://www.slicky.net/smilies/cool.gif

Billy

Yeah, that grease goove is a great idea.
On the one I built, I never saw a drawback.
A little WD-40 every once in awhile kept it happy.
Also, I put a little preload in it, to cut back on any clunking, which seemed to do the trick.

http://i118.photobucket.com/albums/o106/BerzerCo/1168894089.jpg
http://i118.photobucket.com/albums/o106/BerzerCo/1168894195.jpg
http://i118.photobucket.com/albums/o106/BerzerCo/DSC00251.jpg
http://i118.photobucket.com/albums/o106/BerzerCo/DSC00214-1.jpg

Well, I'll through "my" design in for chuckles.
It represents the combining of many ideas garnered from a ton of posts on this subject.
It's made of 3/16 tube bushed with 3/16 DOM to transition to JJs.
I wanted to be able to allow for all axis of movement, and be able to adjust length and virtical angle to accommodate changes in lift, or need to adjust pinion angle.
So far, so good. No spring wrap with may Chevy, and no wheel hop. I'm happy!
Front connection integrated with Tomkin skid shield

http://img444.imageshack.us/img444/7587/img0953gx9.th.jpg (http://img444.imageshack.us/my.php?image=img0953gx9.jpg)
http://img98.imageshack.us/img98/7849/img0916ga6.th.jpg (http://img98.imageshack.us/my.php?image=img0916ga6.jpg)

Axle brackets integrated with axle truss to avoid tubes spinning in diff center section.
http://img98.imageshack.us/img98/9391/trackbar3xg2.th.jpg (http://img98.imageshack.us/my.php?image=trackbar3xg2.jpg)

The lower, rear arm looks vulnerable and weak. I've incorporated a brace that is not shown (blurry picture). The purpose of this link is to allow adjustability of vertical angle, in case I need to adjust pinion angle due to changes in lift (I did!).

http://img444.imageshack.us/img444/7368/img0956ef4.th.jpg (http://img444.imageshack.us/my.php?image=img0956ef4.jpg)
http://img98.imageshack.us/img98/8053/trackbar1wb2.th.jpg (http://img98.imageshack.us/my.php?image=trackbar1wb2.jpg)

I apoligize for the "thumb nails, and being routed off to Image Shack--they have made changes to their site since the last time I downloaded pics.

Would there be any benifit to raising the axle mount up a couple inches to get a flatter link, or does it need to be around the axle center line?


Does the length of the shackle matter?

Finally, most people seem to mount it as close to the tcase output as possible. Does it make any sense to mount it by the spring mounts? Seems like the traction bar would follow the arch of the spring flexing better then it would if it would mounted by the tcase.

In my opinion, the top bar should be level, and as long as you can make it. Intuitively, it should be the length of the drive shaft. If you are going to mount it on the driver's side, I think it should as close to center as you can get it.
The length is important to control "anti-dive"; too short, and you significantly increase the tendency for the rear to lift under acceleration, and drop under braking.
The shackle length is a compromise between too short; IE: will not accommodate changes in distance between the attachment point and the rear axle as the suspension compresses/extends, or so long as not to allow the bar to be level, or hangs down too far, and collects "dust".
A number of individuals have had problems with the axle tube having the track bar attached to it remain stationary (that's the idea) while the center section rotated on the tube (not good). The welds that hold the tubes in place shear, allowing the tube to rotate. Suggested solutions included welding the steel tubes to the cast center section, and/or building a truss to connect the left/right tubes together, and adding a center brace to connect the truss to the center section. Then weld the traction bar mounts to both the axle tube and the truss--like my pictures, above, show.

Would there be any benifit to raising the axle mount up a couple inches to get a flatter link, or does it need to be around the axle center line?


Does the length of the shackle matter?

Finally, most people seem to mount it as close to the tcase output as possible. Does it make any sense to mount it by the spring mounts? Seems like the traction bar would follow the arch of the spring flexing better then it would if it would mounted by the tcase.
Im going to bump this thread again for a couple questions I have.

Again, does it matter where the axle side mounts are? Im contemplating mounting the lower at or slightly above the axle centerline.

Does the length of the shackle matter? I see some that are 6'' long and others that are less than 3'' long. Seems a shorter one will allow s flatter link and better packaging. Any downsides to that?

For those of you who put the bar even with the driveshaft, do you really protect the driveshaft at all, or would it be more beneficial to bend the lower link for clearance?

Anyone have thoughts on bushings vs heims/JJs on the axle side?

I used 1.5x.25" DOM, axle tabs from ballistics, 7/8" QA1 rod ends, stock xj shackle, bushings from ballistics at the alxe end. had to cut the floor a little and box over it but nothing hangs down low! Works great!

Did the tried and true shackle setup. Bought the parts from Dan @ Ruffstuff. Great kit, all I had to do was cut things to length.

I didn't use the moon plates he has that tie the bushing cradles together, and I added the two small pieces of tube between the upper/lower arm. Upper is 1.5 x .250, lower is 2 x .250. Works perfect.

Mine is fairly long since I have an MJ and a short drivetrain so the crossmember is fairly far forward.

http://i888.photobucket.com/albums/ac84/MoparManiacCuda66/1990%20MJ/IMG_2733.jpg

http://i888.photobucket.com/albums/ac84/MoparManiacCuda66/1990%20MJ/IMG_2732.jpg

http://i888.photobucket.com/albums/ac84/MoparManiacCuda66/1990%20MJ/IMG_2731.jpg

is this similar to a 4 link and does it replace the sway bars?

is this similar to a 4 link and does it replace the sway bars?

This would be similar to a 4 link in the sense that it eliminates axle wrap, which can cause hopping etc. But it still retains the leaf spring suspension. As to sway bars, no, this won't do to much to stop sway, maybe a little but it does not serve the same function.

Poly bushings blew out on my traction bar. Uhmw leaf spring bushings from the stock car shop were a direct replacement for $6 each !! :)




http://a2.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/225739_10150272801376812_685151811_7812767_4067234 _n.jpg

Those won't flex like the poly bushings. you're not worried about destroying those bushing's quickly?

Those won't flex like the poly bushings. you're not worried about destroying those bushing's quickly?

I dont want them to flex. All the flex will take place in the rod end. It has got to last longer then my poly bushings did . They lasted less than a year and I only wheel about every two months.

Mine is square tubing hard mounted to the axle between two brackets with a shackle on the other end. Other than being noisey because of all metal contacts the movement in the shackle gives in every direction and prevents all discernable bind. Will post pics when i remember to take them.