Going to be linking my YJ when I swap in 1 ton axles. Got the 3 link and 4 link kits from RuffStuff to make my life easier. Question I have now is, do I use the weld in bungs that came with the 1.25" heims, or do I tap the control arm tubes and just thread the heims straight into the tube?
One negative to welding bungs is, after welding one could deform and "heat treat" the threads. And the tap can and will get F'ed up from it while chasing them. I had to die-grind a few of the "heat treated" threads so that the tap can get passed it. Just another reason to tap the steel instead of welding bungs onto the links.
I think the biggest holdup for tapping to a home builder is being able to drill a correct sized hole into the steel to tap it. Especially for those of us that do not have a lathe.
I have never had to chase threads. did 5 steering bungs. I just kept the TRE's in the bung it is a big chunk of cast steel that dissipates the heat. It did not wreck the tre's they are still running strong after 2 years.
Most people run .250 steel links that will require a weld in bung. I bevel the tubing. Then make a small pass around. Then make a big pass over that. Grind smooth with a flap wheel.
I've welded probably 20+ bungs into tube, and have never had a failure/thread deformation. First, I tack weld the bung in 4 places. Then I take an old joint, smear the threads with hi-temp anti seize, and thread it in so all of the threads in the bung are occupied. Then I weld one 90* section of the bung (between 2 tack welds), flip it over and do the other side. I then take a screw driver and thread the joint in and out for a minute or two to be sure that the threads aren't deforming. Once it has cooled down a little, I do the other two sides. I follow up with some more threading in/out of the joint.
Not saying it's the right/best way....but it's worked on my rig for 4 years, and my friend's for 3.
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