Is a Long Arm lift worth it?

[mikeferg]

I've been stuck going down the rabbit hole on lifts and I am hoping to get some feed back on some folks with long arm lifts. Are they worth all the cutting and welding?

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[Roky]

I've been stuck going down the rabbit hole on lifts and I am hoping to get some feed back on some folks with long arm lifts. Are they worth all the cutting and welding?

I’ll let you know in another 10 weeks and 2 days, when my arms come in.......

 

[Gorilla57]

In a one word answer......yup.

The long arms don't gain much travel if at all, since the JL aftermarket arms move very well. The limitation is binding in the joints and your shocks. So, why would you want long arms if travel isn't substantially more.....it's for the ride. The long arms move in less of an arc during the suspension cycle and this equates in to a better ride. When the front axle hits an upward bump in the road with the standard length arms, a vehicle with a lift will force the front axle forward, pushing the axle harder into the bump. A long arm moves more vertical and less forward, giving it a better ride. Another plus is when you get to the extremes of articulation, the Jeep won't suspension steer. This is seen very easily as when the rear droops, the down tire moves forward and the up tire moves backwards, causing the rear to crab walk a little bit.

 

[mikeferg]

I’ll let you know in another 10 weeks and 2 days, when my arms come in.......

What arms did you end up going with?

In a one word answer......yup.

The long arms don't gain much travel if at all, since the JL aftermarket arms move very well. The limitation is binding in the joints and your shocks. So, why would you want long arms if travel isn't substantially more.....it's for the ride. The long arms move in less of an arc during the suspension cycle and this equates in to a better ride. When the front axle hits an upward bump in the road with the standard length arms, a vehicle with a lift will force the front axle forward, pushing the axle harder into the bump. A long arm moves more vertical and less forward, giving it a better ride. Another plus is when you get to the extremes of articulation, the Jeep won't suspension steer. This is seen very easily as when the rear droops, the down tire moves forward and the up tire moves backwards, causing the rear to crab walk a little bit.

I would of never thought of the crab walking with the rear end like that. I knew about the shock factor with the arms being flatter compared to the short arms.

 

[Roky]

What arms did you end up going with?


I would of never thought of the crab walking with the rear end like that. I knew about the shock factor with the arms being flatter compared to the short arms.

RK adventure X long arm upgrade. I’m already on 3.5” Xfactor so all I needed was the arms.

 

[KeithM]

No direct experience, just info from a friend who owns a Jeep suspension co who has put long arms on their own JL. The benefit is marginal (unlike previous Jeeps) and it is more for the cool factor. But it is cool, so you should do it.

 

[Gorilla57]

No direct experience, just info from a friend who owns a Jeep suspension co who has put long arms on their own JL. The benefit is marginal (unlike previous Jeeps) and it is more for the cool factor. But it is cool, so you should do it.

Welp, in my case, I went with the RK long arms, which have a very big benefit over stock arms. The RK setup mounts all the arms above or even with the frame. There are no mounts below the frame anymore. I have even hit the relocated mounts, so the stock mounts would have caused me to possibly get stuck. I know for sure that the stock mounts would be beat to hell on trails around here. The JLU has such a low belly/frame now that I don't need anymore help dragging things over rocks. Not just cool, but very functional for me.

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