Lite Brite breaks RPM Steering Tie Rod

[Kevin8086]

It is a bit funny to ready this thread. People seem to be hating and praising for the same reasons. They are out living all of our dreams lol. Most folks on here are watching videos like this and judging every move then criticizing. It wont matter how awesome the video or how the rig is built. Always criticizing. It is all out of jealousy by keyboard warriors wanting what others have.

back to the tie rod....if you're not breaking upgraded parts on your jeep from actually using it, then you have no intent on improving it. I never like breaking things on the trail, but I do enjoy replacing them with better, beefier components and going back to the trail. The great thing about this, is if the company loves their products and what they do, they will ask how and why it broke so they can improve it. If the company is smart, they will use the customers experience as their #1 source of post-production R&D.

This guy gets it

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[Walker Texas Wrangler]

First off, all you people who think that we broke anything on purpose while on a trail in the middle of nowhere with a group who paid to be there with us are all 100% completely WRONG. we have NEVER broken anything on purpose. Yes we do hard things and push the limits. You really honestly believe companies would want to work with us and send us parts if we just went out and destroyed their product just for views? Y’all are beyond silly. Our reputation would be terrible and nobody would work with us so please get your head out your bum and quit it with the bull crap. You can be a hater all you want but at least think right and come correct here. Second off, our old tie rod was still fine after 2.5 years and dozens up to hundreds of times being smashed by rocks. I did this same trail and that same line exactly a year ago with no issue and it’s on video. RPM took the parts back and are having the inspected. I have gone back to my 2.5 year old used and abused Dynatrac rod.
I’m hoping this was a perfect storm of bad TRE with bad ram angle and just the right scenario of pressure. I wasn’t bound up at all and you can see me rolling smoothly in the video. NONE of this was on PURPOSE, y’all are mad to think so and I can’t believe so many of y’all have that kind of thought about us. We bust our ass to constantly bring the community content for FREE and test new parts and come up with new things to help out the jeep community.

like here’s something I came up with for tazer over a year and a half ago that’s going live soon. TRAIL TURN ASSIST like in the ford bronco. It will lock up the left or right rear tire at full lock so you have a factory cutting brake!!! Activated by a button on the steering wheel. I gave him that idea before the bronco ever said they had one but y’all making us out like we’re bad people.

anyway, happy new year to everyone, even the haters. I hope your year is wonderful and prosperous

Happy new years to you and yours. Enjoy the adventure and keep living your dream. My hats off to you for going for it.

 

[Bleda2002]

This guy gets it

You guys making it to jeep beach this year? Any e3 rides coming to the Florida/GA area around that time?

 

[Dyolfknip74]

Thanks for coming in here @Kevin8086 . Looks like the knobs who hide behind a computer and call out a person's spouse are slowly getting the boot. That says a lot about the character of a man as far as I'm concerned. And to do it anonymously behind a keyboard? Ya, that's a special kind of douchebag.

I will say I was very impressed about the bounce back on the tie rod though. Is it still true?
I also think the hits to it definitely contributed to the failure. You just can't flex steel like that and not have it change its structure. (I've watched a few Forged in Fire episodes, therefore I am an expert on steel).

 

[NOIDEAWIAM]

This guy gets it

To me, I just enjoy the hobby and seeing others enjoy it. I wont work with companies if they are not passionate about what they do. I built my JK based on a lot of the information you and others like you have shared; the true, unbias, real-world shenanigans we all want to put our rigs through.

I do have to commend you though, there are some extremely disrespectful folks all around. Y'all seem to keep your cool. I would lose my mind.

 

[IdahoJOAT]

we answered this when it all kinda blew up. It’s somewhere. Lol
~
I guess lesson learned.

See, and that's why the two points of view are critical. Thanks for expounding. I'll search for your previous post of the whole thing.

Do you remember if it was Boise Idaho Jeep Club (for sure) then 4Lo Off-Road or Idaho Jeep Club?

I just want to stay out of drama and as a non-local (and therefore no dog in the fight) your outside opinion I value. We have yet to meet up and run with BIJC, we've gone on a winter 4Lo run last year and there was a TON of stoppage. While I like the variety of rigs that one was kinda a bummer.

Any chance you'll be coming up to Idaho in the future? It was unfortunate they took you to the desert. There's much more scenic trails in southern Idaho.

Tie-rod: I finally got to watch the video over lunch hour... Holy smokes. I'd guess they got a bad batch or a fault in the manufacturing process.

Watching the JTs was fun.

 

[John VonJeep]

We bust our ass to constantly bring the community content for FREE and test new parts and come up with new things to help out the jeep community.

You had me right up until you implied you do this for free. I understand that the content is free, but I expect you guys are making major bank off your channel. (If you’re not, you are 100% doing it wrong.)

That’s totally fine with me! It’s a free market and I wish you well. But please don’t imply that this is altruistic. Broadcast television is also “free“ to watch.

 

[OBJLU]

You had me right up until you implied you do this for free. I understand that the content is free, but I expect you guys are making major bank off your channel. (If you’re not, you are 100% doing it wrong.)

That’s totally fine with me! It’s a free market and I wish you well. But please don’t imply that this is altruistic. Broadcast television is also “free“ to watch.

Lmao are you paying for YouTube red? If not it’s free to you unless you have a way to charge YouTube and content creators for the views you give it / them and if so pass the sauce I’d like some of that too.

 

[John VonJeep]

Lmao are you paying for YouTube red? If not it’s free to you unless you have a way to charge YouTube and content creators for the views you give it / them and if so pass the sauce I’d like some of that too.

Lol I literally said “I understand that the content is free.”

I get NFL games for free too, but Roger Goodell doesn’t try to tell me it’s a charity. We all understand how the bread gets buttered. No shame in that.

 

[Kevin8086]

You guys making it to jeep beach this year? Any e3 rides coming to the Florida/GA area around that time?

Everything will be posted on e3 soon!

 

[Kevin8086]

I never said or implied we did it for free. Simply you get the content for free. To be publicly bashed and ridiculed for every single this done and said from people watching it after the fact that like to arm chair quarterback wears on you no matter how thick your skin is so hell ya you bet your ass we get paid and paid damn well but nothing is ever easy that’s worth while. Success is never owned, it’s rented and rent is due every damn day especially in what we do.

 

[grimmjeeper]

I never said or implied we did it for free. Simply you get the content for free. To be publicly bashed and ridiculed for every single this done and said from people watching it after the fact that like to arm chair quarterback wears on you no matter how thick your skin is so hell ya you bet your ass we get paid and paid damn well but nothing is ever easy that’s worth while. Success is never owned, it’s rented and rent is due every damn day especially in what we do.

Yeah, no matter what you do there will always be trolls who bash you for it. And, of course, they will point out and harp on every perceived mistake. That's definitely one of the drawbacks of fame.

 

[offcamber]

I met them for like 20 seconds at the Big Paw Crawl a few years ago in Gilmer Texas. It was right before the rock race and I was shooting the race for the event so I didn't have time to talk, but they were nice and I noticed that while I was shooting they were talking with everyone just like anyone else in the groups. I see a lot of jealousy on the internet in the comments. I don't get the animosity. If you don't like the content, there is plenty of other content out there so it's not like the content they create is somehow taking away from you. I don't watch every video and if I'm watching one and I don't find it interesting, I move on to something else. I don't take it personally and don't really understand how people do that...

 

[IdahoJOAT]

I met them for like 20 seconds at the Big Paw Crawl a few years ago in Gilmer Texas. It was right before the rock race and I was shooting the race for the event so I didn't have time to talk, but they were nice and I noticed that while I was shooting they were talking with everyone just like anyone else in the groups. I see a lot of jealousy on the internet in the comments. I don't get the animosity. If you don't like the content, there is plenty of other content out there so it's not like the content they create is somehow taking away from you. I don't watch every video and if I'm watching one and I don't find it interesting, I move on to something else. I don't take it personally and don't really understand how people do that...

Well said.

My interaction today has altered my viewpoint greatly.

 

[Chainringtattoo]

Ok - gotta ask a key question nobody has seemed to have answered…

Has anyone here ever actually met the Lite Bright couple in person?

I’m sure some must have with as much Jeep traveling as they do, right?

I've met them. Kevin is exactly like he is in their videos. He's super friendly, talkative and passionate about wheeling. He's a big kid who loves to have fun and enjoy life. Say isn't that what Jeepin' is supposed to be about? Brittany is more serious and focused on their business. I think the duo of them both makes it work well. And folks, this is their business. I see a lot of vile hate in the Jeep community for them and it baffles me. If you don't like their content, then move along. Why is it human nature to hate anyone who is having a better time than we are? And remember what mama said, if you can't say something nice...

Now about that tie rod - Kevin was taking the type of line Kevin always takes - and usually makes. Stupid for you, me and most of us? For sure. Stupid for Kevin? No, just a day of wheeling. That tie rod end broke because it had to. The tie rod was so loaded with energy it had become a giant lever right at that joint to the point something had to give. A steel tie rod would have distributed that energy across its length and not focused it all on the joint. In any event, Kevin quickly found out it didn't hold up to his style of wheeling.

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