What Adjustable Control Arms?

[SkDmRkLcY]

We somehow made it this far sans any control arm changes. Running RPM steering, Falcon 2.1s, Synergy 2 in springs, and Yeti track bars.

Swapping the track bar as it rubs the diff cover a tiny bit, but also really could probably fix by upper front arms.

So I am on the lookout for at least front upper and lower. A specific options you would avoid or go with? Features?

Rear if I did them I know we will replace so not really keen to waste the money, as eventually I am going to figure out how to stretch this one way or another. Unless the rear becomes an issue or I find a deal on all 8.

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[lashlee]

Teraflex, MC, and many others will work. I would see what the local shop recommends.

 

[3TV]

A vote for MetalCloak. I like their zero maintenance, durable, flexible joints. They even improve ride quality over square edged bumps compared to stock.

 

[word302]

Rock Krawler or Metalcloak. The RK arms are bent up instead of in for more ground clearance so wheel offset matters.

 

[Tncdrew]

@Clayton Off Road has very robust offerings

 

[Roky]

RK also has maintenance free joints if that matters……and they’re not gold…. ?

 

[SkDmRkLcY]

Ended up ordering the RK Pro X fronts for now. Just as it seemed more likely we stay RK as we go custom.. maybe.

 

[Clayton Off Road]

We somehow made it this far sans any control arm changes. Running RPM steering, Falcon 2.1s, Synergy 2 in springs, and Yeti track bars.

Swapping the track bar as it rubs the diff cover a tiny bit, but also really could probably fix by upper front arms.

So I am on the lookout for at least front upper and lower. A specific options you would avoid or go with? Features?

Rear if I did them I know we will replace so not really keen to waste the money, as eventually I am going to figure out how to stretch this one way or another. Unless the rear becomes an issue or I find a deal on all 8.

Hey there!

We always suggest getting at least the front upper set of arms replaced before the others, as this will allow you to get the most bang for your buck in terms of performance upgrades! This will allow you to get your caster angle dialed in which means much improved steering and handling.

If you're looking for a nice set of adjustable front uppers, check out our set from our Overland+ line! The bushings are completely maintenance-free, and help to soak up road noise and vibrations for an extra smooth and quiet ride

https://www.claytonoffroad.com/prod...upper-control-arms-2018-jl-jt?sku=COR-1709101

 

[word302]

Hey there!

We always suggest getting at least the front upper set of arms replaced before the others, as this will allow you to get the most bang for your buck in terms of performance upgrades! This will allow you to get your caster angle dialed in which means much improved steering and handling.

If you're looking for a nice set of adjustable front uppers, check out our set from our Overland+ line! The bushings are completely maintenance-free, and help to soak up road noise and vibrations for an extra smooth and quiet ride

https://www.claytonoffroad.com/prod...upper-control-arms-2018-jl-jt?sku=COR-1709101

While changing only the uppers is the easiest way to adjust caster, you end up pulling the wheel back in the wheel-well. Lifting already pulls the wheel to the rear. Uppers only make it worse. Lowers allow you to keep the wheel centered. Yes they’re more expensive, but that doesn’t make uppers a better choice.

 

[Clayton Off Road]

While changing only the uppers is the easiest way to adjust caster, you end up pulling the wheel back in the wheel-well. Lifting already pulls the wheel to the rear. Uppers only make it worse. Lowers allow you to keep the wheel centered. Yes they’re more expensive, but that doesn’t make uppers a better choice.

If somebody is more concerned with off-road performance than on-road I would definitely say to go with the lowers, as this is when you really want the wheelbase perfect for maximum flex!

However, on-road, and again this is only when talking about getting the most bang for your buck, we find that customers get the best ride quality and performance by going with a set of adjustable front upper arms so that wandering is eliminated and steering is tighter

It's always best to go with a full set of adjustable control arms if you are able to in order to get geometry dialed in perfectly, but if somebody is just looking to build as they go we always try to take ride quality into consideration before off-road performance, but this can of course vary by customer!

 

[word302]

If somebody is more concerned with off-road performance than on-road I would definitely say to go with the lowers, as this is when you really want the wheelbase perfect for maximum flex!

However, on-road, and again this is only when talking about getting the most bang for your buck, we find that customers get the best ride quality and performance by going with a set of adjustable front upper arms so that wandering is eliminated and steering is tighter

It's always best to go with a full set of adjustable control arms if you are able to in order to get geometry dialed in perfectly, but if somebody is just looking to build as they go we always try to take ride quality into consideration before off-road performance, but this can of course vary by customer!

Sure but caster can be corrected with just lowers as well, which takes care of ride quality concerns. Seems like a better bang for the buck to me. Yes they’re more expensive but allow you to dial in caster AND wheelbase. Uppers only correct caster but exacerbate the wheelbase issue. I agree, a full set of arms is always the best choice, but if you can only afford 1 pair I would always recommend front lowers first.

 

[Clayton Off Road]

Sure but caster can be corrected with just lowers as well, which takes care of ride quality concerns. Seems like a better bang for the buck to me. Yes they’re more expensive but allow you to dial in caster AND wheelbase. Uppers only correct caster but exacerbate the wheelbase issue. I agree, a full set of arms is always the best choice, but if you can only afford 1 pair I would always recommend front lowers first.

I understand what you're saying! Unfortunately the problem we find just running lowers (if ride quality is the biggest concern) is that if you rely on lowers only to fix both wheelbase and caster, they end up doing neither to the best of their ability, and the caster adjustments you get out of lowers are much less then you get out of uppers. Through the years we have tested a lot of different versions of our entry-level offerings and have just found uppers to work best for most! Everyone has different needs for their build though, it's all about doing what works best for you

 

[word302]

I understand what you're saying! Unfortunately the problem we find just running lowers (if ride quality is the biggest concern) is that if you rely on lowers only to fix both wheelbase and caster, they end up doing neither to the best of their ability, and the caster adjustments you get out of lowers are much less then you get out of uppers. Through the years we have tested a lot of different versions of our entry-level offerings and have just found uppers to work best for most! Everyone has different needs for their build though, it's all about doing what works best for you

That just doesn’t make any sense. You can adjust lowers to dial in caster and live with the wheelbase that you end up with which will be much better than the shortened wheelbase that shorter uppers give you. I’d love to see you show the math on this. The only benefit to adding only uppers is that they are cheaper so you can offer a cheaper entry-level kit. I’d argue that cheaper kit is less useful than a slightly more expensive entry level kit that offers only lowers. Lowers allow you to dial in caster while getting the wheelbase closer to where it should be. Uppers allow you to dial in caster while shortening wheelbase even worse than the lifted springs already have.

 

[SkDmRkLcY]

Hey there!

We always suggest getting at least the front upper set of arms replaced before the others, as this will allow you to get the most bang for your buck in terms of performance upgrades! This will allow you to get your caster angle dialed in which means much improved steering and handling.

If you're looking for a nice set of adjustable front uppers, check out our set from our Overland+ line! The bushings are completely maintenance-free, and help to soak up road noise and vibrations for an extra smooth and quiet ride

https://www.claytonoffroad.com/prod...upper-control-arms-2018-jl-jt?sku=COR-1709101

Thanks! We are going to try a few things to see what we need for now before I have to start over and we cut it all off. Will check out that series as maintenance free would be a change from my last build which grease was a pain and still noisy!

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