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Found a shady spot in the driveway late this afternoon so I went ahead and knocked out the installation. Went pretty well as expected, no issues. One of the bolts on the hanger bracket near the DEF tank was a little tricky to get to but I was able to manage no problem. I have not driven it yet so this weekend will be testing it out. I also got the bedstep2 installed on the passenger side earlier today.
You definitely don't need any air powered tools for the installation. I just used my regular wrenches and a torque wrench to make sure everything was set correctly.
You definitely don't need any air powered tools for the installation. I just used my regular wrenches and a torque wrench to make sure everything was set correctly.
I have the stock (25mm) rear sway bar on my truck and am going to install the Hellwig Big Wig. I thought it would be easier to unbolt the bracket to attach the Helwig link first to the bracket but am not sure the nuts would stay. What holds the 2 nuts on each side in place to attach the stock link mount? Will the nuts fall into the frame, never to be seen again? Thanks, Richard
I have the stock (25mm) rear sway bar on my truck and am going to install the Hellwig Big Wig. I thought it would be easier to unbolt the bracket to attach the Helwig link first to the bracket but am not sure the nuts would stay. What holds the 2 nuts on each side in place to attach the stock link mount? Will the nuts fall into the frame, never to be seen again? Thanks, Richard
Leave those bolts that go into your frame alone. You will destroy both the nut and the bolt if you try to remove 'em. Don't ask me how I know, but I did have to cut the bolt off. Attach the Hellwig bar to your OEM bracket in place.
I'd like to raise 2 points -
I thought that greasing a sway bar bushing defeats it's purpose of 'gripping' the sway bar, same issue as worn/loose sway bar bushings, they fail to grip the sway bar, and it does little to stop sway.
Also - I've seen that Moog and others have stiffer neoprene bushings that will stiffen the oem bar - if needed..
I'd like to raise 2 points -
I thought that greasing a sway bar bushing defeats it's purpose of 'gripping' the sway bar, same issue as worn/loose sway bar bushings, they fail to grip the sway bar, and it does little to stop sway.
Also - I've seen that Moog and others have stiffer neoprene bushings that will stiffen the oem bar - if needed..
The sway bar should be free to rotate in the bushings. Stiffer bushings allow less deflection, but still should allow rotation.
I thought that greasing a sway bar bushing defeats it's purpose of 'gripping' the sway bar, same issue as worn/loose sway bar bushings, they fail to grip the sway bar, and it does little to stop sway.
The purpose of the bushings is to allow the bar to move and also isolate it from other metal parts to reduce wear and noise in street-driven vehicles. Race cars often do not use bushings where the bar attaches to the frame, but noise is not an issue there, and the parts are not subject to the same abuse as street-diven vehicles. Plus, a well-prepared race car will see much more frequent maintenance intervals. If the bushings were to "grip" the bar, that would generate heat due to the friction of the bar moving (bushing won't stop the movement), which in turn would degrade the bushing in a short amount of time.
I believe that the sway bar itself is made out of spring steel. The sway bar is essentially a really stiff spring, also known as a torsion spring. It has some give but the idea is that if the vehicle pushes down on one side then the other side goes down too in an attempt to keep the vehicle level.
On my prior truck I installed greasable sway bar mounts. These were on the frame (really the frame crossmember) where the sway bar is held in the middle, not at the ends. The grease kept the bushings from wearing down and also reduced noise.
in support of what others have said - energy suspension (a HUGE poly bushing mfg) has grease FITTINGs in their sway bar brackets and suggests greasing the bushings (to prevent squeaking).
I believe that the sway bar itself is made out of spring steel. The sway bar is essentially a really stiff spring, also known as a torsion spring. It has some give but the idea is that if the vehicle pushes down on one side then the other side goes down too in an attempt to keep the vehicle level.
On my prior truck I installed greasable sway bar mounts. These were on the frame (really the frame crossmember) where the sway bar is held in the middle, not at the ends. The grease kept the bushings from wearing down and also reduced noise.
Good answer.
In a perfect world (flat) there would be little need for a sway bar, but our world is not flat. What sway bar does is constantly work against itself to maintain stability. Since in order to work opposing itself then greased bushings support the torsion effect the bar relies on to do its job. What constantly is occurring is that one side is wanting to travel in the opposite direction of the other side Up vs Down so the center of the bar is where all the torsion occurs so you do want the bar to move freely inside those bushings...dab of grease from time to time won't hurt.
If I order a 250, Should I stay with ordering the camper package or buy aftermarket sway bar after the truck comes in?
By all means go with the camper pack as it does (or did) comes with the sway bar, far easier to upgrade to a Big Wig if you have an existing sway-bar, in fact is mostly a driveway chore.
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Slideshow: Called the Fortress, the 850-horsepower pickup combines Raptor underpinnings with military-inspired features, survival equipment, and a starting price of $285,000.
