i saw these trac bars in jcwhitney and was wondering how well yall think they would work. it looks like it would be really easy to build a set just like them or similar with a couple of rod ends and some pipe.
i am sure they would work somewhat, or they wouldn't be $150, but i will have a granny low first gear, a 460 and rockwells.
i am going to be using this beast mostly as a mud truck, so while flex is important, i don't need 15" of articulation at each corner, so i am not worried about it if they limit my flex.

thanks
Justin

 

i forgot to post the link....oops

http://www.jcwhitney.com/autoparts/P...003505/c-10101

Justin

 

You will be dissapointed by making, buying, or anything to do with this type of set up. If you are using rockies you should try your set up without bars at all. If you build a proper spring that is capable of controlling the axle, and a tire / wheel big enough to clear the brakes, unless you are running a driveline brake (kinda scary), then I dont think you will get too much axle wrap. With the 6.72:1 gears, the thing wont hop, and the axle wont bounce. Heak unless you are making some big puppy power, I doubt it will even do a burnout, it will just go, baby go.
What type of spring are you going to use?

 

i am doing a shackle flip and lowering the mounts, like ivans blue truck

i will be reusing my stock springs, with an add-a-leaf and some blocks for now, but i am going to change that in the future.

i have been told that with rockies and 53's, the gearing will twist my springs out from under the frame without a good traction bar setup of somekind. especially with the torque my 460 makes.

i think i am actually going to go with a long, single bar mounted to the bottom of the axle, something like the ones that are built by these guys. www.farmboyfabrications.com

Justin

 

That will occure only if the truck has no where to go. Remeber the old action reaction theory. The reaction would be foward motion. If this thing is in the mud, you willnever experience enough traction to rip the springs out. I run stock 1500 64" springs from a late model chebby with a little more horsepower than you arer making with that 460, and a little more torque. With less gear, mine would be more likely to have a problem, but it does not. Get the spring angles right, and you can have the best of both worlds without those things.
It's your money, i was just thinking that doing it right, instead of installing band-aids from the beginning would be a better way of spending money. Butu if you must, the longer bar would be better.

 

hey jgreen, its bogger1966 from chuckstrucks forum

if your as big as you say you are, your not going to want to do it.

 

or you could build a ladder bar setup like mine. i went and bought 2 3-point tractor links and cut them in half. used some left over DOM from my cage build and lengthened them to about 4 feet. i then used a stock bronco shackle and shackle hanger in the up position. i get pretty slick flex but virtually no axle wrap.

heres some pics. got more in my webshots album


and heres the flex i get...


-cutts-

 

i knew i recognized your avatar, bogger, but i wasn't sure from where.

a guy on the usa 6x6 forum said he has had luck, but built them way beefy. i still think i like the long bar idea and if what you say is correct 75F350, then i probably wont need anything at all, as i will not be doing any burnouts for a while.....big block blowers are expensive!!!

Justin

 

What about solving the problem of axle wrap driving in sand?? I frequent the sand dunes in southern california and often times recover vehicles stuck by friends and other general campers out there. even with airing down, there is still a problem with axle wrap on both my truck and my dads. I drive a 2000 F250 V10 w/ 285/75-16s, and my dad drives the 2004 F250 6.0 D with same size tires.... any thoughts??

 

Your problem in the sand is not axle wrap. Unless you are using giant paddle tires, you will never get enough traction to wrap the springs. You are getting bounce, and uncontrollable rebound from inadequate shocks, or not enough floatation of the tires, or both, but not axle wrap.
That is easily solved by using the right tire.
I see most guys driving in the sand with non-floatation tires, and air douwn to say 20 psi from 65 psi, and expect them to work. I am a Glamis hound, and I air down to around 6 psi without beadlocks. That is in my Excursion, or Super Duty. (Both with 38's and 39.5's respaectfully)
Those little tires are part of the problem, and the rest comes from shock dampening. If you are running a stock shock, or even a mild upgrade like a Bilstein, (they ride good on the street, but lack axle control in more extreme situations), than the problem is really in the dampening, and tire combo, and not in the spring. A stiffer spring will help, as it should, but the use of the wrong tires for a certain application combined with the wrong damper, makes for a vehicle that will get stuck easily, or hop in the sand.

 

Thanks 75F350. I am running BFG Mud Terrains.... never had a problem sinking into the sand at all and never gotten either of the trucks stuck. I regularly air down to 15 psi when doing any hard driving in the sand. typically the hop occurs when im pulling motorhomes and trucks out of the sand. upgrading tire size is not really an option for me right now.... any other suggestions? and i never really thought that 32.8" tires were too small? (no lift at this time, thus my limit on tire size w/o rubbing)

Edit: Im also a Glamis fanatic and also regularly visit Gordon's Well and Ogilby

 

You probably want to check out something a lot heavier duty than that if your turning that big a tire and have that much motor... those things are tiny, and they aren't really mounted that great either. I've sheared U-bolts and ripped a shackle off the frame wheeling with 38's and a straight six, no way that little trac bar is going to help your rig.

check these out... their ok, but none of them are great for clearance coming off a rock shelf. Those farm boy bars are hella long too... I think they would have the same problem and end up bent and beat up after a day in the rocks.

http://www.rockymountainsusp.com/tractionbars.htm


If you wanna fab your own I found this set-up... good ground clearance too.

http://www.pirate4x4.com/tech/billav...ntiwrapbar.htm

I like that better actually, it wouldn't get hung up nearly as easily. But I like the bars to be symetrically mounted... so I would probably put one on each side if it were my rig instead of one in the middle, with a little more robust connection at the frame. The mount shown there on the cross member looks like it would be a weak point.

If you like the single centrally mounted brace this is my favorite... if you could build a crossmember sturdy enough to absord the stress, I'm pretty sure their first one bent on them and they had to come back and cross brace it.

http://www.jeepaholics.com/tech/bambar/

You can still run leafs and add an old radius arm just like a trac bar.



Here's the whole article...

http://www.bc4x4.com/fv/2000/colson/colson.cfm

Just remember that some of these set-ups will limit suspension travel a little...

 

i did exactly that! works great. in fact i have it off now to reinforce it (bent it a lil last time i was out )

best part is i might have spent $50 on this setup!

-cutts-

 

that picture looks just like a radius-arm setup for the solid axle Dana44 front axle.

I have never heard of anyone running traction bars with Rockwells, nor ripping springs out from under the truck, but thats just me. As long as you get the right springs, you shouldnt need to up the ante for traction bars.