ballistic joints for dogbone, torque rod

[silverstate55]

Thanks for the tips^^^.

The hardest part, well I should say the most labor-intensive part, of the whole ordeal is blocking up the axles & suspension trunnion, and then removing all the nuts & torque rods from the truck. Once the torque rod is off, that's the easy part! And I'm serious.

To ensure that I had the proper orientation, since I was doing all 6 torque rods, I did use a Sharpie marker to indicate which end of which torque rod went where...I'm sure it's not necessary since they're not tapered and theoretically all constructed the same, but it satisfied my OCD tendencies. YMMV.

 

[smoke]

Thanks for input guys I may just go with eriks ball joint ends Just do the ones that need to be done now and then slow because $$$$ adds up rest one rod at time. If anyone has or go to use them let me Or add to this thread with a follow up. I just think with quality of thing now days I take my chance with a metal ball joint socket then rubber bushing. My cents

 

[welldigger]

I went through all of this in the planning and design when my torque rod ends went bad. It was no where NEAR feasible to install those joints as you might initially think.
-First, the joints you are looking at are designed for double shear, not single shear like the factory setup.
-Second, the existing brackets have a tapered hole. They will not work with a straight shank bolt like the joint requires.
-Third, new dog-bones will have to be fabricated. This is probably the easiest hurdle to overcome.
-Fourth, you will need to run a pan hard bar to keep the axles centered. Otherwise, they will wander back and forth with no tension to center them.

Actually none of those facts are difficult to overcome. A drill or lathe can solve the problem of the tapered pins. The spring packs align the axles and making a new dogbone is as simple as cutting a chunk of tubing the correct length. All VERY doable. Is it worth it? That depends on who you ask.

 

[Adxavier06]

Well I got mine in today and the quality looks great and seems like a real solid part. I hope to have them installed this weekend if the weather holds up.

 

[smoke]

Don't forget pics and write up

 

[Adxavier06]

I was trying to post some pics of them but tapatalk won't let me post them.

 

[smoke]

where did you buy them and if not to nosey how much?

 

[Adxavier06]

where did you buy them and if not to nosey how much?

I bought them a few days after this thread was started. And they were 80.00 a piece.

 

[smoke]

O you got the joints from Erik's

 

[Adxavier06]

O you got the joints from Erik's

Yeah

 

[da69fishman]

I want to hear the outcome of the upgrades too. I've got a couple bad joints but have spares on a stripped parts truck, but still weighing my options

 

[HoustonDeuce]

I had a hand in removing the dogbone from adxaviers truck this weekend and I will say it was a giant pain in the ass. You can only get to one of the nuts with a 3/4" impact and if yours have already failed or are close to it you will likely need a monkey wrench to stop it from moving.. (If yours are as rusty as his) he also had to burn out the bushings.. Not as easy of a project as we thought Lol

 

[Adxavier06]

Also we found out that I have about 2 more that need to be replaced also and a few more that are looking questionable. So gonna have a busy week but ill post some pics of rest of the install.

 

[thehaas]

i never had problem hauling log and dirt for years then when i went to 1100 -20 extra weight and traction ripped dr side out cocked axles bent drive shaft truck would not move so i pulled with winch up from woods .then spent week after work come along porter power to align axles for used bars.advice i have is look at them pry on ony movement there shot.heavy loads on rocks or mudd does them in.

 

[Adxavier06]

Finally got around to installing the new joints and prob have a 150 miles on them with no issues so just wanted to give a update.

 

[bigugh20]

Thanks for the update. I realize that you have limited miles on these new dogbones, but I would really appreciate any feedback on any noticeable difference in rear end behavior. I'm curious about how flexible the rear end is compared to the original ones. Binding, limited travel that sort of thing.

 

[Adxavier06]

Yes I'm currently driving it every day to see how there working out. But so far no issues.

 

[smoke]

Looks good. I don't see a grease fitting thou. Are they non greasable? I would figure the would be greasable for maintence.

 

[Jakob]

Thanks for the update. I realize that you have limited miles on these new dogbones, but I would really appreciate any feedback on any noticeable difference in rear end behavior. I'm curious about how flexible the rear end is compared to the original ones. Binding, limited travel that sort of thing.

I replaced all of mine with new units not too long ago. When I take my truck it, it runs on some HARD off road trails. I noticed no change in rear end flexibility and if anything, the rear had better performance. Axle hop and vibrations during tire spin were nearly non-existent. With the old bushings, the rear ends would begin to rattle violently if spinning in second gear.

 

[Adxavier06]

Looks good. I don't see a grease fitting thou. Are they non greasable? I would figure the would be greasable for maintence.

Zoom in and look at the center of the joint. There is a grease fitting there.