Long arm upgrade?

Nathanl91 · Jul 2, 2014

I currently have a 4" rough country xflex lift on my ZJ and I'm happy with it except that it rides terrible, I've been told I'll ride and flex better if I go to a long arm setup to improve my arm angles, and it would allow me to go higher if I chose too..

Looks like rough country sells a kit for 1000$

Is this kit going to work well?

Is their a better deal??

Would shocks help the ride at all?

WA-Wheeler · Jul 2, 2014

Don't wanna bust your bubble but rough country makes rough rides. As with everyrthing, you get what you pay for. That being said check Rustys Offroad. But if you want quality Clayton long arm kit is the way to go.

Avanteone · Jul 2, 2014

100% get what you pay for here. If you want nice, go Clayton's.

Lucky Jeff · Jul 2, 2014

I've had Rusty's and Iron Rock offroad stuff on my ZJ's (both better then rough/tough country). I'm going with Clayton's this time for the WJ..

Fordzuki · Jul 2, 2014

The boss and I just installed this kit on his zj (the whole kit, not just the upgrade) and the only gripe I had with it was the rear trackbar drop bracket is pretty cheesy. Aside from that, it seemed to be built well, and rides pretty well both offroad and on.
http://www.roughcountry.com/jeep-long-arm-upgrade-kit-905u.html

Nathanl91 · Jul 3, 2014

Fordzuki said:
The boss and I just installed this kit on his zj (the whole kit, not just the upgrade) and the only gripe I had with it was the rear trackbar drop bracket is pretty cheesy. Aside from that, it seemed to be built well, and rides pretty well both offroad and on.

http://www.roughcountry.com/jeep-long-arm-upgrade-kit-905u.html

I have adjustable track bars front and rear, and the 4" short arm kit

I've had no gripes with the lift, I'm just a weekend wheeler not a pro or anything, and my rough country kit has worked great so far, that's why I was considering just getting their long arms to make it just that much better.

What's so much better about the Clayton's kit that makes it worth 2x the price??

Avanteone · Jul 3, 2014

Nathanl91 said:
What's so much better about the Clayton's kit that makes it worth 2x the price??

They use Currie Johnny Joints and Clevite bushings, you will not wear anything out very quickly. I have customers running kits that are 5-7 years old and still haven't worn anything out. With RC or the other cheaper stuff, expect to start replacing bushings every year, well, at least until they change the design and no longer have parts for them. They offer a lifetime warranty against bending the arms, and I've only ever seen two bent. It's just overall a very much higher quality part. It's like asking what the difference is between a BMW and a Hyundai. :haha: If you're already lifted, you could do just the long arm upgrade and not have to buy the complete kit over again.

John

Nathanl91 · Jul 3, 2014

Avanteone said:
They use Currie Johnny Joints and Clevite bushings, you will not wear anything out very quickly. I have customers running kits that are 5-7 years old and still haven't worn anything out. With RC or the other cheaper stuff, expect to start replacing bushings every year, well, at least until they change the design and no longer have parts for them. They offer a lifetime warranty against bending the arms, and I've only ever seen two bent. It's just overall a very much higher quality part. It's like asking what the difference is between a BMW and a Hyundai. :haha: If you're already lifted, you could do just the long arm upgrade and not have to buy the complete kit over again.

John

Gotcha!

Any reason I can't do the front and the rear separately to spread the cost impact out a bit?

And I see it requires welding on, is the welding something you could do john? ( how much would this cost)

I can the install but don't have the tools to do the welding..

Avanteone · Jul 3, 2014

Nathanl91 said:
Gotcha!

Any reason I can't do the front and the rear separately to spread the cost impact out a bit?

And I see it requires welding on, is the welding something you could do john? ( how much would this cost)

I can the install but don't have the tools to do the welding..

Absolutely you can split them up. Welding on the crossmember and unibody supports would probably take a couple hours if you have it all cleaned up, we're $102/hour. The great part about the Clayton's kit, is that it's designed so you can unbolt your factory crossmember, bolt in the Clayton's crossmember, and then drive it to a shop to have it welded. Then you just go home and bolt the arms and stuff in.

Nathanl91 · Jul 3, 2014

Avanteone said:
Absolutely you can split them up. Welding on the crossmember and unibody supports would probably take a couple hours if you have it all cleaned up, we're $102/hour. The great part about the Clayton's kit, is that it's designed so you can unbolt your factory crossmember, bolt in the Clayton's crossmember, and then drive it to a shop to have it welded. Then you just go home and bolt the arms and stuff in.

Awesome thanks john, I think that's what I will do, I want the higher quality stuff I don't have to worry about and doing it 1/2 at a time will let me do that without murdering my check book.

I'll be in touch once I get the parts in a month or two.