Upper Control Arms, JBA vs. SPC vs. Camburg

Same here. Love my TC.

 

II keep eyeballing them, but I'm scared to death of the squeaky uniball. My buddy had them on his 4Runner, and even with proper maintenance, they were still squeaky. Especially with the salt/brine they use here.

 

In Alberta people get no more than 1-2 years out of a uniball joint if they drive in the winter. Also if a uniball is squeaking it’s a sign it’s dying. They only squeak when the Teflon coating is done and the squeak is steel rubbing steel which won’t last long.

 

I seen it mentioned that the uniball is not a good choice for highway longevity and requires more maintenance than a normal balljoints. Like Heim joints , they are OK on off-road race vehicles that get replaced often compared to driving down the highway where a normal Ball joint is normally a better choice.

 

Well, apparently mine were cerecoated to begin with. I couldn’t tell when I really looked at them when they were brand new, but regardless, I tried to wipe away this rust and it won’t clean off, it’s real rust, lol. Winter took its toll on mine unfortunately.

 

I was going to order these now I'm wondering if a 285 on Five Star 17x8.5 -6 - FN Wheels (4.5 backspacing) will rub do not want wheel spacers.

 

Hard to make an argument against SPCs for a slipping ball joint (which hasn't been an issue for me, even at 70mph in the desert) when people are having to run spacers to clear the JBAs.

 

I’d rather run spacers than run the risk of the ball joint moving. I have spacers and wheel hard as hell, and no issues.

 

Truth be known the SPCs that moved were not torqued correctly to begin with . When the owner is also the installer you don't often see it posted for a fact that the installer didn't actually torque it correctly. Easier on the ego to just blame SPC. Some of the negativity may also be repeated as the poster may not sell that particular brand. Seen that before also

 

To be fair to JBA, it shouldn’t be a surprise that they rub with certain wheel and tire setups. JBA themselves tell you this up front.

https://jbaoffroad.com/jba-std-high...plus-4runner-03-plus-fj-cruisers-07-plus.html

 

I run 295s on JBAs without spacers

Part of the issue is matching your rim to the tire width you're trying to run. Get the right clearance from the lugs and you're fine.

 

As for SPC, they fucked people in the past. The community often remembers that even though you might not personally. I'd rather deal with a company that historically takes care of customers problems instead of a company that has a, at best, cloudy past. If you don't care about that then that's your personal choice.

 

And hopefully you never have an issue with the spacers. My truck is no rock crawler but I spend plenty of time off the pavement in the eastern sierra and high desert and haven't had the balljoints move on my SPCs. But I torqued them properly and put a wrench on them at least once a year to confirm they're still tight.

I also don't run heavy tires and I'm sure that plays into it.

 

Didnt see any questions about their rep what I read was they moved hence my post . Reputation was not part of the question so it was not part of the reply on my part.

 

So you can clear the JBA’s with stock wheels?

 

Jba all the way

 

I thinking of going w SPC UCA for the adjustable ability and price.. is $485 flat delivered to my door a good price?

 

Looking to upgrade my UCA's now that I came into some extra $$$. Was going to get Camburg, but now leaning towards JBA after reading this thread.

What caster would I look for with a 2-2.5 inch lift (OME 885 / 5100's)? Still shooting for 3.0+?

 

HD caster I’m guessing w that size lift..

 

My only piece of advice is to make sure you're wheels have enough offset/backspacing to run the JBAs. I too was going to run them until I found out they wouldn't clear 285's on my TRD Pro wheels, so I switched over to the Camburgs and have been very happy. If they had cleared I would be rocking the JBAs for sure.