JBA Offroad Upper Control Arms And Suspension MEGA Thread BS thread

$250 for gusseting?
If the regulars are fine, why the HD version?
Others breaking, now a fix?

 

Interesting. Very interested in the regulars ones.

 

Nice comparison shot, thanks man.

 

Really liking the beefed up version.

 

That is more than just beefed up, the truck would be completely totaled before something happened to those UCA's! I actually wonder if it's a good idea building it that strong, I prefer my UCA bend than the frame! Anyways, looks great, I might buy a pair once my LR UCA's are due for another overhaul.

 

For those of you that have the original JBA UCA, I would encourage you test your install by cycling your suspension very carefully before hitting some trails.

Under near full compression my UCA's make contact with the coil bucket and bind. I did not know this and now I've have some bent parts. I'm hoping the UCA bolt will come out and is not bent, but as it stands the UCA bolt is misaligned with the a-arm, so I can't be sure until I go to swap it out. I'm not happy about having to reinstall the a-arms but that's what I get for being one of the first.

For what it's worth I was alerted by another member (via PM) of the biding issue and did not discover it myself until I went and inspected my suspension.

I've contacted Marlin with my warranty issue and he has updated the design of the a-arms with an increased radius to clear the coil bucket. I have also received my warranty replacement a-arms.

Marlin gets high marks in my book for being extremely responsive and acknowledging and immediately correcting the issue.

I also notified the thread OP by PM on June 17th and let him know about my issue. I waited for some kind of cautionary warning to be posted for others who have bought the a-arms but no warning came.

Therefore, I have no problems sharing my story here.

Here are some pics:






For whatever reason Marlin sent me the HD arms as a warranty replacement. Fine by me. I can tell you they are serious beef. I think the plate in the a-arm is 1/4" thick.

For reference

• The stock a-arm is 5.64.lbs.
  
• The original a-arm is: 7.47 lbs
• The HD a-arm is 9.77 lbs.

Now here are some pics of the updated design:




Note the increased radius of the JBA arms, which appear to match the stock a-arm.

 

Thanks for the tip. I'm afraid you might be right. My truck is DD so I'll get all that and some new bolts ready beforehand. I may tackle this on Thursday.

Indeed. I would have been happy with the original and not having to reinstall, especially if I have to cut the bolt out. We'll see! It is nice to have the manufacturer stand behind what they do. Marlin sent me a pic of his fab when my a-arms were in the jig and his shop looks pretty awesome.

 

I'm in the same boat as Crom, my UCA's didn't fare too well during their first off road trip. Marlin is taking care of it and is sending me the HD ones as well, good guy and good customer service so far. this is why I've been kinda tight lipped re the alignment results etc., been waiting to see how things play out. I definitely second the sentiment that anyone who has the early model UCA's to go out and really test them to make sure they work with your suspension setup.

I have bought some replacement bolts and will hope full get time to do the swap this week.

 

Just looked at mine and they seem to be in the same boat, looks like pin is bent...will reinspect after work

 

I had high hopes.

 

Glad I've been too broke to buy a set and let you guys guinea pig them instead. I'll still probably get a set down the road but I'll let him work the kinks out first... At least he's got a killer warranty.

 

So after inspecting my UCAs here's what I found...



So long story short, yes I did find some of the same finding as other members, but my results were not nearly as drastic as other members. This does, still, concern me, though, and I will be sending Marlin an e-mail, tonight. Hopefully, he and I can work something out. Thanks, @Crom and @tyfoon11 for bringing this situation into light!

 

You're welcome. Sorry your a-arms don't clear either. I'm sure Marlin will take care of you. Thanks to @tyfoon11 who first discovered it. I'll soon have two new UCA bolts in my possession and plan to swap the arms out on Thursday or Friday. Wish me luck.

 

Dang glad I didn't get any yet. I'll wait to see how the HD ones perform. Since I had a family emergency last week all truck funds are gone for now so it'll be a while

@tyfoon11 and @EODwick , anything get really damaged aside from the bolts?

 

I wasn't, i can tell you that. Just standard off roading, rock incline, bumps, hills, all engaged in 4 wheel drive and going slow

 

i wasn't doing anything major offroad either. I don't know if the bolts are bent or damaged, i'll see when I pull them. I'm replacing them just out of caution

 

Damit I'm planning on ordering a set tomorrow. But now I'm kinda scared. Haha

 

Yeah but I don't have the moneys for the hd ones. Dam. I just bought new tires and don't want them wearing too much.

 

I'm running full ome w 885s up front, so somewhere between 2.75" and 3" and rear is ome w/ dakkar, so I don't think the lift had anything to do with it