Cincinnati Area Thread (Tri-State, Ohio/Kentucky/Indiana)

That's about 85 ft-lbs too few IMHO.

 

Wut?

 

Not sure if it's only the aftermarket U-bolts with flip kits or what but many on here have had problems with the torque specs being too low or stretching bolts keep getting loose. After I torqued mine to pisss they were no longer loosening. Have read others doing the same past. It's a thing. Dont forget to pattern them down when torquing to piss and enjoy a beeers of your choice when you're done

 

I’m certain I torqued them to death after I took the axle shims (that didn’t help my driveshaft vibrations of old) out. But I’ll definitely check them today. It’s been at least two years since I touched them and if they’re the cause of this vibration I’ll kick myself for not thinking of that sooner.

 

When we did my leafs, I checked them 3x. Once when installed, sprayed with Fluid Film after because Dakars. Again a week or so later and they moved a good 1/2 turn at least, all 8. Checked again a few weeks ago and they didn't move.
Think my carrier needs replaced though, maybe shims. My carrier bearing has some up/down movement, likely from the locker constantly engaging and disengaging.

 

I doubled wrenches on them too and pulled/pushed til I almost prolapsed. They need to be that tight

 

Happy Birthday @Bluegrass Taco!

 

Any of you doods on 17"s need a cheap 33" spare? These don't have much tread on them, but may work in a pinch. I've been looking for a cheap spare for a while and these are the best I've found....maybe I need to stop being cheap.
https://cincinnati.craigslist.org/wto/d/tyro-goodyear-wrangler/6950699492.html

 

Anyone want to make some quick money this weekend? I should have new LCAs, cam bolts and inner/outer tie rods by Friday and I don’t know if I’m gonna be up for installing them... don’t really want to pay shop labor rates but would gladly pay someone local to do the install for me. I know the LCAs shouldn’t be too bad but I don’t have the tools to do the inner tie rods and my back has been a mess lately so working under the truck on jack stands does not sound appealing.

 

@09TRDSport4x4 - Are you doing cam tab gussets in the process? Given you'll have it all apart I'd recommend it.

OEM Cam Bolts?

I did all that work last summer, not the most enjoyable. I'd highly recommend having at least 2 of these for the cam bolt cutting:
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Diablo-...ng-Reciprocating-Saw-Blade-DS0908CF/205426168

 

I bought this kit to go with each of the Moog replacement LCAs. And when we installed the SPC UCAs the lower control arm bolts came loose without any trouble. No idea how hard it will be to get them out...

 

I 2nd those Diablo blades. Holy balls did I go through standard metal cutting blades (and a whole lot of suffering) cutting suspension bolts on my wife's Jeep. Finally ponied up for carbide blades. Frickin' cuts like butter. Well worth the money. I kick myself for not being prepared. Would have been minutes instead of hours. Do it.

 

Those will probably work, I researched them a while ago and thought I found some mixed reviews....I may be thinking about the Moog bolts which share a similar design with SPC. I was concerned about that design so I paid the premium for OEM....those damn things were expensive.

If the bolts are loose that's great! They should come out easy if they are actually loose. Keep in mind though that one side (I think it's the back) uses a nut. So if you think it's loose, the bolt may still be frozen in the bushing.

 

I figure anything will be better than the 10+ year old originals. And I can’t say for sure the bolts aren’t seized as we had to put a lot of weight on the driver’s side LCA to get it to rotate down after loosening the bolts. Makes me think the bolt might be seized and the bushing actually rotated... guess I’ll find out if I attempt this job on Saturday. I’m getting quotes from a few local shops now but I’m afraid they’re going to be ridiculous.

 

Yep, I'm thinking your bolt is seized and it was just play in the bushing.

I'd offer to help but I've been insanely busy recently so not sure when I'd have any extra time.

 

Yeah, I’m not paying $600-$800 for a shop to do this work. Looks like I’ll be tackling the lower control arms on Saturday...

I am going to pay to have the inner/outer tie rods done and get an alignment. I can handle that cost.

 

Ok, so small update on my mystery vibration...

So far, no change to the feel of the truck on the highway. This is more of a information update. Turns out the driveline shop that made my custom rear driveshaft used Spicer U joints but they do not have Zerks (so they can’t be greased). Checked the U bolts while I was under there and they were still torqued to piss. Had the torque wrench set to 100 ft lbs and didn’t need to move any of the nuts.

Also, worth noting would be that it appears the one piece driveshaft has, at some point, brushed up against the old carrier bearing mounts. It sits a good 1/2 inch away from the mount when the truck is parked but there are a few very light scratches in the paint. Don’t know if this is an indication that the driveshaft is unbalanced and might be moving around a lot or if, under certain load or driving, the driveshaft shifts a bit and it just happened to brush the mount. I peeked at the front driveshaft while I was under the truck and it had no play in either direction (but I could see the Zerks on the U joints).

Next up are the new LCAs, lower ball joints and inner/outer tie rod ends. All of those are original and look like crap. Grease is leaking from every boot and the bushings in the LCAs are all kinds of cracked. Not to mention the insane amount of rust on the LCAs and cam
adjusters. I also inspected both CV axles and the boots were in fantastic shape with no tears or grease anywhere. The angles are definitely off with the ~3” of lift but they appear to be in good shape. Just a reminder that I did the ECGS needle bearing replacement when I installed new front wheel bearings (about 15k miles ago).

Will be back with an update after all the replacement suspension components go in and the truck gets another alignment. It really does feel like the vibration is coming from the front driver’s side suspension, but I guess we’ll find out...

 

Well... I’m back with another update.

New lower control arms (with ball joints), inner and outer tie rods went on the truck today. Also got an alignment afterwards. And while the steering now feels much tighter and the sloppy feel over bumps from the front left is gone, unfortunately, the vibration/shaking in the cab is still very much a problem at highway speeds...

At this point I’m disappointed, but not surprised. I’m also leaning more towards the rear driveshaft or a bad tire being the culprit. If anyone has an extra 17” wheel with a 33” tire and wants to help me diagnose it as a tire issue, let me know. Im thinking about swapping out one wheel at a time and taking it out on the highway. I’m betting one of the rear tires is not really balanced and I’m thinking this will be the easiest way to find out. It’s either that or I remove the rear driveshaft and take the truck for a test drive. And I don’t really want to do that unless I absolutely have to.

Any other thoughts or input would be greatly appreciated. I’m about at my wits end with the stupid truck right now...

 

When are you thinking you'd try to test the tires? I've got a brand new 285/70/17 KO2 spare

 

The sooner the better, honestly. I’ll have to try to find time to actually do it but I can’t handle this vibration/shaking much longer...