Is This Angle Normal for a Drag Link End? Chasing Death Wobble

I follow death wobble threads and when they get to the point that there is no obvious solution, I like to suggest that the wheels of your Jeep may be mounted off-center. Also, if the wheels have been off-center for 10,000 miles or so, now the tires may be out of round. This issue shows up on Jeeps that have aftermarket wheels where the center hole of the wheel is bigger than the guiding edge of the hub (hub centric vs lug centric). Lug centric wheels will center if you use this procedure to mount them on your jeep.


https://wranglertjforum.com/threads/hub-centric-wheel-questions.26958/

Here is the procedure:

Here is how you should mount your aftermarket rims, after a rotation, new rims or tires, or a good old cleaning

1. Jack car up and secure it with a jack stand (Safety First :) )
2. Loosen all lug nuts and either put on rim, rotate or whatever the hell you need to do.
3. Thread on all the lug nuts, but DO NOT tighten to where you can not move them.
4. Rotate the tire/rim until one of the 5 lugs is at the 12 o clock position.
5. Tighten lug nut with thumb and forefinger to the point that you can not do it anymore.
6. Rotate the tire clockwise, skipping one lug nut.
7. After skipping the one nut, put the 3rd nut in the 12 o clock position. Tighten this one the same as Step 5
8. Skip one more nut, and repeat Step 5. This last nut will be right next to the first one.
9. Let the truck down to where the tires barely touch the ground. Use a wrench and tighten all bolts with about 25% of your strength. Just enough to grab.
10. I then let the truck down all the way and torqued the bolts to 90.
11. Repeat all steps above for the rest of the truck and throw a couple of beers in there :)
 
Loctite should not be needed. Was the play in the joint or was the bolt moving?
It seemed like the track bar was able shift slightly back and forth (side to side) and I think I could see the flag nut moving back and forth ever so slightly. I need to check torque on it again. I’ll look again tonight and take a video.
 
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I follow death wobble threads and when they get to the point that there is no obvious solution, I like to suggest that the wheels of your Jeep may be mounted off-center. Also, if the wheels have been off-center for 10,000 miles or so, now the tires may be out of round. This issue shows up on Jeeps that have aftermarket wheels where the center hole of the wheel is bigger than the guiding edge of the hub (hub centric vs lug centric). Lug centric wheels will center if you use this procedure to mount them on your jeep.


https://wranglertjforum.com/threads/hub-centric-wheel-questions.26958/

Here is the procedure:

Here is how you should mount your aftermarket rims, after a rotation, new rims or tires, or a good old cleaning

1. Jack car up and secure it with a jack stand (Safety First :) )
2. Loosen all lug nuts and either put on rim, rotate or whatever the hell you need to do.
3. Thread on all the lug nuts, but DO NOT tighten to where you can not move them.
4. Rotate the tire/rim until one of the 5 lugs is at the 12 o clock position.
5. Tighten lug nut with thumb and forefinger to the point that you can not do it anymore.
6. Rotate the tire clockwise, skipping one lug nut.
7. After skipping the one nut, put the 3rd nut in the 12 o clock position. Tighten this one the same as Step 5
8. Skip one more nut, and repeat Step 5. This last nut will be right next to the first one.
9. Let the truck down to where the tires barely touch the ground. Use a wrench and tighten all bolts with about 25% of your strength. Just enough to grab.
10. I then let the truck down all the way and torqued the bolts to 90.
11. Repeat all steps above for the rest of the truck and throw a couple of beers in there :)
When I install the new wheels and tires I will make sure to follow this procedure. I did something similar with my old setup. Thank you.
 
Re checked torque on axle side of trackbar its still at 75 ft pounds. Maybe its just the joint thats moving? Look at lower right of the joint:



There is play in the upper control arm bushing as stated earlier, these will be replaced with johnny joints:




Tie rod end seems normal to me:

 
I found out first hand if you have play in the front right upper at the axle it sure will have death wobble- a track bar needs to have good connections - check this out -see the dark ring around this axle end track bar bushing ? This clevite has 9/16-14mm bolt and no hole elongation or improper torque, the movement is being allowed because this manufacturer puts cheap bushings in an otherwise stout bar-

Why was looking at it ? Because I could feel it when I drive it - it creates a need to push against road crown, steering wheel shakes a tad on bumps, a slight bump steer and the need to micro correct a little too much - because the axle moving steers for you.

A7EDB9C5-F4FD-42ED-86F8-499657BC130A.jpeg
 
Wanted to update this thread. As of now my death wobble is gone. I think it's a combination of the upper control arm Johnny joints I installed on the Dana 44 (the rubber ones were allowing movement) and the new wheels and tires. The shop that mounted them said the steelies were out of spec but they got them super close. Nice having a 4x4 shop mount and balance as they know how to deal with big tires. Hoping the death wobble stays away but I have done 150 miles on the highway with bumps and nothing.

Screen Shot 2021-12-05 at 12.49.15 PM.png




IMG_3758.jpg
 
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