Cost and quality of control arms

imactj2004

imactj2004

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what should a noob be on the lookout for when it comes to low cost adjustible control arms. Obviously, “you get what you pay for” applies to all things, but what are the risks? Is it the bushings that breakdown quicker than higher priced competitors or do the arms actually break under stress?

Seems to me that even the cheapest aftermarket adjustibles are better than the stock arms. Fair assumption or no?
 
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imactj2004 said:
Seems to me that even the cheapest aftermarket adjustibles are better than the stock arms. Fair assumption or no?
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Not really, no. The factory arms have some flex built into the channel design. Most lower-end CAs don't and strictly depend on the joints to flex. If you do much wheeling at all that puts a lot more stress on the control arm mounts and could lead to failure of the mounts.

However if you just need adjustable arms for mostly on-road needs, those are probably a fine option, since the mounts won't be seeing as much stress.
 
So….what exactly should someone be on the lookout for? ie: what is a sign of poor quality vs high quality?
 
rasband said:
What do you want to use your Jeep for?
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That’s not what I’m asking. I get that “low quality” may be sufficient for daily driver use. But I want to know is what makes them insufficient for something more intense. What to look out for? metals used? bushings? forged vs welded? other? There seems to be a wide range of prices so i want to evaluate the actual quality, not the price.
 
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imactj2004 said:
That’s not what I’m asking. I get that “low quality” may be sufficient for daily driver use. But I want to know is what makes them insufficient for something more intense. What to look out for? metals used? bushings? forged vs welded? other? There seems to be a wide range of prices so i want to evaluate the actual quality, not the price.
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I already answered that, the joint is what makes them insufficient for wheeling. It's pretty much just "usable flex". E.g. OEM has flex in the joint + arm, most aftermarket just has joint flex in OEM sizes in rigid arms (so do the math), the good ones have good flex joints like a johnny Joint.

Let's say you jump to the JJ, I wouldn't worry much about the forged vs welded options beyond just knowing that by time you're in that price range you may as well get the currie or savvy ones, which aren't budget friendly. The core 4x4 being probably next in line, unless you go used.
 
right … but what about the joint? is there some metric that the manufacturers are measuring against (ie: “this joint has been tested and proven to withstand x lbs of force”).

Lets take an example:

Say Company A and Company B both sell similar sets (forged with rubber bushings) at vastly difference prices. Beyond word of mouth, what can the buyer look at to identify one as lesser quality than the other?
 
imactj2004 said:
right … but what about the joint? is there some metric that the manufacturers are measuring against (ie: “this joint has been tested and proven to withstand x lbs of force”).

Lets take an example:

Say Company A and Company B both sell similar sets (forged with rubber bushings) at vastly difference prices. Beyond word of mouth, what can the buyer look at to identify one as lesser quality than the other?
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Unless they both also make joints (they don't) it's a silly question. They're going to shove whatever common joint size fits in a housing . It'll either be polyurethane or urethane (from the same suppliers), but the same underlying issue holds true.
 
I'm not sure what you're asking either...but I'll try to answer you.

Factory arms are a really good design. The u-channel allows more flex than just the bushing alone. Then you go low end, non-adjustable aftermarket arms. They will be a poly bushing, probably, and they are garbage. They won't flex as well as the factory ones, plus they are fixed length

Next step up would be an adjustable arm with some sort of poly bushing. Still limits flex and stresses the mounts...but at least you can start to control pinion angle, caster, and axle position.

Now we're getting into flex joints. Basically, anything used here for an arm is going to be PLENTY strong for a control arm. The joints are what you're paying for and what you need to pay attention too. Anything that uses a threaded ring to set joint preload is not going to work out long term. The rings loosen up, or the races wear, they just don't last. That includes most every joint out there (RE, Rough Country, Rock Krawler, etc)

Next is Metalcloak. The Duroflex joint is bonded to the sleeve like the factory joint and it spins in the housing. Some people have had good luck with them...some think they contribute to axle wrap. I haven't used em, so I can't say one way or another...but I do know that Metalcloak tends to be more marketing than good product.

Finally, the "go To" best is Johnny joints. Clayton, Savvy, and Rock Jock (and I'm sure others) use the Johnny Joint. The guys out west love em. Here in the midwest, where we deal with Mud (clay type that sucks the oil out of grease)...I'm not sure I like em. They are VERY flexible and robust...but its very tough to keep them in good shape due to the difficulty of greasing (that is a whole different discussion).
 
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I think what may not be clear in my question is: what makes similar class arms better or worse than their competitors in the *same* class?

ie: are Core, Rancho, Rouch Country adjustibles all considered “equal”, so just go with the best price? Or is there some clear red flag to watch out for in terms of shoddy construction or materials?

Likewise, with higher end JJ, are Savvy, Clayon, and RockJoak all “equal”, or does one clearly outperform their peers? Not by word of mouth but by a quantifiable metric?

The best example I can give is with audio. Obviously there a different classes of speakers to choose from. But I can also pick two manufactureres of the same size and wattage and look up tons of information about actual signal quality that has been measured and tested for that speaker. So if one costs $100 and the other costs $50, but they both have the same measured results, then I can safely pick the most affordable. On the other hand, if the cheaper one has inferior quality but is claiming to be in the same class, then I know why its only $50.

I get that different classes of control arms are going to outperform or underperform other classes, but how do you measure quality within what they claim to be a similar class?
 
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Aside from joint differences which have been explained the only variables are material( DOM or poop tube, wall thickness and diameter, square tube vs round, aluminum vs steel) and weld quality. I don’t think anyone really advertises those so you’ll have to pick a quality brand.

It’s uncommon to see discussion of broken control arms outside of the joints or mounting points.

There really isn’t much else to go into. They aren’t complex between the joints on each end. You’re asking for details on something incredible simple like it has complex waveforms and cabinet design, it’s a just metal tube.
 
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Just buy the best you can afford and a rebuildable set if you can. Metalcloak and Currie are some of the Top. Im personally saving up for a set of Metalcloak. Buy once Cry once.
 
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Trod286 said:
Just buy the best you can afford and a rebuildable set if you can. Metalcloak and Currie are some of the Top. Im personally saving up for a set of Metalcloak. Buy once Cry once.
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You'll be crying often after buying those. Get JJs and prosper because you'll only need to grease them on occasion vs replace the whole joint.
 
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rasband said:
You'll be crying often after buying those. Get JJs and prosper because you'll only need to grease them on occasion vs replace the whole joint.
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Binding and popping noise I dislike with JJ'S and buying replacement bushings are much easier to replace than rebuilding a jj on the trail.
 
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Trod286 said:
Binding and popping noise I dislike with JJ'S and buying replacement bushings are much easier to replace than rebuilding a jj on the trail.
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Have you ever had JJs? I'm going to go ahead and say no since those are not characteristics of JJs. Your logic is off since the actual "issues" with a JJ don't require a rebuild on the trail. They just make some creaking noises that don't really matter short term. Short being hundreds of miles.

Compare that to a duroflex joint that literally separates (but likely still gets you off the trail).
 
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