It seems like someone is always asking whether they should go with swaybar disconnects or a Currie Antirock for the most 'flex' out of their TJ. Someone in these threads will usually mention the Currie Antirock offroad swaybar which is then followed by questions such as, "What is it?", "How does it work?", and "Is it better than disconnects?".
This thread is an attempt to explain that there is a difference between 'maximum articulation' and 'useful flex' as it pertains to offroad situations—as well as how this relates to the Antirock versus typical quick-disconnect systems.
I will tell you right off the bat that you will develop more 'maximum flex' with any of the quick disconnets than you will with the Antilock, no doubt about it. However, how useful will that maximum flex actually be?
Maximum Articulation
There are some Jeepers that hold the contention that all flex is not created equal. That there is 'maximum flex' and there is 'useful flex'. Maximum flex or articulation is just what it sounds like. Just how much you can completely flex out your particular suspension setup. Maximum flex will give great RTI numbers and make for really great pictures of Jeeps with tires high in the air (usually these end up in the typical bro threads that are usually titled something along the lines of, "show off your flex".) The quick disconnects are great with developing maximum flex since they completely disconnect the swaybar from the axle.
Sometimes you'll see pictures of Jeeps so flexed out that the springs actually have no load on them and in fact may drop down from the upper spring perch. This is were we get into the idea of "useful flex." When a tirecan droop so much that the spring unseats there isn't much weight on the tire. Without the weight there won't be much taction from the drooped tire. In this situation one has to ask what is the practical difference between this and having a tirelifted in the air from a traction stand point?
Useful Flex
So now we introduce the idea of 'useful flex'. This is the point at which you can flex out and still get power down to the ground with enough traction. Unfortunately, this is much more difficult to pinpoint because it will depend on many factors such as ground surface conditions, tires, traction aiding devices, specific suspension setup, load distribution and perhaps other variables. John Currie—who's won many rock-crawling competitions and has a good reputation with the community for thoughtful designs and solutions—approaches the flex issue from the 'useful flex' stand point with the Antirock.
Anti-rock
The Currie Antirock is an anti-swaybar (often referred to as a torsion bar) specifically design for offroad driving. Currie carefully engineered the Antirock to balance flexibility with chassis control. It works with the rear swaybar and keeps both front and rear swaybars connected at all times to evenly distribute forces between the front and rear axles aiding traction by keeping the weight on the tires. While much softer than the stock bar the Antirock also helps control body sway and lean offroad making side-slope and off-camber situations much less trecherous to negotiate.
I was surprised at the difference in offroad ride after my own Currie Antirock installation. My TJ felt like it just glided over the terrain. When I'd approach holes, ruts and drop offs I would expect the TJ to shift and sway toward the depression. Instead, the tire would drop into the hole in a controlled way and the chassis remained surprisingly level, balanced between front and rear axles. In addition, the traction difference is very noticeable (especially if you have open diffs).
Besides the handling benefits there is also the ease of use. Once the Currie Antirock is set up you just leave it alone. The only reason to stop at the trail head is to air-down tires, otherwise just roll onto the trail and roll off. No pulling pins or tying the swaybar out of the way. Likewise, when you're coming off the trail you don't have to get under a muddy Jeep and hook things back up in the rain and muck or whatever you just wheeled through. No rocking the Jeep back and forth to line-up pin holes or anything. It simply works very transparently and you forget it's on there.
Despite the added control, the Currie Antirock does allow a surprising amount of articulation. In one rockcrawler.com article the author quantifies the difference between fully disconnecting the swaybar and running the Anti-rock:
The Currie Antirock isn't cheap, however, if anyone is considering the $150 JKS (or similar brand) disconnects, then they owe it to themselves to look into the Antilock.
Coming from a guy who has personally run JKS disconnects prior to the Currie Antirock install, I can honestly tell you that after running with this mod for the last several months I would highly recommend it to anyone. It is a huge, huge improvement over the typical disconnect setup, but you really won't know until you try it.
This is hands down one of my favorite mods I've done to my TJ thus far, worth every penny!
And just incase you need any further explanation on how it works, listen to John Currie himself explain it:
This thread is an attempt to explain that there is a difference between 'maximum articulation' and 'useful flex' as it pertains to offroad situations—as well as how this relates to the Antirock versus typical quick-disconnect systems.
I will tell you right off the bat that you will develop more 'maximum flex' with any of the quick disconnets than you will with the Antilock, no doubt about it. However, how useful will that maximum flex actually be?
Maximum Articulation
There are some Jeepers that hold the contention that all flex is not created equal. That there is 'maximum flex' and there is 'useful flex'. Maximum flex or articulation is just what it sounds like. Just how much you can completely flex out your particular suspension setup. Maximum flex will give great RTI numbers and make for really great pictures of Jeeps with tires high in the air (usually these end up in the typical bro threads that are usually titled something along the lines of, "show off your flex".) The quick disconnects are great with developing maximum flex since they completely disconnect the swaybar from the axle.
Sometimes you'll see pictures of Jeeps so flexed out that the springs actually have no load on them and in fact may drop down from the upper spring perch. This is were we get into the idea of "useful flex." When a tirecan droop so much that the spring unseats there isn't much weight on the tire. Without the weight there won't be much taction from the drooped tire. In this situation one has to ask what is the practical difference between this and having a tirelifted in the air from a traction stand point?
Useful Flex
So now we introduce the idea of 'useful flex'. This is the point at which you can flex out and still get power down to the ground with enough traction. Unfortunately, this is much more difficult to pinpoint because it will depend on many factors such as ground surface conditions, tires, traction aiding devices, specific suspension setup, load distribution and perhaps other variables. John Currie—who's won many rock-crawling competitions and has a good reputation with the community for thoughtful designs and solutions—approaches the flex issue from the 'useful flex' stand point with the Antirock.
Anti-rock
The Currie Antirock is an anti-swaybar (often referred to as a torsion bar) specifically design for offroad driving. Currie carefully engineered the Antirock to balance flexibility with chassis control. It works with the rear swaybar and keeps both front and rear swaybars connected at all times to evenly distribute forces between the front and rear axles aiding traction by keeping the weight on the tires. While much softer than the stock bar the Antirock also helps control body sway and lean offroad making side-slope and off-camber situations much less trecherous to negotiate.
I was surprised at the difference in offroad ride after my own Currie Antirock installation. My TJ felt like it just glided over the terrain. When I'd approach holes, ruts and drop offs I would expect the TJ to shift and sway toward the depression. Instead, the tire would drop into the hole in a controlled way and the chassis remained surprisingly level, balanced between front and rear axles. In addition, the traction difference is very noticeable (especially if you have open diffs).
Besides the handling benefits there is also the ease of use. Once the Currie Antirock is set up you just leave it alone. The only reason to stop at the trail head is to air-down tires, otherwise just roll onto the trail and roll off. No pulling pins or tying the swaybar out of the way. Likewise, when you're coming off the trail you don't have to get under a muddy Jeep and hook things back up in the rain and muck or whatever you just wheeled through. No rocking the Jeep back and forth to line-up pin holes or anything. It simply works very transparently and you forget it's on there.
Despite the added control, the Currie Antirock does allow a surprising amount of articulation. In one rockcrawler.com article the author quantifies the difference between fully disconnecting the swaybar and running the Anti-rock:
- 33.25" fully disconnected (20* RTI = 1050)
- 32.00" loosest Anti-rock setting (20* RTI = 1011)
- 31.25" firmest Anti-rock setting (20* RTI = 987)
The Currie Antirock isn't cheap, however, if anyone is considering the $150 JKS (or similar brand) disconnects, then they owe it to themselves to look into the Antilock.
Coming from a guy who has personally run JKS disconnects prior to the Currie Antirock install, I can honestly tell you that after running with this mod for the last several months I would highly recommend it to anyone. It is a huge, huge improvement over the typical disconnect setup, but you really won't know until you try it.
This is hands down one of my favorite mods I've done to my TJ thus far, worth every penny!
And just incase you need any further explanation on how it works, listen to John Currie himself explain it:
