Inside-Out Build—2006 LJ

[Blackjack]

Working on getting the DDBs installed in place of the clevites in my rough country lower arms now.

It looks as though I may have misjudged that the size matched the OEM bushing OD. I'm measuring about 2.243 for the hole and the outer sleeve that came out of it. Of course none of these measurements were possible until I destroyed the bushing during the removal process so now the Jeep is disabled until I figure something out.

View attachment 479240

View attachment 479241

The DDB is advertised at 2.249 though I'm measuring about 2.28, and I found a drawing that showed it at 2.267 but now I can't find it. It looks close by eye and the chamfers are nice to help guide it in but I haven't been able to get it started at all and I don't think it's gonna squeeze down by .37.

View attachment 479242

So I'm thinking I'll need to take my arms to a machine shop and have them opened up a bit but I'm not really sure how big to tell them. Or can anybody tell me what the opening measures for an OEM clevite?

Or maybe I just need to man up and force it in there with the right setup of adapters? Which brings me to my next thing...im very interested in the existence of an installation tool. My 36mm socket is about the only thing that hits the outer sleeve without trying to press the inner part out but it's so deep I'm gonna have to get some threaded rod to rig up a press. So far I've tried to get it started with a clamp, a large Johnny Joint service tool and a ball joint press but none of the adapters I can fit in there (because theyre not as tall as the 36mm socket) will stay centered.

Any tips @Blackjack ?

Dimensions are correct and the outer body will squish. You will need a press and to make sure you get them started square. Ball joint press will work if you have some patience.

 

[freedom_in_4low]

Dimensions are correct and the outer body will squish. You will need a press and to make sure you get them started square. Ball joint press will work if you have some patience.

great info, thanks!

I'm gonna take another run at it after lunch. Got some different parts to try rigging up, hoping to fit it in the jaws of the ball joint press. Failing that I may just take it to a local shop and have them press it in for me, and then again for the other side once this one is back in and I take the other out and remove the Clevite...

 

[freedom_in_4low]

great info, thanks!

I'm gonna take another run at it after lunch. Got some different parts to try rigging up, hoping to fit it in the jaws of the ball joint press. Failing that I may just take it to a local shop and have them press it in for me, and then again for the other side once this one is back in and I take the other out and remove the Clevite...

No luck so far. I simply don't have the arrangement of adapters to press it in while also fitting inside the 6" jaws of my ball joint press, considering the arm and the bushing add up to 4" of that.

There's a kit at Harbor Freight that has a part that should work, but I didn't really want to pay $80 for a whole kit of tools I have no other use for. AutoZone has a ball joint press accessory kit that might include a similar one, so I guess I'll run and grab it while my kid is at basketball practice tonight.

I REALLY don't want to take it to a shop because I just know I'll either get it back messed up or they'll just measure it and tell me it's too big and not even try.

 

[Rickyd]

No luck so far. I simply don't have the arrangement of adapters to press it in while also fitting inside the 6" jaws of my ball joint press, considering the arm and the bushing add up to 4" of that.

There's a kit at Harbor Freight that has a part that should work, but I didn't really want to pay $80 for a whole kit of tools I have no other use for. AutoZone has a ball joint press accessory kit that might include a similar one, so I guess I'll run and grab it while my kid is at basketball practice tonight.

I REALLY don't want to take it to a shop because I just know I'll either get it back messed up or they'll just measure it and tell me it's too big and not even try.

What is the I.D. of the metalcloak housing?is it far off of what you have? Could you use a big brake/cylinder hone to open up the rough country arm?

I plan on going this route with my rough country arms to make them double adjustable

 

[freedom_in_4low]

What is the I.D. of the metalcloak housing?is it far off of what you have? Could you use a big brake/cylinder hone to open up the rough country arm?

I plan on going this route with my rough country arms to make them double adjustable

View attachment 479620

I don't have any metalcloak stuff in hand yet so I'm not sure I'm following.

I'm attempting to put a Synergy DDB into a Rough Country arm previously home to a Clevite. I measure 2.243" inside the RC housing and the Synergy OD measures 2.28" though it's advertised as 2.249".

The metalcloak duroflex will go into a Johnny Joint housing. As far as I'm aware, no honing necessary as Metalcloak markets it as an "upgrade" to go into a JJ housing. Can't put a MC bushing into the fixed end of the RC arm because there's no snap ring grooves or washer land to keep it from going out the other side.

 

[Rickyd]

I don't have any metalcloak stuff in hand yet so I'm not sure I'm following.

I'm attempting to put a Synergy DDB into a Rough Country arm previously home to a Clevite. I measure 2.243" inside the RC housing and the Synergy OD measures 2.28" though it's advertised as 2.249".

The metalcloak duroflex will go into a Johnny Joint housing. As far as I'm aware, no honing necessary as Metalcloak markets it as an "upgrade" to go into a JJ housing. Can't put a MC bushing into the fixed end of the RC arm because there's no snap ring grooves or washer land to keep it from going out the other side.

Sorry, i wasn't following the acronyms. I thought the ddb was metalcloak. And that you could use a housing diameter to reference that companies interference fit.

Regardless,if the fit is too tight then a hone or grinding stone of some kind might help?

 

[freedom_in_4low]

Sorry, i wasn't following the acronyms. I thought the ddb was metalcloak. And that you could use a housing diameter to reference that companies interference fit.

Regardless,if the fit is too tight then a hone or grinding stone of some kind might help?

oh I follow. Yes that could be an option.

 

[freedom_in_4low]

Dimensions are correct and the outer body will squish. You will need a press and to make sure you get them started square. Ball joint press will work if you have some patience.

this cannot be understated. No arrangement of sockets, adapters, random pipe fittings I have laying around, etc will both A) fit inside the ball joint press and B) start it straight in.

I'll take the arm and the bushing tomorrow morning into the local shop I used a couple times (in the 90s ) and see what they'll do for me. I eventually want a press but the day after I was bitching about how much we spent on our trip to visit MY family for Thanksgiving is not the time.

 

[freedom_in_4low]

My Rockjock LCA's are in. Any good reason to avoid having the forged end and jam nut at the axle end of the arm? That end has a zerk; the fixed end doesn't, so it can only get grease through the greasable bolt and it has the caster adjustment slots.

If it's really an issue I'll buy the washers and feel good about supporting a forum member, but $45 is $45.

 

[freedom_in_4low]

Local shop pressed it on alright...but I wish they'd put more effort into centering it. I know it's only like 1/16" of an inch but I'd feel better knowing I had all the rotation I could get before the housing contacts the mount.

It's flush on the side they pressed it into.

But recessed a bit on the other side.

Now that it's in, the ball joint press width won't be as much of a constraint so I'm gonna see if I can get it just a bit further.

 

[freedom_in_4low]

Now that it's in, the ball joint press width won't be as much of a constraint so I'm gonna see if I can get it just a bit further.

Got it centered, and I took a photo so I'd remember the right parts and orientation.

The pressure it took to move it was perfectly reasonable, so that tells me the ball joint press has all the beans necessary to do this, but it's nearly impossible to make it start straight with the number of hands that humans usually have.

I put this one on (temporarily) to hold the axle in place and took the other one off. Will drop it off tomorrow morning and pick it up in the afternoon, hopefully. I say temporarily because the Duroflex joints that are supposed to go in the other end have still not arrived. Not Metalcloaks fault, except to the extent that it wouldn't have happened if they didn't use FedEx.

It of course doesn't show the history, but it was originally scheduled for the 4th and has been stuck in Hutchins, TX since 12/2. This is the second time they've gone to "no scheduled delivery date", after pushing it to the 5th, then 6th, and only changing it overnight after the day it was supposed to show up. I hate to say it but I'm not sure USPS isn't better than FedEx.

 

[Mike_H]

Got it centered, and I took a photo so I'd remember the right parts and orientation.

View attachment 480314

The pressure it took to move it was perfectly reasonable, so that tells me the ball joint press has all the beans necessary to do this, but it's nearly impossible to make it start straight with the number of hands that humans usually have.

I put this one on (temporarily) to hold the axle in place and took the other one off. Will drop it off tomorrow morning and pick it up in the afternoon, hopefully. I say temporarily because the Duroflex joints that are supposed to go in the other end have still not arrived. Not Metalcloaks fault, except to the extent that it wouldn't have happened if they didn't use FedEx.

View attachment 480315

It of course doesn't show the history, but it was originally scheduled for the 4th and has been stuck in Hutchins, TX since 12/2. This is the second time they've gone to "no scheduled delivery date", after pushing it to the 5th, then 6th, and only changing it overnight after the day it was supposed to show up. I hate to say it but I'm not sure USPS isn't better than FedEx.

As far as my preferred carriers...I pick USPS, the UPS, then anything else I can find, and only after I've exhausted all other options, I pick FedEx. They have gone SO far downhill since Covid...

 

[freedom_in_4low]

As far as my preferred carriers...I pick USPS, the UPS, then anything else I can find, and only after I've exhausted all other options, I pick FedEx. They have gone SO far downhill since Covid...

This is just stupid now. It's been in the same place for over a week. I guess I'll contact MC tomorrow and see how long they wait before filing a lost package claim and shipping out a replacement.

This is the last of the history. Replaced an unreadable barcode two days in a row and then nothing....

I got tired of waiting and just cleaned and greased the JJs in the location these MCs were going into and put them back in. Used the SuperLube silicone with PTFE. The joint moves more freely than it does with brand new CV2. The 2.5" poly shells seem to have a better pathway molded into them for grease to flow, so I left them unmodified but took extra care to keep the holes lined up with the zerk and have some hope to be able to grease them with a gun (once I get another gun to load the SuperLube cartridge into).

Note the slight recessed band around the midline as well as the open passages to the interior. Still no grooves on the inside so it may be in vain but my hope is that my previous issue was connected to my complete failure to pay any mind to where the holes landed in relation to the zerk.

The uppers lack the recess and the little dips where they come together are so small as to probably disappear altogether when the joint is installed. So the next time I have those out I'll probably drill a hole.

 

[freedom_in_4low]

So, again MetalCloak comes through with amazing customer service. I contacted them via their website chat, let them know my issue and "Chris" said he'd look into it and let me know. On Tuesday he called and left a voicemail to let me know that FedEx couldn't find the package and that he had overnighted a new one to replace it. It was at my house when I got home from Bozeman on Thursday.

MC's instructions call for a teflon impregnated silicone grease, which just so happens to describe the SuperLube with PTFE I bought to use on the JJs. It'll be interesting to see how these perform from a noise standpoint.

On the front end, mission "get some turning radius back" seems to be a success. I have not been able to feel the tires hitting the front LCAs since I installed the Rockjocks. If they touch, it's just lightly, and not wrapping the lugs around the arms like it did with the Rough Country's. In light of that I'm going to change the advice I usually give to wholly endorse RJ for their 1.25" dia lower control arms, the smallest I've found in the market. Savvy and Metalcloak double adjustables are 1.5", MC's single adjustables are 1.625", and most of the others are 2". When it's time for new tires, I'm going with KM3's which have >1" narrower tread than the Cooper STT Pros and that may even be enough to pull the washers out of my steering stops.

 

[freedom_in_4low]

Wheeled in some tight woods yesterday and for the first time since going to 35s I didn't feel like I was missing something when it comes to turning radius, so even though the gain was small it's noticeable and worth it. They're pricier than I wish they were but I'm glad I upgraded to the Rockjock arms.

Power steering pump sure is groany. Probably need to put that on my winter list. It's original as far as I can tell.

I'm hearing a metallic squeak from underneath on large events. There are witness marks where the right rear shock is meeting the exhaust so that could be it. Not sure what else it would be, as everything in the suspension is tight and solid.

Also got a CEL on the trail with codes for bank 1 lean and cyl 6 misfire. Presumably unrelated since cylinder 6 would be bank 2. Cleared it on the way home and it didn't come back so not sure what that was about. I'm unaware of any service history so the plugs and O2s could both be pretty old.

 

[freedom_in_4low]

My Rockjock LCA's are in. Any good reason to avoid having the forged end and jam nut at the axle end of the arm? That end has a zerk; the fixed end doesn't, so it can only get grease through the greasable bolt and it has the caster adjustment slots.

If it's really an issue I'll buy the washers and feel good about supporting a forum member, but $45 is $45.

Nobody ever responded to this but I forgot my 80s XJ CAD axle doesn't have the caster slots, so no issue with using greasable bolts at the axle end.

 

[freedom_in_4low]

I've mentioned before that I'm running Rockjock 4" in front and unidentified 3" springs in the rear. The rig is almost perfectly level when unloaded but with car seats and kids or tools and gear in the back it sags enough that the doors want to close themselves and the sag becomes measureable at the tub.

Finally doing something about it, but with so many threads about LJs getting more rear lift than advertised and way more rake, I ordered the 9131RH2 4" TJ / 3.5" LJ springs. Went ahead and grabbed RJs rear bump stop kit too so that lines up better.

I'm already close to 50/50 on the shock so if it gets too far out of whack I might add BPEs.

Not sure what was going on at Northridge but it gave me 10% off and I didn't enter a coupon code.

Now I gotta get that heater wired up so it's warm enough to want to work in the garage.

 

[PNW_LJ]

Wheeled in some tight woods yesterday and for the first time since going to 35s I didn't feel like I was missing something when it comes to turning radius, so even though the gain was small it's noticeable and worth it. They're pricier than I wish they were but I'm glad I upgraded to the Rockjock arms.

Are you saying the 35s allow you to make tighter turns offroad?

I've mentioned before that I'm running Rockjock 4" in front and unidentified 3" springs in the rear. The rig is almost perfectly level when unloaded but with car seats and kids or tools and gear in the back it sags enough that the doors want to close themselves and the sag becomes measureable at the tub.

Finally doing something about it, but with so many threads about LJs getting more rear lift than advertised and way more rake, I ordered the 9131RH2 4" TJ / 3.5" LJ springs. Went ahead and grabbed RJs rear bump stop kit too so that lines up better.

I'm already close to 50/50 on the shock so if it gets too far out of whack I might add BPEs.

Not sure what was going on at Northridge but it gave me 10% off and I didn't enter a coupon code.

Now I gotta get that heater wired up so it's warm enough to want to work in the garage.

Yup I’m in the exact same situation with a severe rake (Currie 4” front and rear, and 0.25” front spacer). I’m going to solve it by getting a thicker front spacer.

 

[freedom_in_4low]

Are you saying the 35s allow you to make tighter turns offroad?

No, the 35s combined with the fat bodied Rough Country control arms caused me to take wider turns. I was having to do 3 point turns where I didn't think I should have to, woods trails felt really claustrophobic. I have 2 washers behind each steering stop and was still able to bury the arm between the lugs of my STT pros. Going to the skinnier Rockjock arms eliminated the tire to arm contact to the extent that I never felt limited by my turning radius yesterday, even when I accidentally ended up on a SxS trail.

I haven't removed any of the washers yet but I may try taking one out and as long as it's only soft rubbing and not hard interference I'll leave it out. KM3s have about an inch narrower tread than STT pros so my next set of tires I may be able to ditch the washers entirely.

Yup I’m in the exact same situation with a severe rake (Currie 4” front and rear, and 0.25” front spacer). I’m going to solve it by getting a thicker front spacer.

Did you get the 9131RH3 4.5" TJ / 4" LJ springs then? That's exactly the situation I want to avoid. I don't need or want more ride height in the front. I had my sketchiest off camber butt pucker scenario yesterday and I'm not looking to get any more top-heavy. Honestly if I could drop to 3" and keep my uptravel (via high lines and new shock mounts) I'd do it. But I'm not that spendy at this point.

 

[PNW_LJ]

No, the 35s combined with the fat bodied Rough Country control arms caused me to take wider turns. I was having to do 3 point turns where I didn't think I should have to, woods trails felt really claustrophobic. I have 2 washers behind each steering stop and was still able to bury the arm between the lugs of my STT pros. Going to the skinnier Rockjock arms eliminated the tire to arm contact to the extent that I never felt limited by my turning radius yesterday, even when I accidentally ended up on a SxS trail.

I haven't removed any of the washers yet but I may try taking one out and as long as it's only soft rubbing and not hard interference I'll leave it out. KM3s have about an inch narrower tread than STT pros so my next set of tires I may be able to ditch the washers entirely.

Oh gotcha. I’ve got the same tires as you, and I rub slightly on the Savvy CAs and swayloc arms. It doesn’t bother me enough to limit my turning radius.

I think you will be happy with the KM3s.

Did you get the 9131RH3 4.5" TJ / 4" LJ springs then? That's exactly the situation I want to avoid. I don't need or want more ride height in the front. I had my sketchiest off camber butt pucker scenario yesterday and I'm not looking to get any more top-heavy. Honestly if I could drop to 3" and keep my uptravel (via high lines and new shock mounts) I'd do it. But I'm not that spendy at this point.

I don’t recall exactly, it’s whatever comes with the LJ midarm kit. I think those are the ones yeah.

I feel what you’re saying about the sketchy off camber feeling. I think part of it is getting used to that feeling (as much as that is possible).

IMO, it also depends on whether losing some belly height would be an issue. I scrape enough as is, but I also wheel in significantly different terrain. It’s possible I just suck at picking lines.