Is a Savvy mid-arm kit (3-link front and 4-link rear) safe for the road?

It does. The same reason it increases body roll is the same reason the suspension is more compliant. Less bind in the arms and track bar. This is an argument for the 3 link rear. Otherwise, all you can do is tune out the added roll with shocks and sway bars.

This isn't specifically because of the mid arm configuration. It is a phenomena of a 3 link or 4 link.
This. And this is where actual high end shocks that are able to be tuned come into play. Bolt ons are going to compliment the suspension mods as well as something you can tune.
 
That is interesting because Blaine is not at all a fan of the 5100 on a TJ. Too much small event harshness. I don't know what he prefers for an off the shelf shock though.
 
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Ahh ok so he's talking about a front 3 link setup (also what I have.) the general complaint with that on a DD is that the axle could twist and affect the alignment on the side without a control arm. That's never been an issue for me(that I've noticed), but then again I run a prorock so maby that's why, I don't buy it though. The other reason is the lack of redundancy, if an upper control arm or bracket fails in the stock parallel 4 link setup its no big deal. If it fails on a 3 link it's going to rotate, hard. Now this I buy into, I had a weld fail on my truss during a test drive after the build. The axle rotated up twisting the 1/2 plate truss and jamming the pinion into the bottom of the control arm.

I was lucky, I didn't yet have a front shaft so I didn't damage that. I hadn't changed the round flange out for a yoke so it just ground against the arm as opposed to stopping and shattering. I was already hard on the brakes (bedding in new pads) and only doing about 20- 30 kph when it happened. My damage was only the truss and a divot in the upper control arm.

Replaced the truss and filled in the arm with weld. Good to go, however it could have been worse so that's the only thing that makes me think twice about a 3 link on a dd.


There must have been a time
when we could have said no.

I just finished my midarm in front, tell me more about the failure so i can understand what to watch for? I did the welding myself (yikes).
 
I daily drive the sh** out of my savvy mid arm. I daily it 6 days a week. Never had an issue. I do emergency stops on my big brake kit every once in a while just to make sure they stay broken in, with no pulling or suspension wierdness to mention. Then again, @mrblaine did all the welds, and they all look like dimes. I don't worry about it. If the truss and upper link can withstand slamming down rock shelves nose down at a 70 degree angle mashing the brake and chirping tires then aggressive driving won't bother it.
 
Mine with my ugly welds has survived 3 years and about 20k miles with no signs of trouble.
 
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Mine with my ugly welds has survived 3 years and about 20k miles with no signs of trouble.
Ah good, ya I don't have a dime in my whole bunch of welds 😬
 
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Anyone that says that my welds look like dime anything is highly confused over what constitutes a good weld in either function or appearance.

well they certainly aren't wads of bubble gum...
cn0h2A.jpg
 
well they certainly aren't wads of bubble gum...View attachment 123995
That horizontal weld is a shit way of accomplishing something as an amateur that a pro can do in his sleep. That is a trigger weld to stop the puddle from flowing down to the lower side of the joint. It should never be done, it is what amateurs who can't stay in practice do to make something look a tiny bit better to cover their lack of skill. It is nothing more than a well placed series of tack welds.
 
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That horizontal weld is a shit way of accomplishing something as an amateur that a pro can do in his sleep. That is a trigger weld to stop the puddle from flowing down to the lower side of the joint. It should never be done, it is what amateurs who can't stay in practice do to make something look a tiny bit better to cover their lack of skill. It is nothing more than a well placed series of tack welds.
It takes years to master horizontal butt with solid wire, and many “pro” welders still fail that when field tested. If that particular weld was structural I would have used flux-core on that specific spot. But given it doesn’t look like it bears much force and rather just acts as a tie in, trigger welding or spray is just fine.
 
It takes years to master horizontal butt with solid wire, and many “pro” welders still fail that when field tested. If that particular weld was structural I would have used flux-core on that specific spot. But given it doesn’t look like it bears much force and rather just acts as a tie in, trigger welding or spray is just fine.
It is structural in that the mount would fail if it weren't there. I've welded 100's the same way and they don't fail either at the weld or the HAZ. Too much surface area at the interface. I don't use the same settings to make that weld as the rest. It is a higher voltage slower wire speed to get it hotter.
 
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It takes years to master horizontal butt with solid wire, and many “pro” welders still fail that when field tested. If that particular weld was structural I would have used flux-core on that specific spot. But given it doesn’t look like it bears much force and rather just acts as a tie in, trigger welding or spray is just fine.

If he has to do a series of tacks why do you think spray would work for him?
 
Sooo...I'm about to take the plunge and order the Savvy mid-arm full kit, 1" body lift, transfer shift linkage , Bils 5100 shocks (fox 2.0 maybe later), and figuring out the exhaust mod...

I'm not going to HARDCORE it every weekend, I'm just one who like to get it right the first time and have best option...and in this case I understand that savvy would be the best overall upgrade in terms of trail and road/speed performance.

The BIG question I have is - is the extra $1k worth the performance vs. a terra or RE long arm?
 
The BIG question I have is - is the extra $1k worth the performance vs. a terra or RE long arm?

The RE long arm and TerraFlex long arm aren't even in the same category as the Savvy mid-arm, literally.

The Savvy mid-arm is the best-of-the-best. The TerraFlex and RE long arms are basically garbage if you're comparing them to the Savvy mid-arm.
 
- is the extra $1k worth the performance vs. a terra or RE long arm?
Yes, definitely. I installed the RE LA onto my previous TJ and it was was pure crap. It's impossible for a bolt-on long-arm suspension to have the correct geometry. If I win the lottery I'm having Blaine install the Savvy midarm which is widely regarded as a masterful design. It does need an installer who knows what he's doing though.
 
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Sooo...I'm about to take the plunge and order the Savvy mid-arm full kit, 1" body lift, transfer shift linkage , Bils 5100 shocks (fox 2.0 maybe later), and figuring out the exhaust mod...

I'm not going to HARDCORE it every weekend, I'm just one who like to get it right the first time and have best option...and in this case I understand that savvy would be the best overall upgrade in terms of trail and road/speed performance.

The BIG question I have is - is the extra $1k worth the performance vs. a terra or RE long arm?
1" body lift should be a bit more.