Long arm vs adjustable short arm worth the $$$?
- Thread starter 04TJustin
- Start date
What's your ultimate end goal with the Wrangler? Full time off road or just occasional off road?
Also, stay away from rough country. Anyone who has been in the game long enough will tell that their stuff is completely garbage (which it is).
Also, stay away from rough country. Anyone who has been in the game long enough will tell that their stuff is completely garbage (which it is).
A short arm is more than sufficient in that case. Personally I wouldn't bother with a long arm unless it's a a dedicated off road rig.
OP
- Joined
- Nov 27, 2015
- Messages
- 7
It's already got everything I want besides possibly a long arm kit, intake and exhaust. it's already got ARB lockers front and rear, SYE , 1/4" thick skids from the front of the pan to the end of the t-case Dana 44 rear, 4.56 gears and reinforced roll cage. It's a crawler and does fine on the roads but sometimes I get a bad wobble at around 45mph that goes away after 50mph. I heard long arm kits make for a better on and off road drive. But is it a noticeable$1000 difference?
Sent from my HTC6535LVW using Tapatalk
Sent from my HTC6535LVW using Tapatalk
It's ultimately up to you. You I'll get more flex out of it and off road capability for sure, but it will cost more.
If by "crawler" you mean rock crawler, I would think a long arm kit is the last thing that you want.
With a long arm your tire will flex more and will actually help keep you from tipping over in alot of cases as the shock puts downward and allows the tire to hit the ground whereas a short arm won't allow the flex. Example is take 2 rigs the same one has long arm and one has short arms. Take the long arm up a rti ramp first and see where the tipping point is. Now take short arm up until tipping point. You will not beas high as the long arm. If you go as high as the long arm you will be on your side.
A long arm kit will allow more flex and off-road capability, no doubt about that. So, you just have to decide how much off-roading you want to be able to do, and what your ultimate goal is for your rig.
PStov98TJ
TJ Enthusiast
This is a rumor commonly thrown around as fact. Saying LA allows for more "flex" than SA shows a deficit in the fundamentals of suspension geometry.
This also is flawed logic. You have to understand how a suspension works then you will realize how incorrect this sounds.
The goal of a suspension should be keeping the arms as flat as possible while keeping the anti squat, roll center, and instant center in check and within acceptable ranges. Here is a good thread to get you started.
http://www.wranglerforum.com/f210/long-arm-kits-228510.html
http://www.jeepforum.com/forum/f369/suspension-geometry-1423857/
Having run a short arm suspension for years on my previous (stolen) TJ, mostly wheeling on the rocks, my current Currie short arm suspension outdoes it in alll important areas. The only thing my previous long arm suspension was much better at was getting hung up on the trail obstacles more easily. The one time my TJ made 4WD & Sport Utility magazine was when it was hung up on a trail, jammed up on a lower front long arm.
The two pics just below the mid-point of the page show my previous TJ and one of its long-arms hung up on a rock.
The two pics just below the mid-point of the page show my previous TJ and one of its long-arms hung up on a rock.
Last edited:
I could certainly see how a long arm system would be much, much easier to get hung up on trails.
PStov98TJ
TJ Enthusiast
^^ do you have responses to certain questions saved, so you can just paste them in?
I do keep threads bookmarked for personal reference as well as sharing knowledge
also, I had to read it to figure it all out, so I figured y'all could read it too
Very good article Jerry! I think that photo of your TJ hung up on the rocks clearly displays one of the disadvantages to a long arm kit. This is one of the reasons I've decided to stay with short arms.
I do keep threads bookmarked for personal reference as well as sharing knowledge
You seem pretty well educated on the short arm versus long arm thing. You should write a sticky in the FAQ forum... I'm sure at some point we'll need it!