i have a 03 wrangler, i have a 4 inch lift with stock track bar and stock pitman arm and steering. I wanna upgrade track bar, What are good brands? do i need a drop bracket and a drop pitman arm? What do i need to do it right?
Looking for track bar recommendations
- Thread starter Mike03tj
- Start date
"i have a 4 inch lift with stock track bar and stock pitman arm and steering" 
Others can chime in but this is my understanding: With that much lift you definitely need a adjustable track bar front and rear, some combine that with a relocation bracket in the rear. JKS is the recommended brand if you want to be economical, Currie/RockJock is the best brand for serious wheelers and the least likely to give clearance issues like your track bar hitting something else such as diff cover or gas tank. Do not cheap out and buy rough country or something you can run into clearance issues fast.
You should be fine to use the stock drag link and tie rod and pitman arm. I've never seen anyone recommend a dropped pitman arm for 3-4 inch lift unless you have a dropped track bar mount in the front as well which is not needed. If you would like you can get a ZJ style upgrade to the tie rod and drag link. The ZJ cherokee tie rod is beefier and a thicker diameter than the stock one, less likely to bend. There's also a currie rock jock kit for steering.
I hope that helps
https://www.morris4x4center.com/hea...eM4VtcDyYoWvTGSmoHooD0kw_c0KyVM0aAhXiEALw_wcB
Others can chime in but this is my understanding: With that much lift you definitely need a adjustable track bar front and rear, some combine that with a relocation bracket in the rear. JKS is the recommended brand if you want to be economical, Currie/RockJock is the best brand for serious wheelers and the least likely to give clearance issues like your track bar hitting something else such as diff cover or gas tank. Do not cheap out and buy rough country or something you can run into clearance issues fast.
You should be fine to use the stock drag link and tie rod and pitman arm. I've never seen anyone recommend a dropped pitman arm for 3-4 inch lift unless you have a dropped track bar mount in the front as well which is not needed. If you would like you can get a ZJ style upgrade to the tie rod and drag link. The ZJ cherokee tie rod is beefier and a thicker diameter than the stock one, less likely to bend. There's also a currie rock jock kit for steering.
I hope that helps
https://www.morris4x4center.com/hea...eM4VtcDyYoWvTGSmoHooD0kw_c0KyVM0aAhXiEALw_wcB
Thank you, so for the front track bar i would just need a adj. track bar with no drop bracket or get an adj with bracket?
For the front just get the adjustable track bar, don't get a bracket or try to drill out a new hole in the factory bracket. In the rear you can do adjustable by itself or with a bracket combined as it won't effect anything else.
Any decent front track bar will require drilling the mounts.
I should have clarified that I meant to say he shouldn't drill a second hole to push the track bar over. Widening the preexisting hole yes for a Currie atleast.
Rough Country now sells an adjustable track bar for $129.00 that uses an ES3096L at the frame ( the same joint used at the pitman arm ) and has a stock size clevite bushing at the axle, giving you the option to run the stock or some other bushings as well- no drilling is required and both ends are replaceable with Moog or similar over the counter ends. Don’t expect the ends or bushings they supply to be top notch.
I’m not about to put it in the same league as the top brands, but it seems to be a step in the right direction for them.
I’m not about to put it in the same league as the top brands, but it seems to be a step in the right direction for them.
Then your axle has shifted pretty bad to one side. Buy whatever track bar you like or drill another hole.
I was under the impression that would only work with mild lifts but I guess I'm wrong?
To put it simply with a 4 inch lift and stock track bar you should be able to eyeball it, the track bar should be closer to being parallel with the other components, not going diagonally really bad. Even just going from stock to a 1.25 inch lift I could see how my track bar had tilted upwards and away from the diff (stock track bar).
Yes, get an adjustable and follow the directions for the brand that you end up getting. You may be asked to drill a new hole or drill out the existing hole depending on what brand you go with. I had to do some research but apparently the drilling of the second hole is for stock track bars or aftermarket bars with lift that don't have enough bend to not make contact with the bracket so it has to be pushed over. I personally would avoid drilling a second hole but that is just me. I am always open to learning different methods though and I'm not putting anyone else down.
A lot of the members here have been 4 wheeling for longer than I've been alive, I would suggest you read their posts dive into more research before pulling the trigger on anything. This has been informative for me as well as my LJR has 2.5 inches lift no adjustables and a relocation bracket in the rear. It drives great and looks great but I am wanting to get some currie or JKS because I'm ocd/anal.
In this thread a member attempts to use a stock track bar with a 3 inch lift and not pushing it over to a new hole. This resulted in contact with the bracket.
https://wranglertjforum.com/threads...off-road-3-lift-is-it-really-necessary.26827/
So rockkrawler has a track bar with a bracket and requires a pitman arm drop, so even with best in the business they require all if it?
All that tells us is that RK isn't among the best in the business.