Pitman arm angle with wheels straight

freedom_in_4low said:
Here's a couple photos of mine. Note the tie rod to drag link joint is pointing basically straight forward, and the steering stabilizer bolt is pointing a little forward but mostly down.

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In this second photo, note how there are a couple inches between my track bar and stabilizer, so even if my drag link spun back some, they still wouldn't touch.

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Makes me wonder if your track bar is bent. Mine is a Currie/Rockjock.
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Is that the ZJ Steering Conversion? I'm about to do that upgrade. How do you like it and how noticeable a difference over stock components is there?
 
greyghost_lj said:
Is that the ZJ Steering Conversion? I'm about to do that upgrade. How do you like it and how noticeable a difference over stock components is there?
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Yes it is. Haven't bent it yet, so I have no complaints. I didn't bend the stock one either though...I only upgraded because the threads were rusted so bad that I couldn't adjust my toe when I needed to after getting rid of the drop pitman arm it had when i bought it. When you compare the two side by side you'll see how much beefier it is.
 
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mrblaine said:
I would have guessed that the steering wheel being a fair bit off center after the curb impact as being a large clue that something was no longer how it started out.
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obviously. I started this thread as a blank slate and didn't connect it to (or immediately recall) the parking lot shenanigan thread. I have to interact with a user a few more times before my brain starts connecting it to their other posts, so initially my responses will be based on only the information presented in the thread I'm responding to.
 
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freedom_in_4low said:
obviously. I started this thread as a blank slate and didn't connect it to (or immediately recall) the parking lot shenanigan thread. I have to interact with a user a few more times before my brain starts connecting it to their other posts, so initially my responses will be based on only the information presented in the thread I'm responding to.
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I do the same. I rarely pay attention to who is posting, only what is being posted. Only after a trend develops do I start paying attention to the who.
 
greyghost_lj said:
It was completely 180 degrees upside down hahaha. I’m an optimist and everything seemed to drive fine (and look fine to my untrained eye) and I’m in college with a heavy workload, it was good enough to go so I’ve driven it and wheeled it after an alignment for about a month…
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That would have been the first question I asked. What bent or why did my steering wheel rotate off center so much?
 
mrblaine said:
That would have been the first question I asked. What bent or why did my steering wheel rotate off center so much?
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I didn't see a rust spot. I saw mud. The fact that the damaged spot is a little out of focus doesn't help.

Mr. Blaine - you've answered a 2 year old question for me. I was wheeling with some friends. One buddy got a flat when he whacfked a trailside rock. We fixed the flat and finsished our ride. That night in the camp, he mentioned his steering wheel was off center, and he had a warning light (JL) regarding that. I helped him adjust the steering back to center, and the warning light went out. I looked at the steering gear while I was under the Jeep and it looked OK then. Now I expect he has something bent, just like in this thread.
 
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andy29847 said:
View attachment 297739

I didn't see a rust spot. I saw mud. The fact that the damaged spot is a little out of focus doesn't help.

Mr. Blaine - you've answered a 2 year old question for me. I was wheeling with some friends. One buddy got a flat when he whacfked a trailside rock. We fixed the flat and finsished our ride. That night in the camp, he mentioned his steering wheel was off center, and he had a warning light (JL) regarding that. I helped him adjust the steering back to center, and the warning light went out. I looked at the steering gear while I was under the Jeep and it looked OK then. Now I expect he has something bent, just like in this thread.
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Comes with experience to spot that, my untrained eye never even thought the TB could have bent. I’m still learning, but after putting the ZJ Conversion upgrade and my new TB on, I think I’ll have a better understanding the steering components, how they work together, and what could be affected by situations like smacking a curb in the future.
 
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freedom_in_4low said:
I only upgraded because the threads were rusted so bad that I couldn't adjust my toe when I needed to after getting rid of the drop pitman arm it had when i bought it. When you compare the two side by side you'll see how much beefier it is.
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I recently upgraded mine as well and was impressed with how rugged it is. I also find the adjusting sleeve a lot more convenient than the jam nut when you're trying to align it after.
 
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greyghost_lj said:
Thanks Blaine, if you look at my other post about my steering stabilizer contacting my track bar, there’s a video of me being a dumbass on top of a slick parking garage and slamming into a curb on my passenger front wheel.
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Uh huh, do you know my kids? :)
This one I can't say much about, I pulled a similar stunt when I was a kid with my dad's VW. Slammed the rear wheel into a curb and pushed the axle up into the transaxle. My dad was not happy.
 
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Old_Crow said:
Uh huh, do you know my kids? :)
This one I can't say much about, I pulled a similar stunt when I was a kid with my dad's VW. Slammed the rear wheel into a curb and pushed the axle up into the transaxle. My dad was not happy.
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Isn't bending a rim or similar practically a rite of passage soon after you first get your license?
 
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mrblaine said:
Isn't bending a rim or similar practically a rite of passage soon after you first get your license?
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I can't really remember that far back, but based on the 5 boys I raised, yup, pretty much.

I think I told my old man I swerved to miss someone who pulled out in front of me.
 
mrblaine said:
Isn't bending a rim or similar practically a rite of passage soon after you first get your license?
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My daughter is systematically replacing all 4 tires on my explorer one at a time, all on the passenger front. It is amazing how she never seems to know what happened when there is a 2" inch gash in the sidewall from a curb.
 
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I was reaching over to grab something out of the passenger footwell and hopped the curb at 45mph and put a ding in a rim. That's why the photos I post of my 280z have stock front wheels and slotted mags in the rear. 🤣

I ran my passenger front into a curb on an icy hill in my TJ... Last year (at age 37). Didn't bend a rim but I had to turn my drag link sleeve about 1/4 turn to re center my steering 🤣
 
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