What is the deal with Metalcloak?

Igoo65

Igoo65

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I was just curious, but I saw that someone had made a post about Metalcloak not being a desirable manufacturer. I was wondering what brought people to that conclusion? I looked at their products and they seem to be made well. Am I missing something?

Thanks,
Igoo65
 
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The issue that many have with Metalcloak is due to their deceptive marketing practices (i.e. the way they advertise their Duroflex joints, and their "lock and load" long arm lift).

Many, many people here run Metalcloak products and have no issues with them at all.

I personally have never run any of their parts on either of my TJs, so I really don't have any room to give any opinion on the matter.
 
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I did just install a MC lift on a friends TJ. Went together well. I don’t think the threads on the arms were as smooth and tight as my Savvy control arms. But still way better than the RE arms.
 
Sorry about the question s. I am just trying to understand what is going on. What are they being deceptive about on the duo flex joint? I went and watched the video. Are they leaving out parts to make theirs flex more or is it something else?
 
I'd ask Blaine what they are being deceptive about since he knows more about the specifics, but I don't think he wants to get involved in it, and I don't blame him. I had a conversation with him about this once, I just can't remember all the details. It had to do with the shaker table they are using in the video to demonstrate the joints. @toximus and @jjvw may or may not know the details also, so I'll tag them.

The other person who could probably explain it would be Gerald at Savvy, but I suspect he doesn't want to get into it either.
 
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@Chris I cant say that I blame any of them.

At the end of the day, if it comes down to Savvy/Currie vs MC, most folks here are going to go with the former.

"You can get a good look at a T bone by sticking your head up a cow's ass. But wouldn't you rather take the butcher's word for it?" Loved that movie.
 
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MaloStapalo said:
@Chris I cant say that I blame any of them.

At the end of the day, if it comes down to Savvy/Currie vs MC, most folks here are going to go with the former.

"You can get a good look at a T bone by sticking your head up a cow's ass. But wouldn't you rather take the butcher's word for it?" Loved that movie.
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That is indeed a great movie.

I think what it comes down to for me is that I can buy a Metalcloak lift for the same price as a Savvy / Currie lift.

At that point it's going to come down to the research I do on both. Having done the research, I like that the Savvy / Currie lifts aren't trying to lure you in with fancy marketing that the majority of us can't understand. They're just built on a platform that works and has been proven time-and-time again.

Of course the flip side to this is that many members here have Metalcloak lifts and have no complaints with them. That being the case, if it works for them, that's all that matters.

As previously stated, I've never tried any Metalcloak products, so I can't give any real world opinion or feedback on their parts.
 
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Its mostly marketing. Their claims on fender/tire clearance are greatly over exaggerated.

I have their arms and track bars and they have held up great in the 5 years and 40-45k miles. Their front trackbar uses a heim joint and is positioned in such a way that captures dirt/debris easily and can wear out the joint prematurely.

I also think many are still trying to figure out why a control arm bushing needs to have kevlar....
 
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Chris said:
I'd ask Blaine what they are being deceptive about since he knows more about the specifics, but I don't think he wants to get involved in it, and I don't blame him. I had a conversation with him about this once, I just can't remember all the details. It had to do with the shaker table they are using in the video to demonstrate the joints. @toximus and @jjvw may or may not know the details also, so I'll tag them.

The other person who could probably explain it would be Gerald at Savvy, but I suspect he doesn't want to get into it either.
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You didn't ask me directly, but since I know about the specific subject in question:

The issue with the table video is very simple; it's an unreliable test-bed, as shown, and for two reasons. The first reason is the mechanism itself: small differences in the length of the stroke can make large differences in the amount of energy that gets transmitted, and there's very little way to tell whether or not that stroke has been changed - or changes of its own accord - from test to test and from sample to sample. The second reason is that it's an in-house demonstration/test, and therefore both inherently biased and beyond scrutiny; there is no way to verify any of the data generated, because no third party can stand alone and corroborate or contradict the data.

In other words: it's not actually data that they're generating, but rather, marketing material.
 
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While I know nothing whatsoever about control arm bushing design, I feel like “Kevlar” is another one of those catchy marketing terms (such as military grade) used to sell products.

I may very well be wrong though.
 
Sundowner said:
You didn't ask me directly, but since I know about the specific subject in question:

The issue with the table video is very simple; it's an unreliable test-bed, as shown, and for two reasons. The first reason is the mechanism itself: small differences in the length of the stroke can make large differences in the amount of energy that gets transmitted, and there's very little way to tell whether or not that stroke has been changed - or changes of its own accord - from test to test and from sample to sample. The second reason is that it's an in-house demonstration/test, and therefore both inherently biased and beyond scrutiny; there is no way to verify any of the data generated, because no third party can stand alone and corroborate or contradict the data.

In other words: it's not actually data that they're generating, but rather, marketing material.
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There you to! I knew someone could explain it, I just didn’t want to ask Blaine.
 
It seems as though they are also blowing NVH out of proportion entirely to justify selling their product. I have all but two Savvy arms and I honestly couldn't tell you a difference in NVH from the factory/ pro comp arms they replaced. I the design of the currie ends and the aluminum that savvy puts between them. They don't need to have the hex to adjust them as MC would have you believe either.

Personally I feel like MC puts out a lot of marketing wank and not a ton of substance.
 
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Chris said:
There you to! I knew someone could explain it, I just didn’t want to ask Blaine.
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It's very simple: just say "I really don't understand this; would you please explain it to me?" and you'll get a factual, concise and accurate explanation of the problems, without any of the personal objections. It's easy to be objective when one is asked to be so.
 
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Igoo65 said:
Thanks everyone for the comments. I'm just trying to educate myself!
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Sound decision, no matter the subject...and make no mistake: I despise MetalCloak. I hate them more than I hate monkeys, mayonnaise, LED light bars, Factor 55 and badly-cut miniskirts...and we all know how much I hate those things because I run my goddamned mouth about them incessantly. There is, however, an objective rationale behind the superficial madness; so, when asked to be objective I try to accommodate as best possile. Most people do the same, and most do so much better than I...so don't be afraid to ask questions, and practice sorting the good information from the bad. Continue educating yourself by any means possible, and you will have a better rig for it.
 
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