Rock Krawler Suspension coming Triangulated 4 link

[0ne]

good stuff y’all

Sponsored

 

[Dusty]

I'll be the guinea pig! I've known Jeremy from RockKrawler for years and I trust that they've put the necessary homework into this. Due to err...obvious reasons...I can't run their complete kit but I've already reached out about getting just the uppers and the axle truss. I already get decent raw travel out of the rear but the articulation is what could use improvement. If this gets me more of that with minimal side-effects, I'll be happy. And I would wager that just doing the uppers would be a great low-cost solution for gaining better articulation regardless of whose shocks and other components you're running, or even stock.

@Snacktime I hear your concerns and you have the experience that makes them valid. My own approach is that I have the ability to fix/beef-up/replace the frame pivots at any point in the future if you're proven right and the need arises. I had to do it on my old JK Rubicon a couple of times. My curiosity and my desire for better articulation are greater than my fear of possible future repairs. But I know most want the Ronco Rotisserie of Bronco mods (Set It and Forget It™) LOL. So I think I'll stick it under there and see how it does, and let you know

 

[Hemisfear]

Was the failure because of the lift though really or was it because somebody put a lift on then off roaded it like it was a full on Baja truck ie abused the holy hell out of it I mean I don’t know just a thought

Nope, simply lifting with spacers or collars leads to steering geometry issues and reduced down travel. Using your Bronco to its suspension limits will lead to breakage, it was quite clear at this year's Bronco Safari that these lift solutions fail quickly!

 

[Razorback]

Nope, simply lifting with spacers or collars leads to steering geometry issues and reduced down travel. Using your Bronco to its suspension limits will lead to breakage, it was quite clear at this year's Bronco Safari that these lift solutions fail quickly!

Before any lift, the installers should require links and racks be addressed first. Doubtful they would do so, but would be nice if looked out for people unaware of the issues. Quinn requires upgraded tie rods, but it's because the boot has to mate with the rack.

 

[Cux211]

Nope, simply lifting with spacers or collars leads to steering geometry issues and reduced down travel. Using your Bronco to its suspension limits will lead to breakage, it was quite clear at this year's Bronco Safari that these lift solutions fail quickly!

Absolutely agree I didn’t know you were talking about shitty spacers and cheap hack ways of doing it to me a lift is a full on suspension replacement I’ve had this argument for years in the hd diesel world dumb asses doing coil spacers and what not and not changing track bars or control arms then bitching that the truck rides like crap well don’t blame the truck because they were an idiot lol

 

[Snacktime]

@Snacktime I've been considering accumulating parts to move my gas tank behind the rear axle (the body lift gives me the room). Besides cutting down on dragging this over everything i was hoping to build a triangulated rear. I don't believe you'd ever get good geometry with the fuel tank not being relocated. not on the 2dr at least.

Several of us have talked about moving to a rear fuel cell to clear up ground clearance. The benefit of clearance, weight distribution and potential future modifications make this a very tempting modification.

I'll be the guinea pig! I've known Jeremy from RockKrawler for years and I trust that they've put the necessary homework into this. Due to err...obvious reasons...I can't run their complete kit but I've already reached out about getting just the uppers and the axle truss. I already get decent raw travel out of the rear but the articulation is what could use improvement. If this gets me more of that with minimal side-effects, I'll be happy. And I would wager that just doing the uppers would be a great low-cost solution for gaining better articulation regardless of whose shocks and other components you're running, or even stock.

@Snacktime I hear your concerns and you have the experience that makes them valid. My own approach is that I have the ability to fix/beef-up/replace the frame pivots at any point in the future if you're proven right and the need arises. I had to do it on my old JK Rubicon a couple of times. My curiosity and my desire for better articulation are greater than my fear of possible future repairs. But I know most want the Ronco Rotisserie of Bronco mods (Set It and Forget It™) LOL. So I think I'll stick it under there and see how it does, and let you know

I trust you to give it an honest opinion and post all the small draw backs. I just wanted to make sure it was clear on what kind of issues you can get into with this level of modification.

 

[MileHighWT]

If you analyze the geometry, I don't think the lateral forces are what you think they are. The load is still primarily in line with the brackets. Certainly not a roll of the dice... Off road builders have been doing triangulated rear links for decades.

No offense, but hard disagree here.

A side impact load, like, say.... dropping a rear corner off of a rock into a rut, can easily put the full weight of the vehicle into the rear axle, laterally. The factory track bar handles this load in-line, between mounts designed to handle load in that direction.

No track bar means side loads are reacted through the parallel link mounts, a couple feet away (IE there's a big lever arm) and to mounts not designed for torsion.

Sorry if this comes across as harsh but from an engineering standpoint I really don't like these setups very much.

 

[Pressurized]

No offense, but hard disagree here.

A side impact load, like, say.... dropping a rear corner off of a rock into a rut, can easily put the full weight of the vehicle into the rear axle, laterally. The factory track bar handles this load in-line, between mounts designed to handle load in that direction.

No track bar means side loads are reacted through the parallel link mounts, a couple feet away (IE there's a big lever arm) and to mounts not designed for torsion.

Sorry if this comes across as harsh but from an engineering standpoint I really don't like these setups very much.

It’s A-ok to disagree. I work with a few of the geometry software tools and I can assure you that the lateral load on the axle doesn’t correlate to large side loads on the brackets. The forces are still primarily linear (push/pull), but there are some angular forces that exist. And they exist even if a track bar is in the system, just lessened by the track bar.

 

[Valhalla]

Where are the real world off-road tests!!!! I want to see that flex! and see if it holds up!! I digress though.. I hate where the fuel tank... (turtle trap??) is.

 

[BAUS67]

Several of us have talked about moving to a rear fuel cell to clear up ground clearance. The benefit of clearance, weight distribution and potential future modifications make this a very tempting modification.



I trust you to give it an honest opinion and post all the small draw backs. I just wanted to make sure it was clear on what kind of issues you can get into with this level of modification.

With you on the tank relocation. I have given it some thought also, the small tank on my 2DR had me thinking of doing it first. It is the only way I can see to get a proper triangulated setup in there. Believe me I have wanted one from the start.

I can say this about RK. I was about to long arm my TJ before I bought the Bronc and after some very long nights surfing the jeep forums I came to the conclusion that there are generally 2 long arm kits that are regarded as the "best bang for the buck". Clayton and Rock Krawler. Clayton uses a radius arm setup in the front where RK use a 3 link front and triangulated 4 link rear. So they do have a good rep in the Jeep world. But I'm also with you on the "this is a Ford". The links on a 2DR Jeep are now where near as "bent" as they are on the Bronc. In closing I would say I trust RK for build good stuff I would like them to show some real world comparisons/ explain why it is better/show some testing, not just that it is the next greatest thing.

 

[userdude]

As far as a rear battery to make space, saw a chopped Jeep truck at Northwest OHV on New Years that had a rear battery cell to make space for a five link on a tow in (think a little red Jeep like BigMeatsBronco with Tonka decals, I should've gotten a pic but I left my phone in my Bronco). He was trying to explain to me what he was doing with the five link but I don't follow, that's above my comprehension at this point. But that little truck was awesome!

 

[Pressurized]

There is more content now out there on this system, but still not a bunch...



On 40's

 

[AttackGuy64]

With you on the tank relocation. I have given it some thought also, the small tank on my 2DR had me thinking of doing it first. It is the only way I can see to get a proper triangulated setup in there. Believe me I have wanted one from the start.

I can say this about RK. I was about to long arm my TJ before I bought the Bronc and after some very long nights surfing the jeep forums I came to the conclusion that there are generally 2 long arm kits that are regarded as the "best bang for the buck". Clayton and Rock Krawler. Clayton uses a radius arm setup in the front where RK use a 3 link front and triangulated 4 link rear. So they do have a good rep in the Jeep world. But I'm also with you on the "this is a Ford". The links on a 2DR Jeep are now where near as "bent" as they are on the Bronc. In closing I would say I trust RK for build good stuff I would like them to show some real world comparisons/ explain why it is better/show some testing, not just that it is the next greatest thing.

I am with you on the kinked upper links. That is what scared me away from the kit entirely. It looks like a failure point. Ford designed the front upper mounts to work in conjunction with a track bar. They share the lateral load on the rear end between them. If you remove the track bar, will the frame side mounts hold all that load? I would feel way better if those mounts got beefed up. Time will tell if all the nay-sayers are correct. Believe me, I want a triangulated 4-link as bad as anyone else, just don't want to rip my upper mounts off the frame on the first trail I hit.

Edit - I just watched the video from Exodus and like the bracing on the rear end. This looks like it could alleviate some issues people are having with their plug welds breaking and axle tubes coming loose. Any reinforcement of the Dana 44 is a good thing. Still concerned about those frame side mounts, but the rear end looks solid AF. Also, looks like he had to chop the exhaust before the rear end for an axle dump style. I like this as well because I want to install a compressor and tank where the stock muffler is located. This link setup could kill a lot of birds with one stone.

 

[Razorback]

I am with you on the kinked upper links. That is what scared me away from the kit entirely. It looks like a failure point. Ford designed the front upper mounts to work in conjunction with a track bar. They share the lateral load on the rear end between them. If you remove the track bar, will the frame side mounts hold all that load? I would feel way better if those mounts got beefed up. Time will tell if all the nay-sayers are correct. Believe me, I want a triangulated 4-link as bad as anyone else, just don't want to rip my upper mounts off the frame on the first trail I hit.

Edit - I just watched the video from Exodus and like the bracing on the rear end. This looks like it could alleviate some issues people are having with their plug welds breaking and axle tubes coming loose. Any reinforcement of the Dana 44 is a good thing. Still concerned about those frame side mounts, but the rear end looks solid AF. Also, looks like he had to chop the exhaust before the rear end for an axle dump style. I like this as well because I want to install a compressor and tank where the stock muffler is located. This link setup could kill a lot of birds with one stone.

Quinn is installing on his Bronco as well. So you'll have Bubba and Quinn digging in. Bubba has said it's night and day on-road and off-road. Those are 2 guys I certainly trust for honest opinions. Would be nice however to have at least 10 rigs banging it to get a good set of data points.

 

[Pressurized]

For what it's worth, those front upper mounts are the beefiest in the entire system. They are welded to the frame rail and also to the cross beam above them. You could probably add a gusset to the mount going up to the cross beam if you felt you needed more.

Sponsored