soa steering ?'s

[kamikaze4x4nj]

so a buddy of mine has offered to do all of my soa welding for a case of his favorite, i was wondering what the cheapest steering solution would be, its a 1980 j10 dana 44, also would soa affect my driveshafts were iw ould need new ones? it will be soa with stock springs for now, all i wanna fit is 35's till i get some money to go big. thanks, Matt

[kamikaze4x4nj]

oh the reason im asking is because i think i might get the tt fabworks soa and shackle flip kit, what else would i need? just shocks and crossover/highsteer? any pro's or con's on this kit? thanks, Matt

[Casey]

Check out the sticky thread at the top. SOA isn't that cheap to do. Get over that first. Still want to do it?

The Tad perches are awesome.
I had to grind the pig side perch radius a little bit and they were dang near perfect level.
I also have the shackle flip from TT's and it is a great, cheap way to get alot of lift. I did change the angle of the rear pinion when I changed the perches to Cherokee width.

Tad perches make great stocking stuffers. I got these for...MINE!! It's going to weigh about 40lbs! :thumbsup:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v189/rcasey/FSJ/tadperches.jpg

[kamikaze4x4nj]

yup still wanna do it lol, on their site i think (don't hold me to this) taht it said you could use a drop pitman arm emant for a 4-6 lift. whats the cheapest crossover? crossover is with 1 arm and 1 bar infront of the springs and one bar behind right? is there any companies taht sell full kits for this or a high steer?

[Casey]

yup still wanna do it lol, on their site i think (don't hold me to this) taht it said you could use a drop pitman arm emant for a 4-6 lift. whats the cheapest crossover? crossover is with 1 arm and 1 bar infront of the springs and one bar behind right? is there any companies taht sell full kits for this or a high steer?

Ok the whole bar thing has me confused. Read through some more threads and look at some pics of steering with SOA and you should be able to figure it out.

You will need at least one of these. If only one (for crossover) then not the one pictured. You would need the passenger side.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v189/rcasey/knucklecomparesmaller.jpg



Over here in the Carolinas we now have Bull Gear that sells high steer kits.
He is ncjeepers here. http://bullgearinc.com/

Here is where I got my stuff (they're in California)..also in the thread about steering solutions..
http://www.partsmikeparts.com/

[Tad]

... on their site i think (don't hold me to this) taht it said you could use a drop pitman arm emant for a 4-6 lift. whats the cheapest crossover? crossover is with 1 arm and 1 bar infront of the springs and one bar behind right? is there any companies taht sell full kits for this or a high steer?
We do mention that as an option (just using the DPA) simply because folks do it and swear by it (last pic's I saw were in Gen Disc) we do not endorse it and neither myself or RB have ever been able to find a 6" DPA or even a pic of one although some folks have claimed to have used one.

Crossover is cheaper than full high steer, simply because it has less parts.

By bar(s) I assume you mean the tie rod and drag link.
Cross Over = Tie rod below springs, drag link above.
High Steer = Tie rod above springs, drag link above.

I personally have only spoken with two vendors that will put together a full kit (meaning everything), Parts Mike and Bull Gear, but as Casey noted, read through that SOA Steering sticky, search the list of vendors and contact some close to you. Most are machine tool based fabricators (a few are resellers) and I'm sure many of them would be happy to work with you.

[kamikaze4x4nj]

im going to go with crossover, do i need new knuckles? i noticed some talk about it......also would i need a new tie rod and/or draglink, or would the stock ones fit untill i can get some more money for heavy duty one? also does anyone know what size shocks i would need with this kit? im going to be using stock springs, thanks, Matt

[Tad]

Just the flat top passenger side knuckle then, milled and tapped, the 3 studs, cones and nuts, a high steer arm (have them taper the hole for the stock FSJ size TRE, it can be changed later if you go to 1-ton TRE's) and the DPA. You can just leave your existing tie rod in place.
You may need a spacer for the high steer arm, depends on your springs, probably not (I only needed 1/4" spacer for 1-ton TRE's with 2" lift in the front springs). Then you will either have your stock drag link modified to fit over onto the high steer arm, or just have a new one made (with the age of most of our parts the condition of them can vary greatly).
There was some info here about using a WT or Jtruck drag link but I am finding it hard to retrieve.
After that you will have all the other stuff any SOA FSJ deals with.
Brake lines, shocks, possible drive shaft changes, exhaust on some models, relocating/extending the E-Brake cable.

I probably missed something in there, usually do ;)

[kamikaze4x4nj]

can i buy a flat top knuckle from a vendor?

[kamikaze4x4nj]

now i see were this gets pricey, those knuckles are $$$. think i could do it with a dpa and a bent drag link setup? can i buy a prebent draglink?

[j20brett]

DO NOT BEND THE DRAG LINK!! If you are gonna do it, do it right the first time. Just get the flat top pass. knuckle and one high steer arm if you want to go cheap(er).

[Headhoncho]

A bent drag link WILL NOT PASS NJ INSPECTION !!!!!! It should only be intended for off-road use only. If you need ideas on a SOA and crossover steering, come look at my truck for ideas. Unless you have tons of money and a well equipped shop it's best to take your time and ask tons of questions like you're doing before getting over your head. That way you keep down time at a minimum. I'll be happy to help you.
BTW, did you ever get it running any better? A compression check might be a good idea.

JR

[Tad]

can i buy a flat top knuckle from a vendor?
Toss up a post in the wanted section once you are ready, one will poop up quick enough.
Unfortunatly all I have here is a GM drivesr side knuckle right now

[kamikaze4x4nj]

i will post the wanted thing up. on another note, it will not need a nj inspection (i can get stickers :D ) but will be street driven, also, headhoncho, would you be willing to lend a hand with the whole installing a new knuckle after i get the lift done? its running better now, today i used some spray sea foam, but it didn't smoke like everyone said, so im going to try the bottle kind, i also gave it an oil change and new ail filter, i need to redo all the vacuum lines and put on a new y pipe, i found a flowmaster one for 80 bucks, i just gotta buy it and put it on, then take off the cat and run a straight pipe to a new muffler, i think after doing this it will run alot better.

[Headhoncho]

I'll help you out as much as I can with your lift. I'm sure the oil change alone helped and I've never heard of seafoam but I guess it my work a bit. I would still do a compression check on all cylinders. That alone will tell you lots. The cat is newer so I wouldn't get rid of that just yet. One less thing to worry about if the authorities happen to stop you......You can get free flowing ones from summit racing.

JR

[kamikaze4x4nj]

can i do the compression check in my driveway? or should i take it to a shop? if the compression is low what can i do about it? i should be fine with the lift, its doing the knuckle on the highsteer that i will need help on. btw my dad is gonna buy a jeep now, hopefully a fullsize, he is even selling his el camino so he can get one :eek: i never thought i would see the day

[Headhoncho]

You can check it in your driveway. All you need is a compression tester. They screw into or you hold it over the sparkplug hole as someone cranks the engine (with the coilwire disconnected so it doesn't start).
Let me know when you need help with the steering.
I figured your dad might come to the dark side eventually.:confused: If his El camino is reliable he may want to rethink his decision to sell. :p

[kamikaze4x4nj]

his el camino is very reliable, he is asking 2500 firm and its worth it, i think with the money he makes he should be able to get a good rig weather built or not, he just wants something to restore and hit the trails every now and then, he is sooo close to being on the dark side :D im going to see if i can borrow a compression checker from autozone, what can i do to fix it if the compression is low?

[Headhoncho]

If compression is low than usually the rings are bad. If not them it could be a worn cam or valves. Sometimes it's easier to swap out the whole motor if all you're looking for is something that runs better. 360's pop up for sale often and they're cheap cause no one want's them or know's much about them. Best thing to remember in this hobby is to be patient....it will save you alot of time and money in the long run.

JR

[Tad]

...Best thing to remember in this hobby is to be patient....it will save you alot of time and money in the long run.

JR
Please, yes, read that last line.
Now mine was a bit more complicated being a older post mount rig but I collected parts for 3 years. It took me 31, 6 hour days to do it correct.
It was a lot more involved than your standard hanger mount SOA/Rear Flip.
A lot was to make it work, a lot was to prove a point.
I do not regret a minute of the wait.

[skydizzle]

so a buddy of mine has offered to do all of my soa welding for a case of his favorite

haha just make sure hes doesant have too many of his favorite while hes welding.:D but seriously keep us posted. :fsj: