gatorhwk

I just installed a CavFab 1 ton steering kit (tie rod and drag link). I simply replaced the stock parts with CavFab. After removing the stock parts I centered the TRE threads in their socket, measured the span and transferred the dimension to the new parts. I was able to center the steering wheel that ended up slightly off center after the install. The steering is night and day between the stock and CavFab kit, but ... I'm now experiencing death wobble when I hit a train track just down the road from me. It freaked me out since it's never happened before this install. I'm guessing it's a geometry issue, but didn't expect to have any issues. I haven't had it aligned yet, but again ... wouldn't expect minimal adjustments to cause this.

Any help would be appreciated ... Chris

resharp001

DW causes are loose bolts and bad joints. Geometry issues often lead to bumpsteer which can then trigger a wobble, but are not the real underlying issue of a wobble. This also isn't really an alignment issue. The most common issues are a loose TB bolt, typically frame side, and bad ball joints. Make sure all your bolts are torqued to spec since you just replaced that DL and TR. Make sure your TB bolts are 125 ft lbs. A quick BJ test is to jack up so a tire is a few inches off the ground. Put a shovel or something under the tire and step on the handle using it as leverage to create direct upward pressure. You should not see much movement at all between the C and knuckle where the upper BJ resides. If you hear any clunk or see any up/down movement then it's a bad BJ. There is clear difference between that knuckle jumping up/down and it flexing a bit due to the pressure. If that stuff is all ok, take a look at the TB frame side joint. Have someone sit in the jeep and turn the steering wheel back and forth without the jeep running. It's enough pressure to see slop in the frame side joint.......and you shouldn't see much movement there either. If you do it's toast. These are the most common culpirts and also the easiest things to check.

gatorhwk

Thanks resharp001, but there was absolutely zero death wobble before I installed this steering kit ... I've never dealt with it before. I torqued all tie ends to 65 ft lbs and the track bar axle bolt to 125 ft lbs (since I removed the TF Falcon stabilizer to see if I really need it after this install). I drive 80mph (well, not at the moment) on the interstate with no hesitation and the ride is actually pretty good. The steering was poor though, which is why I installed the steering kit. I just ran across a death wobble 101 video on youtube that explained toe in/out could cause enough vibration leading to death wobble. I'm getting it aligned tomorrow and I'll post the findings.

Thanks again ... Chris

resharp001

If you previoulsy had falcon SS on it then it was probably masking things. That doesn't mean the solution is to slap it back on cuz the only solution is to really fix the underlying issue. Again....same with your toe comment above....something triggering a wobble is not the same as what is the root cause of the wobble. Check those ball joints.

gatorhwk

Just had the dealership check alignment and double check TB and DL torque, but I felt a slight bit of DW on the way home when I hit some rough pavement/bump combo. Dealership said I had to put the stabilizer back on since all lifted jeeps deal with DW without one. (That's a first for me.) Can't put the Falcon back on until I grab a new 1.5" mount (vs the 1 3/8" mount I have from the stock TB). It seems all Teraflex orders are being pushed out quite a bit and no one seems to have one in stock, I'm wondering if I can get a local shop to ream out 1/8" from the current mount. Oh, and I'll check the ball joints ASAP.

resharp001

Dealerships don't know shit when it comes to this stuff, but you can listen to them if you want to. It has absolutely zero to do with the SS, and there are people all over the world driving heavily modified rigs with no SS at all. I'll go to my grave telling you that a SS is only going to cover up the underlying issue. Fix the issue, THEN put SS back on.....and even then, the cheapest one is fine.

gatorhwk

That's what I figured. Again, appreciated!

Sv_dude

I’ll second resharp, I ran 35’s then 37’s on a lifted jku with a bunch of work done to it with no stabilizer for a while. I’m fact, I preferred it without a stabilizer because I didn’t have the feel of a shock trying to push the wheels to one side.

Resharp is right, if all the suspension links, ball joints, and unit bearings are good then you won’t have dw.

I don’t recall from your previous posts but do you have a factory track bar and control arms? What about your ball joints and unit bearings? Are they factory as well, how many miles on them? You likely have some worn components that’s triggering lateral play in your axle that the track bar can’t stop.

If you want another shop to look at it then find a highly rated off road shop that specializes in Jeeps look at it. A dealer will tell you what Jeep tells their techs for a factory Jeep that needs a cheap bandaid fix.

resharp001

Not meaning to get my feathers ruffled, but it really pisses me off when dealers say stuff like that cuz it's just flat out not correct. I'd venture to guess that practically none of those service techs actually experienced DW themselves on their own vehicle cuz most of them aren't driving these. For them to say it needs a SS is irresponsible and dangerous for the owner of the jeep cuz it's not fixing something that honesty could lead to a catastrophic event. Those guys are ok at turning the wrenches in the steps the book tells them to during a repair, but they just lack the real-world knowledge on some of this stuff, and they also don't get paid much to troubleshoot. The sad part is that this can happen to totally stock vehicles in addition to modified as the same components wear over time.

Just referencing your original picture, those look like factory ball joints (don't see a grease zerk) on a 2010 jeep. It also looks like an old Rubicon Express track bar maybe. Back in the day it was common to have crap poly bushing on one end and a heim at the other. I guess I never really noticed RE put that poly bushing at the axle side rather than the frame side like most others. Anyhow, either end of that TB could have suspect joints as well. As noted higher, have someone turn the steering wheel without the jeep on and watch the motion in those joints. You should not be seeing much movement at all. That TB is really one of the most crucial components in the entire front end. If you plan to keep that jeep for a while it would be advisable to get a nice TB with a bushing type joint on both ends, similar to what Metalcloak and Synergy are selling these days.

I'd go so far as to say that there are a few offroad shops that are really good, but there are also others that are crap. People just don't care to take the time to really troubleshoot an issue cuz at the end of the day they don't make much money for their time troubleshooting. I've seen it first hand with my dad up in Colorado when he had wobbles and a local shop there told him he needed a new SS . Seen it here locally with some shops and random people I've met along the way. It's really frustrating to me and why I am usually pretty vocal in wobble threads. I've dealt with this stuff myself and I know it can be really scary when it happens. Every once in a blue moon someone will roll through here with a wobble that turned out to have an uncommon root cause, but most of the time the gremlins are fairly easy to pinpoint.

gatorhwk

It's low miles for a 2010 JKU ... 82k. As far as I can tell, everything is factory except for the front track bar, springs, shocks and rear sway bar links ... and now the tie rod and drag link I just installed. Actually, I've swapped out the front/rear drive shafts with Adams since the rear was trashed and I figured I'd do both at the same time. I've ordered metal cloak adj front upper control arms (to help with pinion angle) along with springs and shocks since I'm not impressed with the Rubicon Express springs.. I'm running 35s on 17" rims.

I supposed I could have some warn components, but there was absolutely no indication of that until I installed this steering kit and removed the SS ... which I still find odd. Then again, I'm a new jeeper so still learning.