urmyboyblue

So for the past couple of years, after my Rubicon Express 3.5 lift, I've chalked up some issues to "being a Jeep". Along with the lift, I tossed on a high steer setup when I trussed and gusseted the axle. Then I tossed on 37's. Being that I'm in Florida and I only offroad 4-5 weekends/year, I've been happy so far and (knock on wood) I've not broken anything other than a driveshaft boot.

Speaking of the boot...It went out recently and all of my wheeling buddies who trailer to Moab and such said, "Bro! You need Tom Woods front and rear AND control arms!" Neat...But I just don't go bananas all the time time. So I picked up Teraflex's Rzeppa joint and tossed it in over the weekend. Super easy to install and definitely has some more clearance. I also picked up some Rubicon Express control arm drop brackets. Tons of manufacturers make them so I figured the RE's would be as good as those double the price. Slapped the brackets in and well, I AM IN LOVE!

I contemplated these for a while. I've read things like "some noticeable difference" "not night and day but ok", etc. Well for me, I felt amazed! The Jeep isn't unruly anymore! I had some "flighty" feeling in my steering. Didn't like it. Wasn't a fan. Boom...Gone! It just overall feels good! Going camping and wheeling this weekend so we will see what, if any negative impact the 2" of ground clearance lost is but I doubt I'll be disappointed!

If you're on the fence...Get CA drop brackets! They are rad...Bigly!

TheDirtman

There is something to be said for proper geometry.

Smudgeontheglass

I've bashed my belly plates a lot more than the control arms. I don't think you have much to worry about. But yeah, geometry is great.

urmyboyblue

Go figure huh?! I know I know! I've read all the posts. I just do a LOT of DD and as I've said, "chalked it up as it being a Jeep"....Wow...Never again! I thought your posts might be for the hardcore wheelers and such. But NO! I think that anyone wanting to join this point forward should have to read you sticky...agree to it...then they can join!

nthinuf

Dunno, but the way that reads ...

Steering was flighty. Instead of adjusting the Cam Bolts that were installed with the lift, you left the caster set low and said ''oh well, it's a jeep".

The brackets go on, the caster goes up, and wow, the flighty steering miraculously goes away.

What was the caster before and after?

TheDirtman

Proper geometry is more important on the road then off, most people think you need a big fancy lift for off road when you don't. You can throw crap on your rig and run it around at 2 mph all day long and not notice errors in geometry but poor steering and excessive body roll can cause you some issues in an emergency situation at speed. Run off the road or roll over risk is higher with cheaper incomplete lifts.

MAJKF

I run the Rancho brackets. Love them. It was night and friggin day. I used to avoid every speed bump cause they rattled my fillings. Brackets helped alot.

When I put them on I was running a lot of washboarded trails to get to hunting spots. I used to air down to save from the bumps, thought that was the only solution. With proper geometry I no longer needed to.

dahreno

I'm 100% with dirtman on this, I didn't spend a small fortune on the most complete long arm kit I could afford to do 2 mph in the dirt. I did it so I could do 80, and have it handle like stock. I haven't ran or needed a steering stabilizer in years. I love how my JKUR handles, and I have for 9 years !

WaterRat72

I decided to forgo those when I installed my 2.5" RE lift but after reading this thread I'm having second thoughts. I've since added a set of 3/4" puck spacers to eliminate a bit of spring sag. I dread speed bumps at anything over a crawl. I do 3 - 4 off road / camping trips annually so mostly street driving with 35's. I'm guessing these are a must. I have a camping trip coming up in a couple weeks and inevitably we hit sections of road with those stupid washboards at speed. Even aired down it's brutal.

Rancho

Very cool, not too sure what ones you got but we recently updated our design to allow for more options on mounting the uppers.
Also the one piece design makes it a bit easier to install.