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death wobble

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Old Aug 24, 2012 | 12:27 PM
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Default death wobble

So far this week I have experienced death wobble four times, once at the beginning of the week and three times today. I have almost 36,000 miles on the original ball joints.It all started after I replaced my SS. I trashed my stocker at Bantam Fest and bought a Fox SS. I hope replacing the stock ball joints solves the problem.
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Old Aug 24, 2012 | 12:57 PM
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Keep in mind there is a ton of threads on here for diagnosing DW. In my case, the track bar was the cause.
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Old Aug 24, 2012 | 01:02 PM
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Originally Posted by k0260
Keep in mind there is a ton of threads on here for diagnosing DW. In my case, the track bar was the cause.
x2. check the trackbar bolt holes and make sure their not wallowed out. after make sure its torqued to 125ft lbs. Swapping the bolts out for 9/16th might help a little too
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Old Aug 24, 2012 | 01:20 PM
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Originally Posted by Croce
x2. check the trackbar bolt holes and make sure their not wallowed out. after make sure its torqued to 125ft lbs. Swapping the bolts out for 9/16th might help a little too
suspension is only a few months old and i was told by my mechanic my ball joints were starting to show wear but would pass state inspection.
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Old Aug 24, 2012 | 01:33 PM
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Originally Posted by Croce
x2. check the trackbar bolt holes and make sure their not wallowed out. after make sure its torqued to 125ft lbs. Swapping the bolts out for 9/16th might help a little too
What size are the stock bolts?
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Old Aug 24, 2012 | 02:02 PM
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Originally Posted by Monte417
What size are the stock bolts?
14MM..Northridge 4X4 just dropped the price of their bolt kit down to $40

http://www.northridge4x4.com/shop/nr...k-hardware-kit

Last edited by Absolute; Aug 30, 2012 at 02:23 PM. Reason: banned member thread
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Old Aug 24, 2012 | 03:39 PM
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Originally Posted by trailcruiser
So far this week I have experienced death wobble four times, once at the beginning of the week and three times today. I have almost 36,000 miles on the original ball joints.It all started after I replaced my SS. I trashed my stocker at Bantam Fest and bought a Fox SS. I hope replacing the stock ball joints solves the problem.
I got DW at only 22,000 miles. I was not a member of this site at the time. I started off with my ball joints, then SS, and then my SS bracket ripped off the axle.

My DW is the reason I found this site. I read through Planman's checklist and fixed my issue. In my case it was the trackbar mounts too. At only 22,000 miles.

I would seriously read that checklist and follow it step by step. You may be changing your ball joints for no reason.
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Old Aug 24, 2012 | 04:11 PM
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If you indeed have death wobble (for whatever reason), a new SS will only mask the actual source of the problem. Theoretically, if everything is torqued down and working fine you should be able to drive normally without a steering stabilizer.

I know DW is almost always caused by a loose track bar. Torque your track bar to 125 ft/lbs and see if that works. I constantly torque my track bar whenever I have a project on my jeep. I figure I'm already working on it, might as well take a few more minutes to torque down my track bar again. I'll be switching to Grade-8 9/16" bolts soon as well.
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Old Aug 25, 2012 | 06:44 AM
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[QUOTE=Croce;3178232]14MM..Northridge 4X4 just dropped the price of their bolt kit down to $40

NR4X4 Jeep JK Grade 8 Hardware kit


cool thanks didnt even know there was a kit

Last edited by Absolute; Aug 30, 2012 at 02:27 PM.
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Old Aug 26, 2012 | 04:55 PM
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Originally Posted by k0260
Keep in mind there is a ton of threads on here for diagnosing DW. In my case, the track bar was the cause.
OK so I looked over the replies I received and did the mentioned 9/16X3 grade 8 bolt swap. I got my hardware from a local store along with washers and nut.I torqued both track bar bolts to 125lb/ft. That was yesterday and things seemed better until tonight when my family and I went for a drive in the country. I hit a bump or hole in the road and it started shaking the front end uncontrolably until I brought my Jeep to a stop. I am scratching my head over this and I don't want to be chasing my tail here. My thinking is it is the track bar and that it needs to be moved upward by means of a relocation kit, any thoughts?
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