JKS Front and rear adj trackbars installed
...and they are nice. I have an OME 2.5" lift which actually netted me about 3". My front axle was off center about 3/4" and the rear about 1/2" after the lift. This is not too much to worry about, but being the perfectionist that I am, I knew that I would eventually get this corrected.
My adorable wife purchased front and rear JKS adjustables for my Father's Day gift and I installed them last weekend. (Thanks to Dave at Northridge for helping her out with this! Dave is the model for perfect customer service).
Easy install and my axles are now perfectly centered. Best of all, because they use the stock type rubber bushings, there are no creaks, groans, or noises of any type. No need to worry about greasing them either (ala FT).
If you are considering adjustable trackbars, I can highly recommend JKS.
I'll try to get some pics up soon...
My adorable wife purchased front and rear JKS adjustables for my Father's Day gift and I installed them last weekend. (Thanks to Dave at Northridge for helping her out with this! Dave is the model for perfect customer service).
Easy install and my axles are now perfectly centered. Best of all, because they use the stock type rubber bushings, there are no creaks, groans, or noises of any type. No need to worry about greasing them either (ala FT).
If you are considering adjustable trackbars, I can highly recommend JKS.
I'll try to get some pics up soon...
JK Freak
Joined: May 2007
Posts: 647
Likes: 0
From: ENGLEWOOD, COLORADO
Does your jeep drive better now with the axles centered? My front is 3/4 of an inch or so off as well and the truck wanders all over the place. I know that the caster angle is the major culprit, but re-centering should help a bit too. Just curious as to if you saw an improvement in on road handling.
To be honest, I don't really feel any difference in the way it drives. I thought I did feel it to be a bit more stable on turns, but am attributing that to the usual "I paid money for that, therefore I feel it works better" syndrome.
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Paul
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Paul
There was still wander in the steering (although it was much improved) and it was pretty light feeling, but it became a lot more fun to drive.
The installation of the FT upper control arms @ 3/8" shorter than stock length then cured 90+% of the wander and light feeling steering due to the increase in caster.
This Jeep is a blast to drive both on road and off.
Many thanks to David at Northridge for his superb customer service, as well as advice on this setup.
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Does your jeep drive better now with the axles centered? My front is 3/4 of an inch or so off as well and the truck wanders all over the place. I know that the caster angle is the major culprit, but re-centering should help a bit too. Just curious as to if you saw an improvement in on road handling.
Bobzinger,
I think you may be confusing caster angle with axle centering. The adjustable trackbars will recenter the axles after a lift by moving the entire axle left or right so that the tires are the same distance from the vehicle centerline. This theoretically should aid in stability of the vehicle in turns as the center of gravity will be centered between the wheels. Caster angle refers to the angle that the steering knuckle is off-vertical front to back. Not sure if I can explain it right with words, so here is a crude pic:
<--- rear of vehicle front of vehicle --->
| - angle of knuckle totally vertical = 0 caster
\ - positive caster
/ - negative caster
Caster affects the ability of the vehicle steering to keep itself centered. The more positive caster, the more the steering will try to keep itself centered. The more negative caster, the more easily the vehicle turns and the more "flighty" it will feel. When you lift the vehicle, the factory positive caster is reduced, and the steering turns more easily and will "wander". Adding back positive caster will stabilize the steering and make it recenter itself more strongly. Caster angle is modified by installing adjustable control arms.
Hope that helps.
--------
Paul
I think you may be confusing caster angle with axle centering. The adjustable trackbars will recenter the axles after a lift by moving the entire axle left or right so that the tires are the same distance from the vehicle centerline. This theoretically should aid in stability of the vehicle in turns as the center of gravity will be centered between the wheels. Caster angle refers to the angle that the steering knuckle is off-vertical front to back. Not sure if I can explain it right with words, so here is a crude pic:
<--- rear of vehicle front of vehicle --->
| - angle of knuckle totally vertical = 0 caster
\ - positive caster
/ - negative caster
Caster affects the ability of the vehicle steering to keep itself centered. The more positive caster, the more the steering will try to keep itself centered. The more negative caster, the more easily the vehicle turns and the more "flighty" it will feel. When you lift the vehicle, the factory positive caster is reduced, and the steering turns more easily and will "wander". Adding back positive caster will stabilize the steering and make it recenter itself more strongly. Caster angle is modified by installing adjustable control arms.
Hope that helps.
--------
Paul


