I'm installing a 2.5" RK Max travel system, I measured the arm eye to eye and locked down the jam nut... only problem is the krawler joint moves little when I'm tightening the shit out of it with a wrench. making it off-centered when bolted to the axle. It is only slightly off-centered, will it be a problem? I'm planing on having an alignment done as soon as I can, will they be adjusting these arms?

Thanks!

 

It took me, a buddy, a vice, and a couple of big wrenches, but we got mine pretty damned straight. I thought it would be worth it since I figured they'd be more apt to stay tight. They haven't moved yet. I used blue Loctite.

Don't bother paying for the alignment. If you have the LCA length right, the caster will be right. The camber isn't adjustable. You can set toe-in yourself using WOL's write-up on Project-JK.

 

Thanks, that sucks I already have the front all put together and torqued down lol looks like I won't be driving the jeep for a while longer. I dialed them in pretty close but they may have moved when I tightened the jam nuts. I live in Hawaii and probably will need a reconstruction permit after this which requires me to get an alignment anyways. If they are adjusting my caster they will need to change the LCA length anyways, should I just drive it on over to the shop?

I also used red threadlocker. I don't think that was a good idea.

 

Don't worry about the red threadlocker, any decent shop can still loosen it if they need to.

Your lower control arms will be fine. Just be sure to check the jam nuts every few months, and re-tighten them if necessary. You may also want to get a local shop to get them closer to RK's suggested 200 lbs of torque.

I do suggest you do a few things, though. First, measure and be sure your front axle is centered. If not, adjust the trackbar accordingly (my axle was off by 5/8" after setting the bar to RK's listed length, so a few twists were necessary to center it up). After it's centered, DO get a front alignment. Mine felt great after I installed the whole kit, but the alignment was still slightly off when I took it to a shop to get it checked.

Next, make sure you test all four corners of flex BEFORE you hit the trail for the first time. Maybe "test crawl" a few lightposts at a local strip-mall... lol. Doing this will help you identify any issues you may not otherwise see by just looking at it on the ground -- brake line lengths, coil issues, rubbing, etc.

Last, invest in some good weld-on skids to protect all your beautiful new parts...

 

Whew! Good to know, I really didn't want to have to take those stupid arms off again. I'll try to do this on Monday, my wife will not let me waste anymore time on it this weekend. I measured so many times but I'm sure it's all off, such a PITA.

 

I'm not going to lie, those jam nuts are a royal pain in the ass! lol

But, at the end of the day, their large size and high torque give me a lot of confidence in these arms and the kit as a whole. Seriously, in terms of build quality, this kit is rock solid.

 

Out of curiosity, which shocks did you go with, and what size bump stops?

 

Bilstein 5100
TeraFlex Bumpstops - 3+" Rear Lower and 2.25T X 3.0OD. I drilled the hole a little too big for one of them and had to put a nut on it, hope it doesn't do any harm. I can't wait to drive this thing.

What did you do with the brake lines? I hooked mine up and they're just hanging out, I hope it doesn't get caught on something.

 

If you have a 2011- 13 JK, the Crown brake lines RK is sending out are actually the wrong ones!! This is actually a serious problem in and of itself that I'm about to do a write-up on after I talk to the Crown and RK managers again.

I had some serious issues with the ones RK included, so I contacted Crown and they sent out a totally different set. The problem is that RK is sending out front brake lines that are meant for 2007-2010 JKs. Crown has a different set that is meant for 11-13 JKs.
The RK version of the mount has a 15 degree offset that angles the valve toward the center of your Jeep. I don't know how you chose to mount them to the caliper, but if you installed them in the same direction as your stock ones, then guess what: Your break line is now your steering stop!!! That's right, you read that correctly. The offset angle makes it so that, when you turn the wheels, your braided brake line will now make contact with the Inner C on the axle BEFORE you reach the proper steer stop! That's a problem.

If you try to avoid that and reverse the mount on the caliper, then your lines end up floating out in space ready to catch the first branch that comes along... DOH!

If I were you, I'd call RK and mention this issue. As I said, I'm currently communicating with both companies trying to help them get this sorted out for all future customers. It's not a good situation for anyone considering the safety implications.

Strangely, based on my discussions with Crown, RK themselves didn't discover or know about this issue. The guys at Crown had no idea that RK is sending the older lines for use in newer JKs. RK also had a series of brake line failures over the summer that RK claimed was a bad batch. Well, as it turns out, we may have discovered the real culprit.

The newer lines Crown sent me to replace the others don't have the offset and work perfectly when run along the same path as the stock lines.

As far as I'm concerned, RK needs to issue a recall for any of their kits using the older lines on 2011-2013 JKs... but we'll have to wait and see... stay tuned.

 

I have an 09 so I should have a problem. I have them mounted with 15 degrees towards the center. T didn't even do steering checks yet but the lines just hanging there looks like its bounf to get caught on something eventually.