actually, up until recently, i hadn't been running an SS at all as i smashed my last one wheeling (maybe my 4th or 5th one ). i just recently got a new TF SS and i'm just running it right now.

yeah, so long as your toe is set correctly and your SS clears the track bar mount on the axle okay, driving around with a bent tie-rod is no big deal. i've done this for quite a while on my last tie rod and i know of plenty of other people that do as well and it works just fine.

correct and if it is bent, you will have too much toe and if the bend is severe, you will have a steering wheel that is off as well.

with 33's, you can just set your toe in to about 1/16" which is basically stock. with bigger tires, going to about 1/8" of toe in can help keep your jeep driving straight on the highway.

 

How do you adjust your toe?

 

this write-up should help you out:

http://project-jk.com/jeep-jk-write-...-end-alignment

 

I really dont think your tie rod is bent, I had the same problem with the teraflex SS. You have to remember that the tube for the teraflex ss is bigger than the stock one hince the clearance issue. As for some other people not having problems im guessing that all the brackets that are mounted to the tie rod are not rotated to exactly the same position on every Jeep, so some might clear without having to rotate it down. If you are really concerned about the tie rod being bent I wouild take it off and roll it accross some 2X4s evenly spaced and see if there is any woble, kinda like checking a cue on a pool table. Thats what I would do unless you have the extra cash just to upgrade anyway. Just would hate to see you spend money on a part that isnt broken. I plan on getting the relocation bracket from woods when I get some cash saved up. Happy Jeepin!

 

i hear what you're saying but looking at the photo, it looked to me like the SS was going to jam right into it and that would not be the case if the tie rod were slightly bent. also, keep in mind that the OP stated that rotating the SS down left it hanging low to the ground. if the tie rod weren't bent, a slight adjustment would be the only thing needed and it wouldn't leave the SS hanging like this.

if you look carefully at your tie rod, there are about 8 bends in it and 4 of them off center as it offers more clearance to your diff. needless to say, you cannot simply roll it across some 2x4's.

 

Let me clarify that it was just a slight adjustment needed. The SS only needed about half a centimeter of extra clearence to clear the trackbar bracket but in doing that I had to rotate it downward on the tie rod end to where it was about and inch and a half lower than the tie rod. It wasn't really "low" to the ground so to say but it was much more vulnerable to being hit by rocks than the factory SS was. I would take a picture but I'm out of town until the weekend.

 

Wayoflife you are right about the bends in the tie rod, i havent looked at the one that closely on the JK the one I had on my CJ-5 only had a bend on each end and was straight in the middle, not sure if it was stock or not.

 

Thanx for your input on this subject WOL...

 

well, what can i say. perhaps your tie rod isn't bent then. i don't know. all i can say is that when i installed my first TF SS, i didn't have to rotate it down to clear the track bar axle mount but as has been suggested, maybe mine was installed differently than yours from the factory