I would like to see the part you made to bolt up to the knuckle and attach to
the upper arm.

Also I noticed the upper shock bolt turned 90* from the lower one, this
would seem to cause a binding and flexing through the suspension travel
cycle, have you tried to cycle the suspension without the spring and wheel
bolted on to check for problems?

I like the buildup, I want to do a similar setup, and would like to see how
you worked around the issues you found

Wild

I would to see the part you made to bolt up to the knuckle and attach to
the upper arm.

Also I noticed the upper shock bolt turned 90* from the lower one, this
would seem to cause a binding and flexing through the suspension travel
cycle, have you tried to cycle the suspension without the spring and wheel
bolted on to check for problems?

I like the buildup, I want to do a similar setup, and would like to see how
you worked around the issues you found

Wild

Good eye Wild.

There is plenty of motion left in the misalignment spacers.  The stock components - ball joint, and CV bind before anything else.  And that is at around 9 inches of travel.  
I turned the upper mount 90 degrees so the reservoir line was out of the way.

Took me a little while to put it all together in my mind.  Interesting.  Getting the position of everything, the length of the upper arms, the connection between upper and lower arms is impressive.
When I saw all the holes in your stub axle adapter, I thought you were going to 930 cv's to cover the cv binding issues.

I just kind of got my brain wrapped around the upper A-arm part of this build.
This part that you made, do you realize the force it takes? All of the braking force
from the caliper is going to transfer into a rotating torque and it has to go through
this upper 2 piece A-arm you built. Be very careful when you start test driving on
the road and watch the part for any problems.

I have had a strut nut come off and the strut popped out of the upper mount and
as I tapped the brake to stop, the whole wheel, knuckle, strut, caliper, everything
assembly twisted off and went flying down the freeway, leaving me with no brakes
sliding to a stop in a shower of sparks. Thank God nobody got hurt, but I want you
to really evaluate the strength of your upper A-arm and the bolt that goes through
the joint and consider what could happen if it fails under a braking load.

Maybe consider making it one piece with the bolt going through some gusseted tabs
from the bottom or something like that, because as a 2 piece part, that bolt is going
to take all the force to hold everything together, the forces of the wheel hitting rocks
also is transferred to this upper A-arm, so every bump and rock you hit jars the part
with force pushing it to the rear.

I just want you to have fun and stay safe

Wild

I just kind of got my brain wrapped around the upper A-arm part of this build.
This part that you made, do you realize the force it takes? All of the braking force
from the caliper is going to transfer into a rotating torque and it has to go through
this upper 2 piece A-arm you built. Be very careful when you start test driving on
the road and watch the part for any problems.

I have had a strut nut come off and the strut popped out of the upper mount and
as I tapped the brake to stop, the whole wheel, knuckle, strut, caliper, everything
assembly twisted off and went flying down the freeway, leaving me with no brakes
sliding to a stop in a shower of sparks. Thank God nobody got hurt, but I want you
to really evaluate the strength of your upper A-arm and the bolt that goes through
the joint and consider what could happen if it fails under a braking load.

Maybe consider making it one piece with the bolt going through some gusseted tabs
from the bottom or something like that, because as a 2 piece part, that bolt is going
to take all the force to hold everything together, the forces of the wheel hitting rocks
also is transferred to this upper A-arm, so every bump and rock you hit jars the part
with force pushing it to the rear.

I just want you to have fun and stay safe

Wild

Wild, I believe that the bolt in question is a lot bigger than it looks.  How much strength does a 3/4" bolt have in shear?

A bunch, just looks small in the photo, OK I'll keep watching the build, I like what I see

 

why not make the upper a j arm ? would help alot with the spacing of shock and stuff?

why not make the upper a j arm ? would help alot with the spacing of shock and stuff?

I did spend some time working with the idea of a j arm setup for that exact reason. But there was just no room for an adequately built arm of that shape. The steering box is in the way. The tire turning full lock comes very close to the frame. And the pivot points wouldn't be far enough apart to get the strength I want. The current design is very tight but it works. 

Haven't heard how the road tests are going?

Haven't heard how the road tests are going?

Thanks for the poke!  It performs great on the road, excellent off-road, and handles air-time like a champ.  I'll post some pics a little later today.  You know how it goes.  Summer can get pretty busy...

On the subject of suspension:  I put too stiff of springs in.  It's good for jumps, but honestly I'm not going to jump it that much.  That, right now, is my only complaint.  But ride height is AWESOME.  I've got about 16 inches of clearance under the frame.

Well it's been longer than I thought.  So here's a pic from a couple of weeks ago (nevermind the friend blocking the view, or the crappy picture).

Lookin' good with them remote reservoirs shinin' in the flash

Out of curiosity what are the measurements of your upper arm and what weight springs are you using up front?

Out of curiosity what are the measurements of your upper arm and what weight springs are you using up front?

Hmmm....Secrets of the trade?

More pics:

Hmmm....Secrets of the trade?

I was wondering if it was close to any current vehicles upper links, so you could order one for a Thunderbird or something similar instead of building your own upper arm.