Upper Control Arms

[Orange_Ram]

Quick question.
Would zone's upper control arms work/fit if im running a BDS 6 inch lift? I just ordered the BDS upper control arms for the 4-6 inch lift but I am not sure if they were worth the almost $800.

 

[Nick@GotExhaust]

Do you have any additional lift, other than the lift kit itself. For instance are you also running ride height adjustable struts or coil overs? If not then the Zone ones wont work as they are angle correcting for 2-3" of lift(non bracket lift)

 

[mrack]

Do you have any additional lift, other than the lift kit itself. For instance are you also running ride height adjustable struts or coil overs? If not then the Zone ones wont work as they are angle correcting for 2-3" of lift(non bracket lift)

You know more about lifts then I do, but zone specifies their upper control arms are for either the 6” lift kit or a 2” level, but not the 4” kit as that retains factory geometry. Since of course Zone and BDS are very similar kits I believe the zone arms would work fine on a 6” bds.

That said I would recommend JBA over zone, they are fully greasable with a bolt in ball joint, and they don’t mess up your alignment like Zone arms. Also have more clearance to the tire if that’s a concern for your setup. Little bit more $ then the Zone arms, but they’re a great small business to support and still cheaper then BDS which are way overpriced IMO. I’ve personally run both Zone and JBA and JBA are definitely the better option. Just make sure you get angle correcting and not the stock geometry version.

 

[Nick@GotExhaust]

You know more about lifts then I do, but zone specifies their upper control arms are for either the 6” lift kit or a 2” level, but not the 4” kit as that retains factory geometry. Since of course Zone and BDS are very similar kits I believe the zone arms would work fine on a 6” bds.

That said I would recommend JBA over zone, they are fully greasable with a bolt in ball joint, and they don’t mess up your alignment like Zone arms. Also have more clearance to the tire if that’s a concern for your setup. Little bit more $ then the Zone arms, but they’re a great small business to support and still cheaper then BDS which are way overpriced IMO. I’ve personally run both Zone and JBA and JBA are definitely the better option. Just make sure you get angle correcting and not the stock geometry version.

They do use a pre load spacer along with the spacer for the lift but I feel it is still not enough lift to run a angle correcting UCA properly. The pre load spacer only adds 1".

I would recommend the Core 4x4 UCA's. They are made specific for the amount of lift you have

 

[Orange_Ram]

Do you have any additional lift, other than the lift kit itself. For instance are you also running ride height adjustable struts or coil overs? If not then the Zone ones wont work as they are angle correcting for 2-3" of lift(non bracket lift)

I am pretty sure I have the coil overs. Thank you for the information!

 

[Orange_Ram]

You know more about lifts then I do, but zone specifies their upper control arms are for either the 6” lift kit or a 2” level, but not the 4” kit as that retains factory geometry. Since of course Zone and BDS are very similar kits I believe the zone arms would work fine on a 6” bds.

That said I would recommend JBA over zone, they are fully greasable with a bolt in ball joint, and they don’t mess up your alignment like Zone arms. Also have more clearance to the tire if that’s a concern for your setup. Little bit more $ then the Zone arms, but they’re a great small business to support and still cheaper then BDS which are way overpriced IMO. I’ve personally run both Zone and JBA and JBA are definitely the better option. Just make sure you get angle correcting and not the stock geometry version.

Yes I was made aware about zone not working for 4 inch lifts. And funny enough after looking all over for UCA's JBA was popping up for me but I did not know if they were reliable or well known. Is is their website?

Invest in Upper Control Arms for Your Off Road Vehicles

JBA sells upper control arms for Jeep, Chevy, Dodge, Ford, Ram, GMC, Toyota, Lexus, and Cadillac.

jbaoffroad.com

To add on. Yes in my opinion BDS does seem to be a bit overpriced but the shop where I decided to go to recommended me to get them since I am already running the BDS lift kit. The hardest part is just waiting the 4-6 weeks they said for the parts to arrive. It also looks like JBA UCA's are 1 to 3.5 inch lift kits.

 

[mrack]

Yes I was made aware about zone not working for 4 inch lifts. And funny enough after looking all over for UCA's JBA was popping up for me but I did not know if they were reliable or well known. Is is their website?

Invest in Upper Control Arms for Your Off Road Vehicles

JBA sells upper control arms for Jeep, Chevy, Dodge, Ford, Ram, GMC, Toyota, Lexus, and Cadillac.

jbaoffroad.com

To add on. Yes in my opinion BDS does seem to be a bit overpriced but the shop where I decided to go to recommended me to get them since I am already running the BDS lift kit. The hardest part is just waiting the 4-6 weeks they said for the parts to arrive. It also looks like JBA UCA's are 1 to 3.5 inch lift kits.

Yep that’s their site. JBA has been around a long time and they really know their stuff.

 

[Nick@GotExhaust]

I am pretty sure I have the coil overs. Thank you for the information!

So next question is, are your coil overs cranked up to add lift?

 

[Orange_Ram]

So next question is, are your coil overs cranked up to add lift?

That is a good question. I am not sure to be honest, how can I tell if they are??
Also can I get opinions on the readylift UCA's?

 

[DILLIGAF]

Core 4x4 UCA is what you're after !

 

[Nick@GotExhaust]

That is a good question. I am not sure to be honest, how can I tell if they are??
Also can I get opinions on the readylift UCA's?

post a pic of your strut/coil overs. Lets see what you actually have in there 1st. Then we can try to figure out height and what UCA's would work with your set up.

 

[BlackSheepRebel]

Lots of good info here hard to go wrong with JBA or core just be aware of threads where some complain about wheel offset not being compatible with core. I think they were fixing that though.

 

[Orange_Ram]

post a pic of your strut/coil overs. Lets see what you actually have in there 1st. Then we can try to figure out height and what UCA's would work with your set up.

Sorry for being late. But here it is.

 

[Orange_Ram]

Lots of good info here hard to go wrong with JBA or core just be aware of threads where some complain about wheel offset not being compatible with core. I think they were fixing that though.

Yes it is very good info. I am doing my research on each. But I went with readylift last minute.

 

[Orange_Ram]

Also, I have these coils in the rear. I noticed the rear is an inch or so higher than the front. Could it be the RC shocks I have in the back or the coils that are causing it?

Thanks in advance for all the great information and details.

 

[olyelr]

Also, I have these coils in the rear. I noticed the rear is an inch or so higher than the front. Could it be the RC shocks I have in the back or the coils that are causing it?

Thanks in advance for all the great information and details.

The shocks have nothing to do with ride height at the rear. Its the coils. Is there a spacer above or below them?

The front looks like the original struts with a spacer, so very possible the rear springs are stock with a spacer as well.


Looks like you are due for tires…those things are quite weather checked!

 

[Quick_Shifter]

Also, I have these coils in the rear. I noticed the rear is an inch or so higher than the front. Could it be the RC shocks I have in the back or the coils that are causing it?

Thanks in advance for all the great information and details.

Post more pics. How do rc shocks end up on a truck with a BDS kit?
Let’s see the cross members in the front.
Since the angles on your UCA’s look good now and you’re being budget conscious with your decision I would run the mevotec UCA’s they are tried and true. They will be your best bet and leave room in the budget to replace the RC shocks in the rear

 

[Orange_Ram]

The shocks have nothing to do with ride height at the rear. Its the coils. Is there a spacer above or below them?

The front looks like the original struts with a spacer, so very possible the rear springs are stock with a spacer as well.


Looks like you are due for tires…those things are quite weather checked!

Thank you for your response. And yes I will be changing them soon. Are toyo open country mts better than nitto trail grapplers I have currently?? I have 35X12.50R20 for reference.

 

[Orange_Ram]

Post more pics. How do rc shocks end up on a truck with a BDS kit?
Let’s see the cross members in the front.
Since the angles on your UCA’s look good now and you’re being budget conscious with your decision I would run the mevotec UCA’s they are tried and true. They will be your best bet and leave room in the budget to replace the RC shocks in the rear

Well I have no idea what upper control arms the previous owner had on the truck but I went with readylift and I will provide pictures tomorrow.

I went with rc rear shocks bc I did not know a lot about rear shocks I thought they were my safest bet.

Also a little backstory with the UCA's:
I got the truck back Saturday and the alignment shop said the truck drove to the right a bitr I thought it was a bit until I drove it home and I realized it was a good amount. Today I took the truck back to the shop and explained the problem to them. they said when they were aligning the truck they had to move or adjust the right side caster all the way high / max spec. So what they did today was adjust the left side caster (driver side) by lowering it. This helped alot with the truck so now it only goes to the right a bit. maybe its a tires issue now? Sorry for the long response.

 

[Quick_Shifter]

Well I have no idea what upper control arms the previous owner had on the truck but I went with readylift and I will provide pictures tomorrow.

I went with rc rear shocks bc I did not know a lot about rear shocks I thought they were my safest bet.

Also a little backstory with the UCA's:
I got the truck back Saturday and the alignment shop said the truck drove to the right a bitr I thought it was a bit until I drove it home and I realized it was a good amount. Today I took the truck back to the shop and explained the problem to them. they said when they were aligning the truck they had to move or adjust the right side caster all the way high / max spec. So what they did today was adjust the left side caster (driver side) by lowering it. This helped alot with the truck so now it only goes to the right a bit. maybe its a tires issue now? Sorry for the long response.

Put the passenger side tire on the drivers side or rotate all 4 in an x pattern.
Caster is not a live measurement so they should have done a few caster sweeps while doing the alignment. If you were decently out they would need to roll comp the truck to get more realistic numbers. I would find a different alignment shop. Tires are too expensive to get it wrong and your truck ride better than factory minus the rear shocks