My ram (ongoing project)

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crazykid1994

crazykid1994

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They should last more than rubber inherently because of the material but mostly because in the the case of the A-arms, the arms pivot from the mounts in those bushings up and down. the rubber bushings are fused to the sleeve and the housing so they're not designed to freely rotate per se so the bushings have to literally be forced to deflect up and down as the suspension moves which is why is supper important to preload them at ride height. they're not designed to take into consideration more shock travel so assuming a standard length strut and stock heigth the'll work well within their operating range. Top spacers forces them to flex more than normal.
Poly on the other side will rotate freely around their sleeves and depending on bushing design they can also rotate in the housing or around another layer outside the sleeve like many flex joints, Giiro DDB's in Claytons, and other flexy DDB's. We don't have that type in the front UCA's nor is needed. a normal free pivoting poly busing will work well cause all the a-arms do is go up and down as the coilovers cycle, so you don't even need to worry about tightening a little above ride height cause they literally free spin.. and they don't deflect side to side like rubber can so your suspension from the pivoting arms have literally no side to side movement which you want if you're playing in the dirt at speed. Zone are not exactly performance UCA's in that sense because their rubber bushings for the pivot points and standard bj's. Don't mean to say they're bad UCA's though. On the contrary they're more HD than the stockers, but if you are playing in the dirt and have extended travel suspension, poly busings with a bj than can flex more like Icon DJ, JBA BJ, any of the good brand uniballs etc not only will outlast Zone but will give you all these benefits pretty much in full. Yes a bit more maintenance but it really depends on your needs. I grease my Icons every 5k miles, have yet to hear a single little sqwueak from them and i felt the difference right away when i made the change from Zone to Icon on the street but more when pushing the truck in those Socal washboards we have around :) If you wanted to try something a bit less pricey i think the JBA's are the ticket, but you still have to grease them. is not that bad though. At least with the JBA's you wouldn'tneed to loose and retorque your bolts from the UCA pivots like we have to do with Icon for example.
Well the jba UCAs are purchased. I’m having a hard time finding a bushing press so I’m ordering new UCAs instead. I’ll see if I can still find a way to press in the new bushings even if I have to rig something that way I at least have backup set or if someone around me is looking for some on the cheap
 
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crazykid1994

crazykid1994

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Come on down I have a press. And a huge c clamp we could knock that out no problem.
Punta gorda. That’s not even bad. Lol. I’m going to try doing it. I have a full assortment of sockets and pullers that I’ll try. Otherwise I’ll get a long bolt and just torque it in there Worse case scenario. I need some new places to off-road. Central Florida is nice but 3 hours is hard to justify if I’m not staying. I need to get my camping gear together.
 

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czervika

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Oh hell we get over to west palm a few ti.es per year for my kids BJJ competitions. Way faster going across alligator alley. We've done the return trip under two hours door to door. Speed limits were treated as suggestions... but we did it.
 
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crazykid1994

crazykid1994

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Got my alignment done today. The cam bolts look to be in a lot better position with these jba UCAs over the zone UCAs. And a picture of my cv axle angle for reference. Bilstein 5100 and eibach springs set to the second clip with a 1/2” top hot spacer. 3” total front lift over stock. 1” rear lift.
 

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crazykid1994

crazykid1994

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crazykid1994

crazykid1994

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Look what showed up. Been wanting one of these for around 2 years now I think.
 

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crazykid1994

crazykid1994

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Started install. All that’s left is the cutting portion. Used clear caulking on the air box portion. Will use clear caulking on all other connections at time of final install. It is not silicone. It is a “all weather hybrid clear caulking” for bonding of materials that includes pvc and plastic. It’s definitely a tight fit. And removing and reinstalling that quarter panel is definitely awkward by yourself
 

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czervika

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Looking good. Don't know if I would be that brave. Granted I had to cut the frame to do the lift. But I have a welder if I f'd up and no one would know but me.
 
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crazykid1994

crazykid1994

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Looking good. Don't know if I would be that brave. Granted I had to cut the frame to do the lift. But I have a welder if I f'd up and no one would know but me.
I’ll be doing the cutting either tomorrow or Friday. I’m really nervous about it but gotta live with it. I have spray primer to put on everything after cutting to prevent the rust.
 

czervika

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I’ll be doing the cutting either tomorrow or Friday. I’m really nervous about it but gotta live with it. I have spray primer to put on everything after cutting to prevent the rust.
I wish you the best of luck man. No f'ups. Make me want to buy one. :)
 

healthyrx

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I’ll be doing the cutting either tomorrow or Friday. I’m really nervous about it but gotta live with it. I have spray primer to put on everything after cutting to prevent the rust.
Just remember- if you really F it up- you’ll have a good-er excuse to get some fiberwerx fenders ;)
 
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crazykid1994

crazykid1994

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Test fit. Will spray more primer/rust inhibitor before final fitment. Snorkel to be installed tomorrow so the primer has enough time to properly cure.
 

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czervika

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NICE. Looks like things are moving right along. Was it nerve racking???
 
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