Rough Country drop bracket install w/ pics

[xj^REMY]

I can't even drive to an alignment shop. unless i go straight and take all left turns

haha, u got a lift & big enough tires to drive over some curbs & such, haha :spin1:.. definitely get an alignment done after all is said & done, just to be safe

looks to me like you might be able to get away with adjusting the castor adjustment on the drop brackets out. id try that before springing for new uppers.

FYI, the holes on the frame mounts are oblong (both factory & drop brackets), allowing for slight castor adjustment

best solution would be to get adjustable uppers... looks like u'd only need to shorten the uppers 1" or so to bring that pinion down some... but like suggested above, have u tried pulling the lowers forward (farthest forward on the oblong hole) on the drop bracket, & uppers back (would involve pushing the upper part of the drop brackets as far as possible into the factory bracket... might get somewhere :dunno:

u'r getting there tho... looks like the arms are in the perfect angle, seriously improving the ride... also looks like u & i have almost identical set-up... is that the RE track bar? with frame side heim joint??.. i noticed without shox & end linx, axle droop was limited by lowers touching shock/coil mount, track bar on both the axle mount & heim joint at the frame end... shox, end linx, & track bar @axle disconnected, the 4.5" lift coils were barely un-sat... boo

 

[XJFever]

haha, u got a lift & big enough tires to drive over some curbs & such, haha :spin1:.. definitely get an alignment done after all is said & done, just to be safe



FYI, the holes on the frame mounts are oblong (both factory & drop brackets), allowing for slight castor adjustment

best solution would be to get adjustable uppers... looks like u'd only need to shorten the uppers 1" or so to bring that pinion down some... but like suggested above, have u tried pulling the lowers forward (farthest forward on the oblong hole) on the drop bracket, & uppers back (would involve pushing the upper part of the drop brackets as far as possible into the factory bracket... might get somewhere :dunno:

u'r getting there tho... looks like the arms are in the perfect angle, seriously improving the ride... also looks like u & i have almost identical set-up... is that the RE track bar? with frame side heim joint??.. i noticed without shox & end linx, axle droop was limited by lowers touching shock/coil mount, track bar on both the axle mount & heim joint at the frame end... shox, end linx, & track bar @axle disconnected, the 4.5" lift coils were barely un-sat... boo

yea sounds like it is pretty similar. everything rubicon cept the drop brackets. I did try to pull the lowers forward and uppers back with a ratchet strap-scary stuff there- didn't work out to well. i could always try two straps one on each side. right now, im waiting to hear on any control arms i can get a hold of, until then, im stuck. i'll let ya'll know how it turns out.

really appreciate everyone's help!

 

[the_weirdo]

here's what I did to rotate the axle back (pull the lca's forward) and solve the same issue.

put jackstands under the front axle
remove the steering from the drivers side knuckle.
loosen the bolts that hold the lca into the drop bracket (1 big bolt and 2 small bolts in the back).
use a jack under the knuckle (where the steering tie rod connects) to rotate the axle backwards where you want it.
install a spacer or washers into the space in behind the lca in the pocket.
tighten the 2 bolts on the back of the drop bracket.
tighten the large bolt on the lca.
reattach steering.

 

[XJFever]

here's what I did to rotate the axle back (pull the lca's forward) and solve the same issue.

put jackstands under the front axle
remove the steering from the drivers side knuckle.
loosen the bolts that hold the lca into the drop bracket (1 big bolt and 2 small bolts in the back).
use a jack under the knuckle (where the steering tie rod connects) to rotate the axle backwards where you want it.
install a spacer or washers into the space in behind the lca in the pocket.
tighten the 2 bolts on the back of the drop bracket.
tighten the large bolt on the lca.
reattach steering.

You sir, are a genius! This worked 100% for moving the lowers all the way forward. I ended up fitting like 12 washers as a spacer and got new bolts. So now lowers are all the way forward, and the pinion angle looks better but the draglink is still real close.

could my problem be the 2 degree upper ball joints?

 

[xj^REMY]

You sir, are a genius! This worked 100% for moving the lowers all the way forward. I ended up fitting like 12 washers as a spacer and got new bolts. So now lowers are all the way forward, and the pinion angle looks better but the draglink is still real close.

could my problem be the 2 degree upper ball joints?

quite possibly... i have that same write up bookmarked, that u followed for the ball joint install... cant remember of the top of my head, but wasnt install of the ball joints on a stock xj?... with 4.5" of lift caster/camber requirements are different than stock... did u use the "template" to install or eye-balled like in the write up?.. in the write he installed them to get "all of the 2* of positive caster available"

i've never installed or familiar with adjustable ball joints, but the issue on ur drag link/tie rod is that in the process of installing the brackets & having 2* adjustable ball joints, ur caster/camber has been thrown off... i'd say if u got a good pinion angle from adjusting the frame-side mounting of the arms, drive it an alignment shop, & let them use their computers & lasers to get u lined up & clear of obstructions... if u cant drive because there's still contact, u could get away with removing the stabilizer to get somewhere

 

[beasticles]

Reviving an old thread here. I just picked up a used set of the RC drop brackets. I am running a RE SuperRide 3.5" lift that came with the fixed short arm LCAs. Can I run those with the drop brackets or will I run into the same problem that XJFever did above with the longer LCAs pushing the front axle too far forward and messing up the driveline angle? It looks like maybe it was his UCAs that threw everything off. I just need to know if I need to look for stocker LCAs before I install the drop brackets, or if the fixed LCAs from the RE kit will work.

Thanks!

 

[muddeprived]

Find out what length the arms are and if they are close to stock then they should be ok. The lowers have a little adjustability in the lower bracket but the uppers do not.

 

[DanMan2k06]

This thread may help those fussing around with pinion angles and caster.

My saga with Rokmen upper arms, RE superflex lowers, and RCX drop brackets.

http://naxja.org/forum/showthread.php?t=1077896&highlight=caster&page=3