therepairgod Posted May 8, 2012 Share Posted May 8, 2012 ive already removed the rear and oh what diference that made! virtually no decernable difference on the road but now the body doesnt pitch and roll while going over,well things, but the front end still throws the truck around. has anyone removed the front and rear bars? if so, how was the results? i drive mainly highway, i will never tow with this truck, and when it gets offroad it gets pushed pretty hard. just tired of limiting suspension travel just to get thrown around the cab as the front end negotiates obstacles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KovemaN Posted May 8, 2012 Share Posted May 8, 2012 I found driving without the front bar to be nothing short of scary at highway speeds. My DD has a 3" body lift with no rear sway bar and the body roll is acceptable. Some sort of quick release for the front would probably be your best bet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unccpathfinder Posted May 8, 2012 Share Posted May 8, 2012 Depends on what type of driver you are...I've had front sway bars off of my truck for 3+ years...I can drive it but it scares the @!*% out of people who rode with me...I've heard from folks behind me that I would lift a front tire off the ground...I wore out a lot of suspension components and broke a lot of stuff...all for no real advantage...id leave the front on and the back off...just took the gfs rear off and she realized a slight difference but said it was an improvement for her Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kingman Posted May 8, 2012 Share Posted May 8, 2012 I tell you what, I had a front sway bar link break while going around a right turn cloverleaf onramp getting on to the highway. SNAP twang and instantly the front dove to the driver's side and got insanely unstable. I thought the truck was going to go over for sure. I took the cloverleaf one more time without the bar then put it back together and did it again at the same speed. Needless to say I haven't ever thought of removing that sway bar since then. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nunya Posted May 8, 2012 Share Posted May 8, 2012 I drove around with a broken link, 1 worn and 1 missing bushing for a wHile, I DON'T recomend that. I took it completly off after that for about a month, I could handle and manage it but it did suck on the highway- the only advantage to having it off was the noises from it being there by hopes and dreams were gone. Personally I say remove the rear and call it done on that front Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
therepairgod Posted May 9, 2012 Author Share Posted May 9, 2012 looks like im machining some disconnects! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unccpathfinder Posted May 9, 2012 Share Posted May 9, 2012 I honestly don't think the disconnects would help offroad...we wheeled the gfs truck this weekend and I didn't really see any difference except we didn't break anything on hers and I usually waste a TRE or 3 on mine...yes you get more travel but I think it stresses the suspension out more and leaves you breaking stuff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silverton Posted May 9, 2012 Share Posted May 9, 2012 Mr.510's truck has no bars, and even low speed corners the truck feels like it is going to fall over! It does let the front flex a little more, but that's going to wear the axles a whole lot more, since there is nothing limiting the droop, aside from the shock Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andreus009 Posted May 9, 2012 Share Posted May 9, 2012 I personally found that for highway driving the rear sway bar was sufficient to keep it stable. I'm basing that on a 500 mile 70+mph trip. And that was with the original bushings that had about 190k miles on them. I'm not saying I didn't notice that it was not there, but the change wasn't sufficient to cause me concern. I have both off right now and there is a lot of body roll so I would not try to highway drive it without one or the other sway bar on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unccpathfinder Posted May 9, 2012 Share Posted May 9, 2012 I drove from CA to SC and from SC to UT with a trailer and it wasn't the worst without any sway bars but not recommended Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
therepairgod Posted May 10, 2012 Author Share Posted May 10, 2012 well after much deliberation and thought, ive divised a way to make disconnects. that was the easy part, the hard part is determining what to do with the bar after its disconnected. the tierods are in the way to rotate the sway bar, so i have to figure out an easy tool less way to remove the sway bar to frame mounts. might be just as simple as a wingbolt, but rest assured i will conquer this and post photos when its done. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unccpathfinder Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 It kinda sucks to fish out from behind the skid plate...can u rotate it forward and tie it up that way? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
therepairgod Posted May 10, 2012 Author Share Posted May 10, 2012 ive got a prototype mocked up, sending it off to a machinist friend to make the final piece. my factory link is nearly severed at the control arm so i have to replace it one way or another, if this works great it was worth the try right? i dont have a skid plate in the front so removing the bar and stashing under the back seats is no biggie. i got some metric wing bolts to replace the one that holds the frame bushing cap. in theory, remove the sway bar bushing top plate with the wing bolts, then pull two safety pins in the links and pull the bar out. my only unknown is how difficult it will be to line it all back up and put it back on. thankfully i can make some light bends to the bar to get it to line up with out binding. for the record i removed one side last night just to try it around my block, and it made a huge difference going over or into obstacles. the sway bar limits individual front end suspension flex side to side. the suspension is designed to move, so removing the bar doesnt add any strain to any components, it just allows one side to to flex without pitching the body side to side. it was awesome! wasnt excited about turning but going 3 miles an hour down a trail shouldnt have any problems. im glad i asked and thank you for the help y'all! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wd21overland Posted May 12, 2012 Share Posted May 12, 2012 (edited) I've had my front and rear bar off for about 2 years now and not once has it ever effected my driving or made me feel like i was not in full control of my pathy. Around here in nebraska the speed limit is 75mph on I-80 and high cross winds at times and never had any problems. The only thing i could feel with the front bar off was a more comfortable ride.They main reason i removed the front bar is that i have cross linked front air suspension and having the bar off let the suspension travel through its full range with ease. Before with it on i wasn't able to get full droop if the other wheel was tucked. Now on another note if your front suspension / steering isnt in the best shape i can easily see how it could make matters worse especially with sloppy steering. All my front steering components and bushings including the tension rods are in top shape. Also for people that wonder about towing also i pull are pop up camper in the summer and have no issues. I do using air lift bags inside the springs to keep it level though. Edited May 12, 2012 by wd21overland Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
therepairgod Posted May 12, 2012 Author Share Posted May 12, 2012 ive had it out for 2 days and there is a drastic improvement as far as handling, the only thing i noticed is at highway speeds going around a curve, when i hit a lump or valley in the road i can feel the steering trying to find center as the truck body rolls back. its not drastic or uncontrollable at all. so much smoother offroad though omg. im still pushing forward with the disconnects, everything is built i just need to make some corrections in the sway bar itself as it doesnt line back up easy enough to get the bushing seated and the links back together. looks badass, i love having a lathe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tmoore4512 Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 (edited) I removed both bars, and it is a bit freaky at highway speeds, especially if you have to evade an object in the roadway... Worst case scenario as already mentioned, remove it, drive it, if you like it cool, if not put it back on... Edited May 14, 2012 by tmoore4512 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unccpathfinder Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 Id get that skid plate back on...but that's just me and the way I wheel its a requirement... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
therepairgod Posted May 15, 2012 Author Share Posted May 15, 2012 ive never had a front skid plate... i will gladly accept gifts... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tmoore4512 Posted May 15, 2012 Share Posted May 15, 2012 Ive got one... want it ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pathybuilder Posted May 16, 2012 Share Posted May 16, 2012 This is just my opinion and would love other peoples comments on this. It's food for thought if nothing else. One of the only advantages of wheeling with IFS is the increased ground clearance you gain from not having your front pumpkin drag through the rocks, snow, whatever it is you wheel in. Keeping your front sway bar on helps to push the rest of the vehicle up when traveling over trail obstacles. When you remove this sway bar you defeat the only real advantage an IFS system may have over a solid axle. The obstacle pushes just one wheel up, leaving the rest of you chassis at the same level, leaving you more vulnerable to being hung up. I feel that the only place removing your front sway bar is going to help is on an RTI ramp. The offroad ride will be smoother without it, but that doesn't necessarily mean it's more capable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
therepairgod Posted May 17, 2012 Author Share Posted May 17, 2012 i did some investigative flexing last night to test your comment. the front didnt respond any differently with or without the bar installed on the front. maybe an inch more flex than without. the rear end when backing up the ramp massively flexed, and the body was level. when the front was up, it felt like i was going to roll lol. the bar being out just smooths out the side to side thrashing, and on the highway i feel like im driving a baja trophy truck. with the bar in, i get tossed back and forth in my seat offroad but it handles like a race car on the highway.even just little things ive noticed, turning into a driveway for instance, with the bar the body pitches hard as the first front tire goes up and then pitches back hard for the second and then dont forget about the rebound! without, it just crawls over and hardly will spill my coffee. after seeing the difference between how the 2 suspension systems(front and rear) react, it makes me want a SAS really bad. as far as the bar goes, i will install it monday for the work week and pull it out before trailday. takes about 2 minutes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pathybuilder Posted May 18, 2012 Share Posted May 18, 2012 Understandable. My comment was based off of information I received from other guys that wheel IFS. It made a lot of sense to me when it was explained in the same fashion. I've never removed my say bar for this reason, but can definitely understand why others would want to try it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wd21overland Posted May 23, 2012 Share Posted May 23, 2012 This is just my opinion and would love other peoples comments on this. It's food for thought if nothing else. One of the only advantages of wheeling with IFS is the increased ground clearance you gain from not having your front pumpkin drag through the rocks, snow, whatever it is you wheel in. Keeping your front sway bar on helps to push the rest of the vehicle up when traveling over trail obstacles. When you remove this sway bar you defeat the only real advantage an IFS system may have over a solid axle. The obstacle pushes just one wheel up, leaving the rest of you chassis at the same level, leaving you more vulnerable to being hung up. I feel that the only place removing your front sway bar is going to help is on an RTI ramp. The offroad ride will be smoother without it, but that doesn't necessarily mean it's more capable. True you do lose some of the clearance by actually flexing the front end. But the main downfall of having a non flexing ifs is that for example your right front tire gets on to a rock, without any flex the right front will go up in the air making the rear take all the flex work. The problem with that is the right rear tire will soon begin to lift and all forward movement is gone. where as if the front flex some you would still keep the rear on the ground and keep going and get over the obstacle. Now if you have lockers front and rear then it doesn't matter and a stiff front end won't stop you but most probally don't have a front locker. For me i can adjust my front end flex with the push of a button since i have cross linked front air shocks and can lower the air pressure to give me more flex and flip the switch on the compressor and raise it back up for ground clearance. I have my torsion bars cranked down (relaxed ) so the front end is nice and flexy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now