Longer OE type LCA bolts to work with Rock Hard LCA skids?

[Pliny]

I have the front axle side lower control arm skids, the rear axle side lower control arm skids, and the rear frame side lower control arms skids. What are you guys torquing these to? I have done 210 foot/lbs, but still can't get enough compression to eliminate clunking on the Rock Hard 4x4 skids. I think the front lower axle side skids are the worst. They also seem prone to loosen up over time. Any suggestions before I give up on them and take them off?

When I installed them on the OE suspension using the RH supplied hardware I torqued them to what the RH instructions said. No clunking issues for the year and a half that I ran it like that.

Swapped to the BM bolts and then put the Mopar 2 inch lift on. Tourque them to 185 / 190 ft-lbs. as per the instructions from the lift kit.

Did end up having a clunk on the passenger axle side skid, but that was after I had the shop do the regear and put 37's on. I didn't realize that they had to remove that LCA bolt and drop that LCA skid in order to remove the RH FAD skid in order to pull the circlip off the intermediate axle shaft to get the differential out of the housing. I didn't check the torque on that LCA bolt when I got it back from the shop, so I'm blaming them.

After I re-torqued it, have done two trips to Colorado, one to Moab and Sand Hollow and nothing has loosened up.

Are you confident that your torque wrench is accurate?

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[GladLad]

I think it is in the front lowers primarily, but would not be able to tell exactly until I remove the fronts and see if the rears are also "clunking". The design of the skid wraps around the factory bracket making it difficult to get enough force to clamp the bushing on the control arm. The skid is in no way hitting the control arm, it is probably just some slop in the control arms due to lack of torque that can be applied

I never really looked at the fronts. I see shims, but not a spacer that would allow the force to apply to the control-arm/ mount directly.


@Pliny
For the rear frame side, it comes with a barrel spacer. I assumed this was to allow the actual bolting force to impact the mount/arm, and not just be squeezing a boxed skid. Is that accurate, or am I imagining the spacer location wrong?

 

[WILDHOBO]

I have the front axle side lower control arm skids, the rear axle side lower control arm skids, and the rear frame side lower control arms skids. What are you guys torquing these to? I have done 210 foot/lbs, but still can't get enough compression to eliminate clunking on the Rock Hard 4x4 skids. I think the front lower axle side skids are the worst. They also seem prone to loosen up over time. Any suggestions before I give up on them and take them off?

Impact a little at a time until it stops. Once I got mine tight enough, they haven’t loosened at all for 10s of thousands of miles.

 

[Lochsa]

Are you confident that your torque wrench is accurate?

My Torque Wrench is a 3/4 inch Pittsburg (harbor freight), it is brand new, but have not had it calibrated. Given the force I have to use to get to 210 ft-lbs I imagine it is ball park, but can't be sure as it has not been professionally calibrated.

Impact a little at a time until it stops. Once I got mine right enough, they haven’t loosened at all for 10s of thousands of miles.

I was thinking the same thing, since you did it and it worked, time to get the big impact out. Thanks for the recommendation and sharing your results.

 

[WILDHOBO]

My Torque Wrench is a 3/4 inch Pittsburg (harbor freight), it is brand new, but have not had it calibrated. Given the force I have to use to get to 210 ft-lbs I imagine it is ball park, but can't be sure as it has not been professionally calibrated.

I was thinking the same thing, since you did it and it worked, time to get the big impact out. Thanks for the recommendation and sharing your results.

I stopped using my torque wrench on control arms. I use a mid torque impact Milwaukee, which will do something like 600. If I have a clunk, I first figure out which one by tapping them with a dead blow. Then tighten with common sense, meaning don’t keep going if your bracket starts bending a bunch. And impacts get more powerful the longer you hold the trigger, so I use shorter bursts. I have an expensive calibrated torque wrench, and I use it on most everything. But screw control arms with bolt through skids. Just tighten them and drive it to see if your clunk is gone.

 

[Pliny]

For the rear frame side, it comes with a barrel spacer. I assumed this was to allow the actual bolting force to impact the mount/arm, and not just be squeezing a boxed skid. Is that accurate, or am I imagining the spacer location wrong?

That is how it works.

 

[WILDHOBO]

That is how it works.

Mine too.

 

[Lochsa]

That is how it works.

Mine is also the same way. I bought my skids last year in March and all of the bolts I received were the right size.

I stopped using my torque wrench on control arms. I use a mid torque impact Milwaukee, which will do something like 600

I have a Ryobi 1/2 inch brushless that does 600 breakaway and 450 fastening.

 

[WILDHOBO]

Mine is also the same way. I bought my skids last year in March and all of the bolts I received were the right size.


I have a Ryobi 1/2 inch brushless that does 600 breakaway and 450 fastening.

More than plenty.

 

[WILDHOBO]

More than plenty.

I HIGHLY recommend putting Antiseize on the shank of the bolts if they’re not Oem zinc flake. To make sure they don’t seize inside the control arm sleeve. You won’t have a good day if one gets stuck. Impact won’t help at all because the bushing will just move.

 

[Pliny]

My Torque Wrench is a 3/4 inch Pittsburg (harbor freight), it is brand new, but have not had it calibrated.

Unless you've dropped it on the ground a bunch of times, it is likely close enough.

When you did it were you torqueing the nut? Or the bolt?

There is meaningful additional friction from the shank of the bolt going through the holes in the skid and the bushing in the control arm.

I ended up getting 24mm torque extensions and a 24mm crows foot so that I could torque some of the nuts to spec, not enough room to get a socket on the nut with some of skids.

 

[WILDHOBO]

Unless you've dropped it on the ground a bunch of times, it is likely close enough.

When you did it were you torqueing the nut? Or the bolt?

There is meaningful additional friction from the shank of the bolt going through the holes in the skid and the bushing in the control arm.

I ended up getting 24mm torque extensions and a 24mm crows foot so that I could torque some of the nuts to spec, not enough room to get a socket on the nut with some of skids.

this. Torque on the bolt head is way different. But it’s pretty hard as you said to access the nut in all the spots, with a 3’ torque wrench.

 

[bd100]

These and similar skids have the box wrapping around the bushing, and the clamping force has to bend the box before it can get to the bushing. The box is like a spring washer pushing outward against the nut and bolt.

The design could be improved if one side of the box were opened up with a spacer or a stack of washers going all the way through one side of the skid to where the nut and washer could clamp directly to the spacer which goes through the skid and then directly presses against the bushing for the control arm or shock. The clamping force bypasses one side of the box, but up and down force still is prevented by the bolt and spacer going through the skid.

For ex:
Bolt head | washer | skid | bushing | skid with spacer going through it | washer | nut

There may be some reason why the manufacturers don't do this. Perhaps it's hard to remove the bolt if the skid is bent against the spacer.

 

[GladLad]

The design could be improved if one side of the box were opened up with a spacer or a stack of washers going all the way through one side of the skid to where the nut and washer could clamp directly to the spacer which goes through the skid and then directly presses against the bushing for the control arm or shock. The clamping force bypasses one side of the box, but up and down force still is prevented by the bolt and spacer going through the skid.

For ex:
Bolt head | washer | skid | bushing | skid with spacer going through it | washer | nut

I had asked that, and it was verified by the three below that it does indeed work that way. At least for the rear frame side skid that is.

The front frame side isn't fully boxed. I think the axle side ones match the problem you describe, but have shims to take up some of the slack. Owners can comment on that.

For the rear frame side, it comes with a barrel spacer. I assumed this was to allow the actual bolting force to impact the mount/arm, and not just be squeezing a boxed skid. Is that accurate, or am I imagining the spacer location wrong?

That is how it works.

Mine too.

Mine is also the same way.

 

[WILDHOBO]

I had asked that, and it was verified by the three below that it does indeed work that way. At least for the rear frame side skid that is.

The front frame side isn't fully boxed. I think the axle side ones match the problem you describe, but have shims to take up some of the slack. Owners can comment on that.

Mine from rock hard have huge shims for the front. Axle side. The front frame side only bolts through on one side, so those are the easiest ones of the all.

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