The dreaded right pull!

[ospreyfe55]

Lower control arms would only change caster - and change it evenly. If the caster is equal both sides longer lower arms will increase it by xx and it will still be equal. If the caster is different, say one side is, say, 5.0 and the other is 4.75 = making a difference of 1/4 degree than when lower arms are installed there will still be 1/4 degree difference, the total for each side will just be higher. It won't change pull because it simply adds the same amount to each side.

Question - is this pull on roads that are totally flat with no road crown and no "tilt" to them?

Here, almost every road has crown for drainage and to force water to run off when snow and ice thaw so it won't refreeze on the road. Very few places where roads are flat or not crowned here.
Mine has a slight right "pull" and I noticed when I'm in the left lane, it's the other way, and when the road is flat - it goes straight.

I have the pull regardless what lane I am in. I still need to rotate my tires and see if there are any changes to the pull but for now I constantly need to keep left pressure on the steering wheel to keep it going straight down the road.

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[ShadowsPapa]

I have the pull regardless what lane I am in. I still need to rotate my tires and see if there are any changes to the pull but for now I constantly need to keep left pressure on the steering wheel to keep it going straight down the road.

That's different from mine. If I am in the left lane it doesn't pull right......... and I noticed when we were coming back up from KC several weeks ago and it was a rare calm day, where I35 northbound was pretty flat I could let go of the wheel and it tracked straight for quite a ways. But otherwise on most highways it does pull right. I figured mine is just really sensitive to road crown.

 

[Wet Willys]

If you've already centered your axle with an adjustable track bar, and confirmed it's not a radial pull, check your caster angle. If you've got a caster split from left/right it will pull to the side with the least caster angle. Get some adjustable uppers and dial it in.

 

[Pescado]

I stopped by Off Road Warehouse yesterday and talked to them about it. They know of this issue with lifted jeeps and right away said to get lower control arms. I mentioned a track bar and they said it wont help the issue.

I think I’m gonna go for it and see what happens.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

If you've already centered your axle with an adjustable track bar, and confirmed it's not a radial pull, check your caster angle. If you've got a caster split from left/right it will pull to the side with the least caster angle. Get some adjustable uppers and dial it in.

As has been discussed before - you can't change the caster split. To do so would mean literally twisting one end of the axle and not the other.
Think of it as a wood dowel. Take that dowel in both hands, one hand on each end of the dowel. Now tip the right end of the dowel back without moving the left end at all.
It can't be done. You can't change the caster on one side and not the other.

And since few seem to believe me in this - I got some backing from other sources.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

I stopped by Off Road Warehouse yesterday and talked to them about it. They know of this issue with lifted jeeps and right away said to get lower control arms. I mentioned a track bar and they said it wont help the issue.

I think I’m gonna go for it and see what happens.

I've not tried it lately but more caster may help because the difference would then be a smaller percentage of the total........ if that makes sense.

 

[Wet Willys]

As has been discussed before - you can't change the caster split. To do so would mean literally twisting one end of the axle and not the other.
Think of it as a wood dowel. Take that dowel in both hands, one hand on each end of the dowel. Now tip the right end of the dowel back without moving the left end at all.
It can't be done. You can't change the caster on one side and not the other.

And since few seem to believe me in this - I got some backing from other sources.

I understand that it's a solid axle, but you also have a little give in the control arm bushings.

After installing my Clayton lift I ended up with a caster split, 5.4 on the lift and 5.8 on the right. It pulled to the left as well. I was able to shorten the left upper control arm one turn to get to 5.8 degrees on both sides. Loosening the control arms helps. It drives straight as an arrow now.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

Give doesn't matter - you aren't changing actual caster. If there was a difference it wasn't because you twisted one end of the axle and not the other. It's not the control arm length that does it, it's how the line drawn through the king pins or in our case, the ball joints compares to perfectly vertical. You can pull or push all you want, you can't change the angle of the line through the ball joints on one end and not the other. And compressing bushings is a bad thing, not a good thing. Loosening control arms? Hope you don't mean as in loosening the bolts that hold the control arms to the frame brackets or the axle brackets.
Caster is set by turning the axle, rotating the top of the axle tube either forward for less caster, or rearward for more caster. you can't possibly change one side and not the other. Physically not possible
Bushings being compressed won't matter because all you are doing is compressing bushings!
If you try to pull back on the top of one side of the axle, the other side follows and compresses the bushings but the caster split cannot be changed. There's hundreds of posts out there on that fact.
Most likely what you have done is pulled one side or end of the axle back or forward a bit and not factually changed caster because again, you cannot.
It is truly as basic as the dowel explanation - ALL you can do is move the entire axle back or forward on one end, you can't possible twist one side forward or backward and not do the same on the other end.
I've also seen many posts over the years where shops check caster - then a different shop checks caster - and the measurements are different although nothing was done to change caster, only toe, etc. - meaning you could measure it 3 times and get 3 different numbers.
You didn't change caster split is the bottom line because it's impossible. Go out and check.
(I've done alignments on vehicles since the 70s)

 

[Pescado]

I have high hopes for the new control arms, it's a $700 gamble I'm willing to take.

Terraflex adjustable LCA's- $325
Install-$180
Alignment-$160

 

[ospreyfe55]

I just ordered a track bar from Metal cloak. I want to change the factory one regardless but we’ll see if it make a difference. I already have the longer Mopar LCAs but everything will eventually be replaced with MetalCloak as well.

 

[Rusty PW]

ShadowsPapa is 100% correct on caster with a solid front axle. There is only 2 ways to correct split caster. An off-set ball joint or cutting the welds and rotating the "C" on the end of the axle tube. Neither one is fun to do.

 

[Wet Willys]

Give doesn't matter - you aren't changing actual caster. If there was a difference it wasn't because you twisted one end of the axle and not the other. It's not the control arm length that does it, it's how the line drawn through the king pins or in our case, the ball joints compares to perfectly vertical. You can pull or push all you want, you can't change the angle of the line through the ball joints on one end and not the other. And compressing bushings is a bad thing, not a good thing. Loosening control arms? Hope you don't mean as in loosening the bolts that hold the control arms to the frame brackets or the axle brackets.
Caster is set by turning the axle, rotating the top of the axle tube either forward for less caster, or rearward for more caster. you can't possibly change one side and not the other. Physically not possible
Bushings being compressed won't matter because all you are doing is compressing bushings!
If you try to pull back on the top of one side of the axle, the other side follows and compresses the bushings but the caster split cannot be changed. There's hundreds of posts out there on that fact.
Most likely what you have done is pulled one side or end of the axle back or forward a bit and not factually changed caster because again, you cannot.
It is truly as basic as the dowel explanation - ALL you can do is move the entire axle back or forward on one end, you can't possible twist one side forward or backward and not do the same on the other end.
I've also seen many posts over the years where shops check caster - then a different shop checks caster - and the measurements are different although nothing was done to change caster, only toe, etc. - meaning you could measure it 3 times and get 3 different numbers.
You didn't change caster split is the bottom line because it's impossible. Go out and check.
(I've done alignments on vehicles since the 70s)

Yeah, you're right....what I said doesn't make any sense. Obviously with a solid axle caster split can't be changed.... I wasn't thinking. What's odd is when I installed all of the control arms I measured several times, and even passed a bolt through both ends of the control arms sitting side by side to be sure they were exactly the same length. When I went to install the left side I had a hell of a time getting the bolt holes to line up, but I finally did with some persuasion from a ratchet strap. Then after driving it and noticing the pull, measuring the caster with an angle finder, I shortened the LF upper arm by one turn. It drove perfect after that.

 

[azmojave]

Before I started this thread I did a lot of searching but never came to a conclusion on fixes. So I recently installed a Tera Flex 1.5" leveling kit, a set of Longer Mopar LCAs and 35" Nexen Roadian MTXs tires. I did all this at the same time but before I did this the Jeep tracked straight and true, but now I have to keep left pressure on the steering wheel to keep it straight. For reference I hooked up my JScan and reviewed the live data while driving and to keep it straight the steering is at 7degrees to the left! I have also had the Steering TSB done with a new gearbox, which made no change in correcting the pull. Has anyone corrected this pull in the steering? If so what do you think fixed it. I was considering adding an adjustable trackbar to see if that would correct the issue, but I don't want to throw money at it just for nothing!

Did you change steering stabilizers? Some aftermarket steering shocks push out and cause a pull to the right. My JK did that with a Fox shock. You gotta find a neutral shock.

 

[ospreyfe55]

Did you change steering stabilizers? Some aftermarket steering shocks push out and cause a pull to the right. My JK did that with a Fox shock. You gotta find a neutral shock.

nopee,still running the factory SS.

 

[Rusty PW]

Did you change steering stabilizers? Some aftermarket steering shocks push out and cause a pull to the right. My JK did that with a Fox shock. You gotta find a neutral shock.

On some of these steering stabilizers with high pressure nitrogen gas. You can let some of the gas out. With the King stabilizers on Power Wagons. This is what we did.

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