geo brackets or control arms

B

Bingobelle

Member
Hi all

My 33 inch cooper st max will only last one more summer and then it is time to buy new ones. I think I would like 35 inch so therefore I´m also thinking about to change out my 2 inch ome lift for a mopar stage 1 2" lift. The mopar kit is supposed to handle 35 " tire and also came with a drive shaft.

But, it also only comes with cambolts which I do not like and my gut feeling is that the mopar kit will lift the jeep more than 2 inch. ( my ome lift actually only gains 2 inch and the jeep is ok to drive )

My guess is that the mopar kit will gain something between 2,5 and 3 inch of lift and therefore something has to be done to caster and so on. Well, at least that is what I think, correct me if I´m wrong.

So, besides the fact that the geo brackets do hung a bit lower than stock ca brackets, is there any other big adventages with Controll arms compare to geo brackets? Will controll arms make the ride better? or is geo brackets making a better ride?

I´m thinking about rancho geo brackets or maybee JKS 1620 j-link lower controll arms.

If I should go with controll arms, is it the front lower that I should buy?

this jeep is unfortnately a DD for 97% of the time. but when I do have oportunity to go wheeling I want it to be functional.

Thanks!

Christian
 
Bingobelle said:
Hi all

My 33 inch cooper st max will only last one more summer and then it is time to buy new ones. I think I would like 35 inch so therefore I´m also thinking about to change out my 2 inch ome lift for a mopar stage 1 2" lift. The mopar kit is supposed to handle 35 " tire and also came with a drive shaft.

But, it also only comes with cambolts which I do not like and my gut feeling is that the mopar kit will lift the jeep more than 2 inch. ( my ome lift actually only gains 2 inch and the jeep is ok to drive )

My guess is that the mopar kit will gain something between 2,5 and 3 inch of lift and therefore something has to be done to caster and so on. Well, at least that is what I think, correct me if I´m wrong.

So, besides the fact that the geo brackets do hung a bit lower than stock ca brackets, is there any other big adventages with Controll arms compare to geo brackets? Will controll arms make the ride better? or is geo brackets making a better ride?

I´m thinking about rancho geo brackets or maybee JKS 1620 j-link lower controll arms.

If I should go with controll arms, is it the front lower that I should buy?

this jeep is unfortnately a DD for 97% of the time. but when I do have oportunity to go wheeling I want it to be functional.

Thanks!

Christian
Click to expand...
With that amount of lift you'd only need front lower control arms. You'll get the same benefit out of either arms or brackets which is correcting your caster angle. Brackets will be more problematic with offroading but I know people who run them without any issues. I personally would just spend the extra and get the control arms. Core 4x4 has a good reputation and comes with different options.

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Any point with doing both?

For what I´ve understood the controll arms are pretty long on the jk anyway which means geo brackets are not that necessary?

But what will give the best driving characteristics on payment, brackets or control arms?

Thanks
 
In theory, the geo brackets will make the control arms more parallel with the ground, which will make for a smoother ride. The axle will be travelling straight up and down over bumps, as opposed to a little forward and back. When the axle moves forward and back, the length of the control arm has to do the job that your shocks/springs would normally do. Turns out control arms don't compress as comfortably as a spring. This is why long arms are nice on the road, since they flatten out the control arm angle. However, at 2-3 inches of lift I don't think the difference would be that noticeable. The consensus I've seen is that long arms become desirable with 4" or greater lift, so I'd expect the same sort of threshold for the brackets since the operating principle is the same.

Many brands of adjustable control arms have a shortest setting that is a little bit longer than the stock arm. This means that using both geo brackets and adjustable control arms might put you in a situation where you can't get the control arm short enough with a bracket that is designed for stock arms.

Personally, I went for adjustable arms (no geo brackets). Most new arms come with nicer joints for offroading (some come with very flexy Johnny Joints and others have fancy bushings that outperform the stock ones). The arms also offer more adjustments instead of a "one size fits all" situation. As mentioned above, the brackets hang lower than stock which can lead to more scraping and knocking of things when on the trail.
 
I went geo brackets and the ride on road is nice and smooth (for a Jeep). I’m not too hardcore off road but as I move that direction I could see the move to control arms.


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Honestly, I would save your money and install your lift WITHOUT any correction. Drive your Jeep like that for a while and then, IF you feel a need for correction, address it at that time. Everyone is different and for me, I've never felt the need for a correction with a small lift like that. IF you do, drop brackets are inexpensive and will get the job done and I would recommend them over cam bolts. The down side to drop brackets is that you'll effectively be lowering a point on your frame rails that you just paid to raise up and away from the rocks. But, assuming you don't do a whole lot of rock crawling, this would be the way to go.
 
^ This.

I’m at 2.75” of lift running 35’s on both of my JKUR’s. I don’t have drop brackets, cam bolts, or adjustable LCA’s. The vehicles are a little “looser” tracking at freeway speeds than stock (in part due to the tire width). But, not to the degree that I feel addressing it is an immediate priority.



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Ok, then I will install the stage 1 kit and see how the jeep behaves. For the moment I´ve no cambolts, dropbrackets or adjustable CA but my ome lift is only true 2 inch and for what I´ve understood the mopar lift will gain maybee up to 3 inch of lift and that´s the reason I was a bit worried about road maners. If it is bad I will install drop brackets.

Hope the lift is good, Reason I lay my eys on it is that it does included a drive shaft and is supposed to give a lot of flex for such a small lift we are talking about.

Thanks for all the input!

Christian
 
Bingobelle said:
Ok, then I will install the stage 1 kit and see how the jeep behaves. For the moment I´ve no cambolts, dropbrackets or adjustable CA but my ome lift is only true 2 inch and for what I´ve understood the mopar lift will gain maybee up to 3 inch of lift and that´s the reason I was a bit worried about road maners. If it is bad I will install drop brackets.

Hope the lift is good, Reason I lay my eys on it is that it does included a drive shaft and is supposed to give a lot of flex for such a small lift we are talking about.

Thanks for all the input!

Christian
Click to expand...

I’ve heard good things about it and I’ve heard it comes in closer to 3”.


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wayoflife said:
Honestly, I would save your money and install your lift WITHOUT any correction. Drive your Jeep like that for a while and then, IF you feel a need for correction, address it at that time. Everyone is different and for me, I've never felt the need for a correction with a small lift like that. IF you do, drop brackets are inexpensive and will get the job done and I would recommend them over cam bolts. The down side to drop brackets is that you'll effectively be lowering a point on your frame rails that you just paid to raise up and away from the rocks. But, assuming you don't do a whole lot of rock crawling, this would be the way to go.
Click to expand...

Agreed and well explained...
 
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