REVERE THE STEER - Rubicat Going Wide with 72.5" Dynatrac XD60 / PRO 1550 Front Axle
- Thread starter wayoflife
- Start date
LOL! Yeah, Rubicat had been in Dynatrac's hands since September but what we learned from it alone was worth the wait. Of course, what they made from her time there is nothing short of amazing! :yup:
Even with Chamber Pro II's of which have 4" of back spacing, you would still see the benefits of reduced scrub radius that the Pro 1550 knuckles provide. The closer you get to 5.5", the more protection you will have and a greater ease of steering you will see. Mel is running Machete's on his Pro 1550 knuckles and it still feels a lot better than if he were running Pro 60's. We wanted to get the most out of this setup and that's why we went with the 5.5" back spaced Trail Ready wheels.
Thanks! It's been a ton of fun learning all this stuff and I was eager to share it with all of you :yup:
Typically, mounting the ram to on the axle and having it steer at the knuckle has always been the better way to go. Of course, a big part of this is because everyone has been running wheels with very little back spacing and that significantly increases their scrub radius. When you do this, you dramatically increase your wheels potential to rotate forward and into each other as you accelerate/climb an obstacle and this puts a lot of pressure on your tie-rod. When you attach a ram to weak tie-rod, the combined stress created by the wheels and ram will cause it to bend outward and/or fail. While the tighter tolerances of the Pro 1550 does make it harder to setup a ram in the way we've seen with the Pro 60, it wouldn't be impossible to do. However, running a set of wheels with 5.5" of back spacing will significantly reduce the stress placed on the tie-rod and being that the new Dynatrac tie-rod itself is so strong, there shouldn't be any problems running this setup. Of course, we plan on putting this to the test and will be sure to report our findings.
hinrichs
Caught the Bug
Eddie-
After reading up your difference between rubicats setup and the dynatrac jeep....since I have been curious about this and our stupid ass fender issues, The standard width PR60 combo combined with 5.5" backspace would work with bolt on coilovers and be the only real way to keep the wheels/tires from sticking out too far correct? I do understand that the mopar highline fenders are wider than stock.
After reading up your difference between rubicats setup and the dynatrac jeep....since I have been curious about this and our stupid ass fender issues, The standard width PR60 combo combined with 5.5" backspace would work with bolt on coilovers and be the only real way to keep the wheels/tires from sticking out too far correct? I do understand that the mopar highline fenders are wider than stock.
:cheesy: What's so cool is that something like the Elite XD60/80 is priced at about what a ProRock 60/60 would have cost just a couple of years back. It's the cream of the crop for sure but not something everyone needs. The best part is that you can now get something like a 60/60 for so much less and even that's more than what most people would need. :yup:
So glad you saw my post was "fun reading" :crazyeyes:
Believe me, the whole process of developing this setup was borderline overloading for me. I was jotting down notes like crazy and at times, felt like I was taking some kind of college course in axle/steering design :crazyeyes:
It really is awesome that Dynatrac would do this. It'd be so much easier to just leave well enough alone and keep doing what everyone has always been doing but they're obsessed with doing things better. :yup:
Glad to hear that I was able to answer a lot of your questions. Going with a standard 68.5" axle and running the Pro 1550 is what most people will want and our 72.5" setup IS an exception, not the norm. The wider width is what Cindy and I wanted especially being that we're running EVO DTD and were already rubbing our bypass shocks with Chamber Pro II's that have 4" of backspacing.
A passion for pushing the limits is definitely what I love about Dynatrac :thumb:
Thanks for chiming in Dynatrac :yup:
I don't think so or at least, not unless you're running a 20" wheel. The steering arms on a Pro 60 are too long and would not fit in a 17" wheel.
LOL!! Sorry, I realize it was a bit much :crazyeyes:
I doubt many will bother especially being that wheels with 3.5" of back spacing are all the rage and there are so many more options for them. I believe it was almost enough to convince Dynatrac not to pursue this path but they just couldn't get past the fact that there was a better way of doing things.
longarmwj
New member
Very nice!! Good to know that Dynatrac has a market exclusive!! Shows the level of dedication they have to the hobby :thumb:
SDG
Caught the Bug
That makes sense. Nice thanks for the clarification on that. That was one thing that popped out at me when I was looking at the pics.
I hope to see you guys out on the trail sometime soon.
Sent from my SM-G900P using WAYALIFE mobile app
RubiconJohn
New member
Xd 60
Looks Awesome! Great timing, I just received my 68.5 width XD 60 Friday and it was nice to see how it will look once its all bolted up. Thanks for all the DTD info as I was not aware that there is some rub issues.
Looks Awesome! Great timing, I just received my 68.5 width XD 60 Friday and it was nice to see how it will look once its all bolted up. Thanks for all the DTD info as I was not aware that there is some rub issues.
Glad you enjoyed the write-up :yup:
I suppose it depends on how you wheel your Jeep. For sure, the hubs are a bit more expose but not so much that I'd loose any sleep over it. While my rear rings typically get beat to all hell, it's because it's a lot harder to get a rear axle to do what you want and more times than not, your rear tires can fall off a good line and end up getting dragged through an obstacle. Up front and if necessary, with the help of a spotter, it's a lot easier to get and keep your tires on top of a threatening obstacles. At least, for me anyway. Of course, I don't even run an oil pan or transmission skid on Moby so there's that. :crazyeyes:
Unfortunately, I don't think you can run 5.5" of back spacing on a ProRock 60 unless you run a 20" wheel. The steering arms on a Pro 60 knuckle will get in the way of a 17" wheel. If I'm wrong on this, maybe Dynatrac will come on and correct me.
:cheesy: Sorry about that :crazyeyes:
Absolutely! It's one of the biggest reasons we love them so much :yup:
Indeed! Been way too long. We were hoping to catch you at the last suds-n-grub but I'm sure there will be a next time :yup:
The wait was tough but oh so worth it especially being that we got to learn so much. Fortunately, we have Moby so it wasn't like we were without a Jeep to wheel :yup:
Yep, unless you're running 3.5" of back spacing, you will rub the bypass shocks up front even with a 68.5" axle. Going 72.5" allowed us to run 5.5" of back spacing while keeping the EXACT same width as we were and not have any rubbing issues.
LOL!! Me too. Glad you enjoyed the post
The Cock Father
New member
So what is the BS range for the PR60? I have 17" wheels with 4.5" BS. Will this work?
Unfortunately, I'm not 100% sure. I know that it'll work with 4" of back spacing but you might want to contact Dynatrac to confirm that 4.5" will work as well.
BTW, I just posted up a short video that we took at Dynatrac where the owner, Jim McGean explains scrub radius. You can see it here:
http://wayalife.com/showthread.php?...o-the-Design-of-the-Dynatrac-PRO-1550-Knuckle
http://wayalife.com/showthread.php?...o-the-Design-of-the-Dynatrac-PRO-1550-Knuckle
Dynatrac
-
Our earlier Pro60 wheel end that is still available will also accept most 5.5" BS x 17-inch wheels. Some wheels and some steering configurations may not apply, so this is not a blanket answer for everyone. But if you you have a ProRock 60F (XD or Gen-1) with our earlier Pro60 wheel end with our crossover steering for a JK, most wheels should not be a problem.
Even with the 5.5" BS wheel the Pro60 does not offer the reduced scrub radius of the new 1550 wheel end.