Bending or Breaking a Steering Knuckle

[wanderfalk]

thanks for the write up bird. so after this issue is resolved wonder what the next weak link is?

 

[BIRDMAN]

thanks for the write up bird. so after this issue is resolved wonder what the next weak link is?

Steering rack getting beat up and chassis mounts ripping off the truck. Although you can absolutely still break anything, upgraded or not. I think it's likely that you would risk losing control of the truck at speeds/impacts necessary to damage a fully upgraded suspension.

 

[Labraptor]

Good info thanks for the update Bird. I can tell you the steering rack can fail even with all stock suspension. Just replaced mine at just under 16K miles.

 

[khcdave]

I totally agree with Bird- these truck need spindle gussets if you plan on any offroad agressive driving. I recommend them to all our customers.

 

[Bigg50]

Great write up indeed. I just got my hands on some spindle gussets. They were already on my list but this thread pushed me over the edge to get them now.

People also need to remember the Raptor is NOT a trophy truck and to drive within the trucks limits. As well as their own.

 

[Netix]

Ive replaced my rack 2 times and fixed the mounts about 4 different times

 

[SwampKing]

Awesome write up Bird! I'm not upgrading until all the parts can be installed on my truck at once, as far as the front suspension goes.

People also need to remember the Raptor is NOT a trophy truck and to drive within the trucks limits. As well as their own.

Tell this to the Australian guy, Mike P. With RPG! Haha, we sure as hell was driving like one at Raptoberfest but no breaks! I was impressed. Ok, continue..........

 

[BIRDMAN]

Ive replaced my rack 2 times and fixed the mounts about 4 different times

Which mounts? The LCA mounts?

 

[Netix]

No the steering gear assembly mounts

 

[paj1978]

Awesome write up Bird! I'm not upgrading until all the parts can be installed on my truck at once, as far as the front suspension goes.



Tell this to the Australian guy, Mike P. With RPG! Haha, we sure as hell was driving like one at Raptoberfest but no breaks! I was impressed. Ok, continue..........

Yeah I heard that Aussie guy was a maniac.. something about launching his junk like 6+ feet in the air......

---------- Post added at 04:25 PM ---------- Previous post was at 04:24 PM ----------

Hey Birdman....

What are your impressions of the SDHQ gusseted knuckles? I guess you have had them for a while now...

The only fix right now is replacing your stock knuckles with new stock knuckles with gussets. You can check your knuckles one of two ways. If your alignment was off after your last run, there's a distinct possibility a bent knuckle played a role in that. You can do a quick inspection by observing the distance between your upper control arm and the inside of your tire. If the distances are significantly different, there's a good chance one or both of them are bent. Depending on how they bent, that might not tell the whole story but its a start.



I know I'm not the only one and I can guarantee you plenty of guys are running around with bent knuckles and don't even realize it.