Bi-Polar Raptor

[B E N]

Ball joint failure isn't going to come and go, or get better as components warm up. That's why I pointed to tires.

Ball joint check is easy, jack up the corner of the truck, try to rock the wheel top to bottom, if you get play you know you have a severely worn ball joint. If you don't have noticeable play repeat the test with one hand on the ball joint, you will be able to feel it rattling if they are starting to go. Also try to wiggle the wheel side to side, play here indicates tie rod.

Rotate your tires front to rear, see if the sensation changes, see if you start feeling it in the steering wheel. If you do one side at a time and get the feeling in the wheel you will know exactly which tire is the problem.

 

[RaptorVA]

All good advice, thanks.

 

[EricM]

I had a vibration that was there for a few miles one day at highway speeds, then went away and never came back. Mine sits quite a bit though, so I attributed it to flat spot. Also have Ridge Grapplers. That was about 8 months ago- I try to drive it more often now and have not had any issues since.

 

[II Sevv]

Failing ball joints would not usually cause any jittering of the truck, but would give a very unsettled feeling when performing a maneuver that changes load on the suspension and possibly vibration under hard braking. Try swapping your tires around and see if the problem changes. A lot of BFG’s have problems with tires not wearing completely evenly especially when off-roaded hard

 

[Cody Templeton]

Tire issue for sure.

 

[RaptorVA]

Hi all, resurrecting this thread to add more information. Truck has about 73K miles and about 30K on my street tire setup. I also have about 25K miles on the Fox 3.0 shocks. I have rotated the tires and also had them balanced. I recently added RPG UCA'S to the mix of mods. I recently had a shop replace the brake fluid and had them bleed at the ABS module as well. The shop took it for a ride and claimed the one of my rear brake calipers was dragging and that the temp on that rotor was about 70 degrees hotter that the others. I am still experiencing what I would describe as a bouncy feeling like the road is undulating underneath the truck most of the time. Question is would anyone think that a dragging brake caliper would cause the bouncing? Doesn't seem likely to me but want some opinions. Also would anyone think that the Fox 3.0's are in need of rebuild at 25K of light offroad and 98% on road use? I haven't put my stocker wheels/tires back on yet to eliminate the street setup as the culprit. That will happen this weekend but the K02's are pretty worn which is why I had not done it up to this point. The Ridge Grapplers still have half tread easy. Let the insults fly about my street setup with 20's and 35's but also add something useful to this thread...please! Thanks everyone

 

[MTF]

If you go to Foxshox website you can see the intervals they need to be rebuilt.
You're past at 25K miles with light off roading.

So weak shocks compounded with tires out of round (even though they're balanced) will give you that feeling.
Also if the tires are bad you eat up the interval real quick!

I had to replace two calibers because the glide pins and the hole were pretty much pitted beyond just cleaning.
One front and one rear

 

[B E N]

Nothing wrong with 20's if you like the look. They just aren't going to ride like 17's or handle nasty stuff off road as well.

Report back after you try the other tires. Have you checked the driveshaft? Park somewhere level, put the truck in neutral, set the ebrake, chalk the wheels and get under it. Try to wiggle both ends of the shaft, see if there is any play.

 

[RaptorVA]

Thanks guys I appreciate the input. One last question for those in the know. Would anyone think that the shocks could have leaked nitrogen and that I need a charge on them? No oil leaks and I just haven't off roaded enough to believe they need a rebuild. I'm sure its possible but my gut says no. I will still do some of the trouble shooting mentioned. I have looked around here in VA for places to get a nitrogen fill on the shocks and have not been successful at finding any shops that do it. I will be looking into getting my own setup to fill them soon I guess. I'm not saying that is the problem but just something good to have in lieu of a shop available.

 

[B E N]

Do your shocks have the valve installed? If they haven't been rebuilt probably not, so you will have to have one installed which is going to mean discharging whatever is in them.

I know shock rebuild is a tough pill to swallow, but it is part of the price of the truck. If you want the high performance suspension it has to be maintained.

Any luck with the tire swap?