GEN 1 Tie Rod Upgrade - which?

[Dane]

I haven't found a great discussion about this, so I'd like to pose the question.

I'm at 85K miles on my 2012 Gen 1 and my tie rod ends are at the end of their life. I'm actually surprised they've last this long with the abuse they've been through. I haven't even had an alignment (though it's been checked multiple times). I prefer to upgrade components rather than just replace, so I'm considering upgrading the whole tie rods. Which should I go with and why?

Any Holiday deals floating around on them?

Thanks!

 

[Rick@FreedomMotorsports]

I went with the SDHQ ones. I also have their gusseted Knuckle and they have the option on that to get it with double-sheer, which is what I have. I would think other aftermarket tie rods would work with it but of course SDHQ only fitted and tested it with theirs so they would not make any guarantee. The SDHQ ones are tough and not had any issues with them. There is no color choices. I liked that they were the only ones that had the dust boot for the outer heim but to be honest, they just tear so they probably keep dirt in making it worse. The only other thing I don't care much for is the Camburg Clevis they use. The head of the bolt is prone to being rounded if you are not careful, very little to grab.

If I didn't have the gusseted knuckle (highly recommended) then I would of gotten the RPG or the ones we were selling. We made a small batch in red but those have all sold. There is two arguments with tie rods out there. One is keep with stock and the ball joints are protected by the boot if you deal with harsh winter weather and the stock tie rod is weak but can be sacrificed instead of the more expensive steering rack. Losing a tie rod at speed is dangerous though but failures are usually from being hit but a big hole can take it out too. The other is just that, the stock is weak and we don't want it to fail so the aftermarket ones are very strong in comparison. The heim uniball design is exposed so you will be replacing those more often but its a minimal issue. I am using the factory boot on the steering rack side, just had to trim it so that side is protected.
Aftermarket tie rods are designed to reduce bump steer and stabilize the steering under extreme conditions. The Heim Joint ends will reduce slack that the factory ball joints can cause, plus the Links will absorb shock and take more abuse than the factory steel rods.

ADD does have just the outer side to improve things and probably allow for double sheer too. It really depends on how you use the truck, weather conditions and if you are okay with a little more maintenance.

We sell RPG, Rogue, SDHQ, ADD to name a few. We always offer deals for FRF members, always!

 

[Dane]

I went with the SDHQ ones. I also have their gusseted Knuckle and they have the option on that to get it with double-sheer, which is what I have. I would think other aftermarket tie rods would work with it but of course SDHQ only fitted and tested it with theirs so they would not make any guarantee. The SDHQ ones are tough and not had any issues with them. There is no color choices. I liked that they were the only ones that had the dust boot for the outer heim but to be honest, they just tear so they probably keep dirt in making it worse. The only other thing I don't care much for is the Camburg Clevis they use. The head of the bolt is prone to being rounded if you are not careful, very little to grab.

If I didn't have the gusseted knuckle (highly recommended) then I would of gotten the RPG or the ones we were selling. We made a small batch in red but those have all sold. There is two arguments with tie rods out there. One is keep with stock and the ball joints are protected by the boot if you deal with harsh winter weather and the stock tie rod is weak but can be sacrificed instead of the more expensive steering rack. Losing a tie rod at speed is dangerous though but failures are usually from being hit but a big hole can take it out too. The other is just that, the stock is weak and we don't want it to fail so the aftermarket ones are very strong in comparison. The heim uniball design is exposed so you will be replacing those more often but its a minimal issue. I am using the factory boot on the steering rack side, just had to trim it so that side is protected.
Aftermarket tie rods are designed to reduce bump steer and stabilize the steering under extreme conditions. The Heim Joint ends will reduce slack that the factory ball joints can cause, plus the Links will absorb shock and take more abuse than the factory steel rods.

ADD does have just the outer side to improve things and probably allow for double sheer too. It really depends on how you use the truck, weather conditions and if you are okay with a little more maintenance.

We sell RPG, Rogue, SDHQ, ADD to name a few. We always offer deals for FRF members, always!

Unfortunately, I have too many other mods going on right now to consider the knuckles. This truck sees a lot of use - from daily driver, to tow rig, to getting abused - typically in sand dunes or lighter off-road trails. I'm ok with a little more maintenance if it means more reliability. Knowing that, would you say RPG then?

 

[bigrig]

I have been running the RPGs for about 3 years now. They are incredibly overbuilt. I would support going that route.

 

[Dane]

I have been running the RPGs for about 3 years now. They are incredibly overbuilt. I would support going that route.

Does the kit come with everything? New tie rod ends? Is it bolt on? Anything specifically I should know ahead of time provided I'll be doing it myself?

Obviously alignment afterwards.

 

[bigrig]

Does the kit come with everything? New tie rod ends? Is it bolt on? Anything specifically I should know ahead of time provided I'll be doing it myself?

Obviously alignment afterwards.

It had all the hardware required for the upgrade.

Some things to note:

• They ask you to use Red Loctite on the bolt to attach the new clevis. So you will want to have that on hand.
• They ask you to use anti-seize on the hiem joints, so you will want to have that on hand too.
• You also need a 5/8 Drill bit to drill out the knuckle pin hole
• The other thing to note is that it asks you to cut the stock rubber boot so it will fit over the monstrous tie rod. When fitting it over the tie rod using a heat gun to soften up the rubber is helpful.

RPG made a good install video that should give you an exact idea of what you are getting into.

The only other thing I would recommend is setting up an appointment with a shop to do your alignment before you do the install so that you reduce the amount of time it will take you to get back on the road. Also make sure your shop understands that you have 2 heim joints that need to be loosened on each tie rod before making their adjustments. One shop I went to messed mine up something fierce before I was able to show them there was another heim joint under the rubber boot.

 

[Dane]

It had all the hardware required for the upgrade.

Some things to note:

• They ask you to use Red Loctite on the bolt to attach the new clevis. So you will want to have that on hand.
• They ask you to use anti-seize on the hiem joints, so you will want to have that on hand too.
• The other thing to note is that it asks you to cut the supplied rubber boot so it will fit over the monstrous tie rod. When fitting it over the tie rod using a heat gun to soften up the rubber is helpful.

RPG made a good install video that should give you an exact idea of what you are getting into.

The only other thing I would recommend is setting up an appointment with a shop to do your alignment before you do the install so that you reduce the amount of time it will take you to get back on the road. Also make sure your shop understands that you have 2 heim joints that need to be loosened on each tie rod before making their adjustments. One shop I went to messed mine up something fierce before I was able to show them there was another heim joint under the rubber boot.

This is very helpful. Thank you. So far it's sounding like RPG is the way for me to go.

 

[Rick@FreedomMotorsports]

Unfortunately, I have too many other mods going on right now to consider the knuckles. This truck sees a lot of use - from daily driver, to tow rig, to getting abused - typically in sand dunes or lighter off-road trails. I'm ok with a little more maintenance if it means more reliability. Knowing that, would you say RPG then?

Yes I would go with RPG. Bear in mind that you will drill out some of the knuckle pin hole.
https://www.rpgoffroad.com/wp-content/uploads/2015_02_17_TIE_RODS_Installation_Guide_1B.pdf

So what color do you want and I can send you a quote.

 

[bigrig]

I totally forgot about drilling out the knuckle hole! I guess it has been a while. I added that to my list above.

 

[Dane]

Yes I would go with RPG. Bear in mind that you will drill out some of the knuckle pin hole.
https://www.rpgoffroad.com/wp-content/uploads/2015_02_17_TIE_RODS_Installation_Guide_1B.pdf

So what color do you want and I can send you a quote.

Probably just black. I'm not flashy.