Murdoc

So I'm trying to track down and eliminate some nasty death wobble. A little background, I've got 4.5" RC lift running 36" TSL's. I just greased all the fittings and I'm checking for loose suspension components. I notice I have quite a bit of play(I can rotate back and forth) in my draglink where it connects to the pitman arm and where it connects to the knuckle. Also there is quite a bit of play on both TRE's. Is it normal to be able to rotate them back and forth a bit using one hand? To me, this should all fit pretty tight... But I'm still new to 4x4 steering and lifts, I come from mini trucks n slamming hot rods. Thanks for any help!

dukie564

rotation in a TRE is fine - they're supposed to do that. You shouldn't be able to move the joint up and down or laterally (side to side).

usually death wobble issues come from the trackbar bushings, so check those really well. Also your ball joints could very well be shot. Really big tires amplify everything, so make sure they're balanced really well before proceeding further.

p.s. - are they Bias Ply TSLs?

Murdoc

Yes, they are bias ply. Why do you ask? Also, they were never balanced. Only shop around here that can balance them without putting a crap ton of weights all around the rim wants $25 per wheel to balance them...Can't remember the name of the balancing method, but the weight is applied to the inside of the tire, instead of to the wheel like most tires.

dukie564

that's your problem man. Bias ply tires are EXTREMELY hard to balance. They are not meant for on-road use.

Look into balancing beads to try and get them to be better, but you shouldn't be running those on the road - they build too much heat under high speed.

Murdoc

Oh I agree, I hardly drive it on the road. Just around town to get parts or tools. Some times I'll drive it to work(10 minute drive). I got this jeep in mid December and haven't even put 1000 miles on it. But, it would be nice to get rid of the DW when it does see the road. Mainly I'd like to get rid of it because I wont always have access to a trailer and will have to drive it to go wheeling.

dukie564

try the balancing beads first. I've heard of people having good luck with those.

freegdr

if the beads dont do it for ya 25 dollars a tire is a lot less than the possible damage that extreme dw will cause over time on steering components and the saftey issue on the road the other way is trueing/shaving big tires but not many shops do it any more