dom2007

In my never ending quest to eliminate all the random rubbings and vibrations on the GC, I found that the sway bar disco's(JKS Quicker Disco) contact the coil springs...the pass. side touches the spring at ride height, the drivers side has almost no space between them, but they dont touch. Needless to say, the smallest bump makes them contact, which gets pretty annoying. I used a small piece of 1/2" thick rubber hose as a make shift "sleeve", on the wrap of the spring that makes contact with the disconnects.

1st, is this a common issue? I never heard of it, but that doesnt mean anything.

2nd, I am sitting right about 4.5" of lift total(3-1/2" spring, 1" spacer). Since the discos come in 2 sizes, 0-4" lift, and 4-6", the previous owner(who installed all suspension parts) went with the larger sized discos(more thread contact for the discos, instead of being fully extended. Would the shorter size still fit with + or - 1/2" technically over the lift range? I am sure the springs have settled over time, and there is a front winch/bumper that lowers it some as well.

3rd, since the spacer compresses the spring, if even only a small amount, would switching to 4.5" springs create enough room to not make contact with the discos? I'm sure its minimal, but the spring would flex out when compressed, no?

If I'm forgetting anything in this equation, let me know.

Thanks

EDIT: I am going on the logic that going with a shorter disco, if possible, would change the angle of said disco enough at normal ride height to allieviate any contact...does that make sense? That it would move it closer to verticle, instead of angled towards the coil spring, as it currently sits.

ragged1

If you are running stock control arms the axle gets pulled back and throws off your angles. This may be the cause of the rubbing.

dom2007

I should have mentioned...I have all adjustable arms...also, I am in serious need of an alignment...do you think that when properly aligned, it would change the angle of the disco enough to get rid of contact?

ragged1

It could, how were the control arms adjusted? You should definitely get the alignment, then see where you are at.

dom2007

I'm not really sure what you mean "How were the ca adjusted"? How long? I dont have the measurements right now, but I can get them tomorrow morning.

As far as the alignment...yeah, its on the top of the to do list. Unfortunately...I'm a Drill Sergeant, and we typically work insanely long hours during the beginning of every cycle, so I'm having a hard time finding time to get it into a shop. Hopefully this coming week, but who knows. Along this line...I have been getting some vibes from the front end, very likely because I think the front axle caster is a little high. So decreasing the caster, tilting the axle forward, would create a little extra space between disco and spring, no? I'm trying to picture it in my head. I dont really know if they will try to move the entire axle forwards or back, obviously that would effect the contact.

ragged1

To clarify, an alignment will adjust your lcas for caster, and without an alignment, I was curious as to how the lcas were set up for length. And you are correct about adjusting caster, that should rotate the axle and move the disco away from the spring.

dom2007

Ok, yeah I dont have any of the lengths on hand. I could get them, but ultimately they might/likely will change as soon as I get the alignment. Either way, thanks for the input.

ragged1

Not a problem.

CobraMarty

Go out and measure your upper and lower arms. Take a picture of the rubbing. Can you grind a bit anywhere on the swaybar or discos to increase clearance?

dom2007

Not really anything to grind in this case. Sorry, no pics right now...but the parts that are rubbing are the coil spring itself and the bracket at the top of the disco that attaches it to the sway bar, the flat side of it, if that makes sense. The problem is that because of the length of the disco, to attach it to the sway bar, it needs to be angled back towards the coil spring, hence the rubbing. I think the alignment will help SOME, but I think a set of the shorter discos is a better answer. Since the lift is right in the middle of the height range for the disco, I just wonder if the shorter one will fit.

This might sound dumb, but it seemed like if I could cut about an inch or two off the end of the sway bar and re drill another hole for the disco bolt to go through, it would position it at a better angle. Would this create any problems I'm not aware of? Such as weird angles, as the sway bar rotates through articulation, etc?

CobraMarty

Cutting/shortening the swaybar arm will effictively increase the stiffness of the swaybar. I cut and shortened my links.

dom2007

Yeah, I was thinking about either buying a different set, or possibly making my own. Just seemed like a cheaper alternative to cut and re drill the sway bar. Im not necessarily against a stiffer bar, would I be doing any harm with that? Or would it equate to buying an aftermarket bar, such as addco?