Front axle -RCV, U Joint w/ CMT, or U Joint

Road_king

Road_king

New member
I understand the different equipment prices but I don't know the shop installation time for the RCV vers U Joint ? All of these options are beyond my install skill so I would like to be able to compare the three as a total investment. In other words - I'm trying to justify the RCV's if their installation is quicker than the U Joint!

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TheDuff

TheDuff

New member
Rcv's, while nice, cost twice as much as a cromo shaft with full circle clips. The install time should be exactly the same. While a rcv would probably not break at the joint, if it did break it would probably be deep in the axle tube, making a trail side repair extremely difficult. Lots of people swear by Rcv's, but I definitely wouldn't say they are mandatory. if there are other mods you want, I would just get cromo shafts and call it a day, $400+ saved for other stuff.

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cozdude

cozdude

Guy with a Red 2-Door
Agreed with what duff said. Just get a set of chromoly shafts with full circle clips. Brand doesn't matter as they will all be the same. Just look for the cheapest ones.


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Jkzinger

Jkzinger

Caught the Bug
If you can afford the RCV's then they are great. Have had mine for 3 years and they really drive nice especially while turning tight corners while wheeling.
 
dahreno

dahreno

Banned
I think you just wanted the diff. in price as far as installation is concerned. Should be the same except sometimes the CV red rubber cover can be a little tricky to put on. Just to comment on what others have said, Chromos are not all the same. If I were to buy some, I think I would go for the ones with the longest warrantee in the business. I think that may be Factory Ten with their 10 year warrantee. RCVs are also Chromos.
 
xflstl

xflstl

New member
I prefer rcv's. Imo u-joints just fail to often. While rcv's can and do fail it is far less likely. Drawback to rcv's is the price and it moves your weak link to the ring & pinion. With that said the past two years my group of friends and I went to moab we had about 8 u-joint failures, 0 rcv failures, 0 front ring & pinion failures.

Edit: another drawback to rcv's, not really trail fixable (so most people carry the stock shafts for trail fixes.)

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rocxtreme

New member
If your at the level of needing these shafts, I would think it best to learn to do the install yourself, it really is only about a 2 hour job total for both sides in the garage. It is valuable trail side knowledge that can make the difference between a long walk and getting the vehicle out. Take 10% of the labor money, but the couple of tools and now you are set for anything. I can do a shaft change in about 45 minutes on the trail if needed, or replace a bearing, knuckle, all of the above. Sorry if it changed the topic, but something to consider if the cost is the issue.
 
F

Flyer

New member
What if a stock shaft breaks? What is the common point(s) of failure? Running stock shafts and trying to figure out what extra parts and special tools to carry.
 
Jkzinger

Jkzinger

Caught the Bug
rocxtreme said:
If your at the level of needing these shafts, I would think it best to learn to do the install yourself, it really is only about a 2 hour job total for both sides in the garage. It is valuable trail side knowledge that can make the difference between a long walk and getting the vehicle out. Take 10% of the labor money, but the couple of tools and now you are set for anything. I can do a shaft change in about 45 minutes on the trail if needed, or replace a bearing, knuckle, all of the above. Sorry if it changed the topic, but something to consider if the cost is the issue.
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This is the best advice on this thread!
 
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