Long Arm vs Standard Length?

Hey guys, I'm wanting to run 37" tires with the 4" plush ride coils (coilovers are not in my near future) and am having a hard time deciding on long arms or the standard length control arms. In pictures I've seen it looks like both lengths flex well. Would their be any advantage to running long arms like the bolt on double d kit? Thanks for the advice!

The ride quality on and off road would a lot better with long arms. As far as I know

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sjd78 said:

Hey guys, I'm wanting to run 37" tires with the 4" plush ride coils (coilovers are not in my near future) and am having a hard time deciding on long arms or the standard length control arms. In pictures I've seen it looks like both lengths flex well. Would their be any advantage to running long arms like the bolt on double d kit? Thanks for the advice!

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So from reading recent threads on this topic, I understand that the two don't necessarily flex any better or worse (or at least noticeably). Rather, the long arm will get your suspension geometry back to a closer factory configuration (for those that use larger lifts, I think 4" is in that range?) and provide a much better ride ON road.

The way Wes at Trail Jeeps explained it to me last weekend was think of it as pushing a wheelbarrow with the handles up by your chest and hitting a big bump vs having the handles down by your waist and hitting the bump.

sjd78 said:

Hey guys, I'm wanting to run 37" tires with the 4" plush ride coils (coilovers are not in my near future) and am having a hard time deciding on long arms or the standard length control arms. In pictures I've seen it looks like both lengths flex well. Would their be any advantage to running long arms like the bolt on double d kit? Thanks for the advice!

Click to expand...

Long arms on a lifted rig provide a significant improvement in ride quality & overall stability. The movement of the axles is more directly vertical, rather than swinging diagonally fore & aft in pendulum fashion, which improves the ride and results in far less axle steering effect over obstacles. The taller you lift a short arm equipped rig the more impact you feel over bumps due to the angle of the front lower control arms. That is, the impact is delivered into the frame side control arm mount more than it would be if the arm movement was more horizontal. The negative on most long arms is a certain loss of ground clearance. When you look at a set that have been on a rig for awhile you'll usually see rock rash on the arms & brackets. Getting them onto a JK is a bit involved, thus the cost is a lot more than a simple bolt on lift. Whether the benefits are worth the difference in cost is up to the indivdual. However, had I known how much better the rig would handle with them I'd have just gone long arm from the beginning & been done with it. You can get close with a short arm by using drop brackets, but again they'll be vulnerable to rock hits more than the factory frame mounting points.

Meade93 said:

The way Wes at Trail Jeeps explained it to me last weekend was think of it as pushing a wheelbarrow with the handles up my your chest and hitting a big bump vs having the handles down by your waist and hitting the bump.

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That's actually a really good way of looking at it!

As mentioned long arms will not help you flex better off road. What they will do tho is help bring your steering geometry back closer to stock and this will help with on road handling and feel.