Axel Reinformement - Absolutly Nessessary? On 35's

FamilyOverland

FamilyOverland

New member
Hey guys, I have a couple of questions regarding Tuck, my new JK 4dr. He is named Tuck after my 2yr old son kept calling him a Monster Tuck. Anyway, he came with Nitto Trail Grappler 35x12.5x17's on Procomp Wheels. He has never been off road but I intend to rectify that right away. I am very confused after reading a bunch of other forums. Do I need to be rushing to the local shop to have my C gussets reinforced or if I am ok to wheel a bit without it done. Brad from TrailRecon says he never did his C-gussets and I don't intend to do any wheeling initially as extreme as a 5+ trail. Others have told me It is an absolute must. I am looking for some opinions based on actual experience and what better place to ask than here.

Thanks for the help guys.
 
RanchoRubi

RanchoRubi

Caught the Bug
I had the same wheel and tire set up, and bent one of my Cs going over a pothole. If you hit a trail or road bump just right, they will bend with 35s.
Ended up going with pr44 and 37s after. I think the C gussets are probably the cheapest insurance out there.


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Judesign

Judesign

Caught the Bug
I’d have to agree. While I wheeled a few times a year on that setup and didn’t do any damage I have seen it happen. Plus it’s a cheap and easy job.


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jorgelrod

jorgelrod

Hooked
Between the C's and labor, this will be a good insurance under $200-300 bucks. I will definitely recommend you do it...
 
wayoflife

wayoflife

Administrator
Staff member
As mentioned, the gussets are a good idea and don't cost much but all the other crap you've probably been reading about is just a big waste of money. Trust me, I've been down that road before and so have a lot of my friends.
 
FamilyOverland

FamilyOverland

New member
Good to know, I will schedule some time at a local shop to have this done. Seems like good insurance. I will not be wheeling Tuck hard right out the gate, but you guys had a good point, its not that expensive much less than even one of these tires.
Anyone from Calgary know of a good shop? I will be there for the month of Feb.
Also my local shop sells Evo and Artech, the Artech are a little more expensive, any thoughts on which ones to go with?
 
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fiend

fiend

Caught the Bug
Is it best practice to remove the ball joints before welding the gussets? I’d think they get really hot otherwise.

If the jeep has some mileage on it, consider new ball joints at the same time.
 
zimm

zimm

Caught the Bug
Make sure the welder puts them on the right way. There was a guy on a forum that had his welded in upside down, lol.

No need to remove ball joints if the welder takes his time and lets the area cool with wet rags instead of burning in a continuous bead and melting them.

I paid $85 labor to have mine done.

31941991356_ec7ba67f44_k.jpg
 
BaddestCross

BaddestCross

Active Member
I had ORE weld mine in and they didn't remove the joints. I did replace my joints a few months later and they didn't appear to be damaged by heat.

That being said, if you've got a lot of miles on your Jeep, it's probably time to replace them anyway and it would be a good time to do it.

--
Build Thread - Adventures of Fiona - https://wayalife.com/showthread.php?t=47407
 
FamilyOverland

FamilyOverland

New member
I have been wondering about the ball joints, less because of mileage (Tuck only has 23,000mi) but because I am planning a serious trip next year up to Prudhoe Bay and was wondering if this would be a weak point.

Fortunately I don't have a Recon, so the current stable of aftermarket ones should work.
 
TRLJNKY

TRLJNKY

New member
Im still running a POS D30 with no rein. Scares the hell out of me
Just did BJ's and the shafts came out smooth so think Im ok. Ive beat mine pretty hard and I know its just a matter of time. If you can afford it, give yourself the piece of mind and follow the advice. I should do the same 😁

aka cavfighter

Edit: not sure if C's would effect the shafts like tubes. I prob should go and put mine on a rack to see if my camber is wacked out. Just do it if you can
 
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D

DK570

New member
jorgelrod said:
If you have a Recon, the C-Gussets won't work as the C's were changed and revised for the Recon. I don't know of any aftermarket that has done any
Click to expand...
This answers the 2nd question, but not the 1st. Do Recon axles "need" gussets given the bigger C's and thicker tubes? I realize this is a difficult question since there are not that many wheeling miles on Recons with stock axles and 35's or 37's since the Recon is pretty new.
 
Emptybrass

Emptybrass

New member
DK570 said:
This answers the 2nd question, but not the 1st. Do Recon axles "need" gussets given the bigger C's and thicker tubes? I realize this is a difficult question since there are not that many wheeling miles on Recons with stock axles and 35's or 37's since the Recon is pretty new.
Click to expand...

That’s what I was thinking about. From what I have read it’s the welds that fail not the actual c. Guess I may be the test dummy who bought it


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S

stitch1

Member
How can you tell if your Cs are bent or not? I have seen a stock housing fail I'm just not sure what to look for on a C.
 
Gobicon2017

Gobicon2017

New member
I’ve had my recon off road quite a bit on 35’s. However I stay off the skinny pedal as well. I want C’s but they are not available or at least that I can find. Planning on 37’s shortly and pr60’s later!!!


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Emptybrass

Emptybrass

New member
Maybe I’ll get the standard gussets and weld/cut to make Work. No plan on upgrading axles anytime soon. Gobicon2017, will have something to show you, that you may be interested in hopefully soon.


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