Short arm vs. Long Arm

[one_crf_pilot]

Greetings, my 2004 TJ currently has a 4" Pro-Comp short arm...uppers are stock. stock D-30 and D-35 with 4:56 ARB's.

Getting ready to set up for 35's and am looking for a new lift. I am looking at changing to D-44's front and rear, x-fer case, high steer, belly up, and lift. 4-wheel parts is telling me theres nothing wrong with a short arm lift, easier to install and less related mods underneath...

Are there specific advanteges with a short arm that I can hang my hat on vs. going with a long arm lift?

Thanks,

[FishPOET]

IMO the only negative with long arms is that they will drag more in the rocks. Everything else is better with long arms when you have over 3-1/2" of lift.

[Mike]

The ride with long arms, both on and off the trail, is better with the long arms. Short arms will do the trick, but I prefer a long arm kit.

[curtis]

Long Arms are for Mall Crawlers If your going to play in the rocks get a Currie short arm lift or have someone build you a midarm lift.

[one_crf_pilot]

cool thanks guys...4-wheel parts suggests the Currie 4 inch Johnny Joint lift which comes with front antirock, and a belly up. not sure if this is then a short or midarm.

I am still Just Emptying Every Pocket....does it ever end? Hah!

[daniel_buck]

the Currie suspension is short arm. I've got it on my jeep (didn't buy it all as a kit, but I slowly pieced it together) It seems to work pretty good, I've been happy with mine!

What belly skid? I put the UCF 1" deep skid on mine, gained almost 4 inches of clearance over the stock skid I would have liked to try the Savvy skid, but I got the UCF for cheaper, so I went with that.

[RAT]

Wow. This question just keeps coming up and keeps getting the same pro/con responses. But I have yet to hear anyone mention one of the biggest issues with after market suspension kits. Almost none of them include new, heavier duty frame and axle CA mounts. If you are planning on doing a lot of rock crawling, with the flexing that comes with that, you really need to look at a kit that has replacement CA mounts. There are none that I know of that include all the replacement CA mounts needed. Clayton includes frame end CA brackets but no axle brackets (except for the UCA on the Front axle truss). Whenever you modify the suspension with heavier CAs, JJs, and that stuff, you allow more flex which in turn puts more stress on the POS factory CA mounts. Many people I know, myself included have twisted CA brackets off of both frames and axles. Not much fun and a shitty trail fix even in the best conditions.
There are some things you can do to the stock CA mounts that will add some beef to them, but the best way to do it is to replace the factory junk with some good 1/4 steel CA mounts. You can buy this stuff from Fab suppliers like Ballistic and others. Or you can have someone that has the skills fab them for you. Or you can do it your self. But I would seriously consider doing this work while you have the suspension out of the Jeep now. It will be worth it down the trail.

[Moabrubi]

I am happy with my Savvy/Currie short arms . I also have a small bellyup which makes it really nice. It's not as flat as I'd like but it does the trick. As far as ride, mine rides pretty damn good on/off the trail with Fox 2.0s. Even my long arm buds were impressed.

Honestly, after running a short arm suspension and wheeling with guys with long arms, I see no reason to go through the extra expense and install of a long arm. If you are going to get rid of the stock brackets, make it worth your while and build a custom mid arm 3link/4link.

[daniel_buck]

Kurt, I've wondered about that too, the mounts for everything! I hope to eventually put new mounts on my axles and frame rails (including the body mounts, which are getting badly mangled!)

[4xfiend]

I also had a Pro Comp short arm lift on my Jeep. I kept the springs and front track bar since they are the only good parts of the lift. I swapped in Currie arms and Skyjacker Hydro shocks. The ride difference is unbelievable. I would suggest getting the Currie arms, antirock, and the TJ valved Fox shocks from Savvy rather than a full new kit. Currie's older lifts used Pro Comp springs before they started making their own. I will be getting the Fox shocks myself when I can scrounge up the money.

What belly up are they saying comes with it? I have never seen a Currie kit that came with a belly up. Also, you will do a lot better price wise if you get away from 4wheel parts. Call up Gerald at Savvy Offroad for a quote on Currie stuff. I doubt you'll find a better price.

[RAT]

Also, you will do a lot better price wise if you get away from 4wheel parts. Call up Gerald at Savvy Offroad for a quote on Currie stuff. I doubt you'll find a better price.

X2^^^ Gerald is a good guy.

[alittleoff]

X3 for Savvy/Currie short arms.

Edit: I went with the Aluminum arms but the rear upper is a Rock Krawler 4 link with a weld on bracket for the D60. No track bar.

Steve

[Toolman]

I have never seen a short arm kit droop the way a long arm kit does, I went from a Rubicon Express short arm super flex to the upgraded triangulated long arm and the ride on and off the road is much better, getting rid of the rear track bar is also key. I'm no suspension guru but I can tell you simple geometry, longer the arm, farther the droop.

I always ask myself this simple question, What is on the Ultra 4 cars ? Long arms is the answer to that question.

I agree with RAT the CA mounts are garbage, however you should wait until you get the D44's to beef up the brackets, otherwise you'll be doing it twice.


It ends when you sell the jeep.

[curtis]

I agree with getting rid of the rear track bar, that helps perfomance alot. You can only get a limited amount of droop out of shocks and coils, so that I disagree with that. For more droop you need to run coilovers.

[brokenujoint]

I agree with getting rid of the rear track bar, that helps perfomance alot. You can only get a limited amount of droop out of shocks and coils, so that I disagree with that. For more droop you need to run coilovers.

Currie short arm is the BEST if you go SA. the joints at the ends of the arms will never let you down and are smooth as butta! Cost is steep but you get what you pay for. IMO short arms are very good at average to slightly more that average wheeling. Are good for flexing and will last a long time.. speaking Currie that is... What not to expect with SA? A better ride. You'll still be better than a yj but you will be at about stock if not a little worse for a tj. What to expect? You wont be running over bolders like that of a long arm. You WILL crack out your control arm mounts on the rear end uppers after awhile. Simple install. Only really bad thing I hated about my SA when I had my currie lift ( and I flexed it to the max) is that when the axle drops down to flex, it will pull rearward. visually noticeable in this picture.

Long arm. There's a ton of brands and it's pretty much your choice as most are good and a few are excellent. The excellent ones are not cheap. LA will open a can of worms for a little while until you dial it in and will cost more than a SA. The benefits are high though. Excellent on road AND offroad characteristics. You can do a rear 4 link, eliminating the rear trackbar giving you more flex and maybe even be able to push the rear back a little further for even more stability.

If you EVER plan to sell your rig I would stick with a short arm. A long arm, you will be grinding, cutting, welding, moding... You will NEVER be able to strip that lift, put it back to stock and sell it. That lift will stay on the rig... Just a thought.