I say long arms every single time. It’s absolutely worth it. Whether you drive just on road, just off road, a bit of both. Either way it’s absolutely worth it.
They are for sure. But they are expensive. And I’ll tell you, those relocation brackets do a really good job of getting the jeep to ride like it has Long arms. Long arms are definitely better,…but it’s shocking how close it gets with only spending $100 on those brackets.
I'm considering the jump to metalcloak 4.5 full link bolt on long arms OR the 4.5 Midarm gamechanger. Trying to save the $$$ if possible but wondering if I'll regret the midarm decision? It does have the DB3 drop bracket. Hoping to get your opinion? 🙏 I gotta decide before black friday sale I'm really struggling cuz it's a big investment
I would stay away from metal cloak personally. Metal cloak does a lot of things in their marketing to convince people they are better…when they aren’t any better. For example…”mid arms” aren’t a thing. They are short arms. You aren’t changing the attachment point in the frame or the axle. So they are just as long as the factory short arms. They call them mid arms because they are adjustable (for alignment purposes) so they can be made SLIGHTLY longer than a factory short arm. But it’s not long enough to make a difference. They also do this with their “long travel” shocks. The compressed length and extended length of their shock is the same as a comparable Bilstein. But because they call them long travel people thing they are getting something better….and then they over charge for it all. Like you even said, it’s a big investment with them. Get a 4.5 inch spring from someone like Rock Krawler. Get a Bilstein shock that is comparable. Use the control arm relocation bracket in the front and pick up a set of control arms when you can. If you go 4.5 you’ll still need a front drive shaft immediately and eventually a rear as well. Pick up extended brake lines from powerstop. That is the cheapest way you’ll be able to put your jeep 4.5 inches taller with something that performs well. That’s my advice.
Thanks for the support! The Channel is fairly new. Only about a year. But lots more to come….hopefully it will get there. Thanks again! Spread the word! Haah.
Lots of people don’t have acsess to a shop with welders and stuff but it’s not expensive to buy the hardware and build them yourself. But it’s time consuming
Exactly. That’s the ehe point of this channel. Doing things in a normal guy garage with normal tools. The biggest thing anyone can do for themselves in the offroad world is learn to weld. It doesn’t have to be a SUPER expensive welder…but learning how and being able to will make the builds possible and save a TON of cash.
I’m glad it helped! There is a lot of info out there. The point of this channel is to just try to put good info out there that isn’t influenced by something and skewed. Also a few fun builds coming this fall that will go step by step and show you how to do things yourself! That way it’s affordable to build the “big”jeep.
Great video so clear and straight. Question, with long arms do you really need to be lifted or to have a high lift at all. Reason i am asking is. I purchased jku that already has the long arms and it is lifted . The lift is a bit higher than what i prefer. I dont do rock crawling i do just light off road so i would like to know if i can remove the lift, keep the long arms for smooth ride but just lower. As long as tire size is adecuate of course
Thanks for the support! You don’t have to be lifted at all. But lots of times if it’s a custom lift the control arms will be made to have some adjustment, but might not be enough adjustment if you went back to stock. The other things to consider are drive shafts. If they are aftermarket, they might be too long once you go back to stock.
Could you tell you opinion, please: what is the main reason of changing short arms with relocation brackets on long arms? I checked the angle of my short arms with relocation brackets and it looks more parralel than long arms mounted to the transmission crossbar. I have Metalcloak 3.5" lift springs. So the riding comfort would be the same, right? I see the only one reason: more flexing axles. But i would be happy to read the thinks of person who changed relocation brackets on long arms.
Hey! So changing to a longer arm might not be as parallel, but because the arm is longer…the tire in the wheel well doesn’t move in as much of an arch and is able to perform better because of it. If you were to shine a laser straight bump from the ground and the. Droop and compress the suspension you’ll notice that the factory arm even with the relocation bracket will move in an arch. The long arm does too…but barely.
@@WarPaintOffroad okey, i think i understand. You mean the bigger radius does less from-front-to-back axle moving. But i can't understand how it can improve the riding comfort. Thank you for reply!
You sent me over here from Instagram! Great info and I really enjoyed it being explained this way. I have a JKU with adjustable short arms, I don’t full on rock crawl but there are some in the way on trails I do. I’m seeing quite a few companies who make these brackets. Who do you recommend? Metalcloak, AEV, or another?
Hey! I remember you! Thanks for the support! So tbh, they are all good. And it’s a simple design. As long as the steel is thick enough they will work. And even without rock crawling, it will make the on road experience more comfortable too. Tbh, I have had experience with Rough Country brackets. The steel is thick enough. The powder coating is good. I would use them. No point in paying a bunch for steel just because another company makes them. Tbh I wouldn’t run their lifts or shocks. But this is just steel plate. In my experience they worked great. Save a little cash where you can.
@@Fairchild_JKU maybe 2 inches. Not much. And what I experienced was my lower control arm contacting things on larger drop offs and stuff and it just slid over then. Never bent them or anything. It’s about the same ground clearance you lose when going to long arms.
@@Fairchild_JKU you’ll love them. And thanks for all the support! It’s people like you that make RUclips channels what they are! Which is exactly why I’ll be doing giveaways as often as I can to help give back to the people that make it what it is. Once it’s a little bigger I fully plan on doing a fun offroad crawler build and giving those away. I’d love to get to the point of doing something fun once a year and giving it away (not new vehicles, just old stuff with good bones that I can make into fun offroad toys). But we will see. In time.
Question about anti squat and long arm, would a radius style long arm have major anti squat issues due to the upper arms not actually going to the frame?
That’s a great question. I have never thought about that simply because I stay away from them. They bind up really badly. But tbh, I don’t think it would. The “upper” arm on a radius arm set up doesn’t have a pivot point that acts like a tradition upper arm. So I don’t believe the point of intersection would be as important. In that situation. Metalcloak makes a radius arm “upper” that disconnects to prevent binding. But by the time you pay for them and the ready of their kit you could have just done a traditional long arm set up…and those work best. But I think anti squat wouldn’t be an issue with a radius arm because like I said above, the upper isn’t its own bar. Basically all it’s responsible for is holding the caster angle..but they bind really really fast when flexing offroad
![Megan Thee Stallion - Roc Steady (feat. Flo Milli) [Official Video]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/HozPPyqW0dY/mqdefault.jpg)
I say long arms every single time. It’s absolutely worth it. Whether you drive just on road, just off road, a bit of both. Either way it’s absolutely worth it.
They are for sure. But they are expensive. And I’ll tell you, those relocation brackets do a really good job of getting the jeep to ride like it has Long arms. Long arms are definitely better,…but it’s shocking how close it gets with only spending $100 on those brackets.
Just what I was looking for! My JKU rides like crap with a 4.5" lift on 35's. Even if I don't rock crawl it's gotta be a better ride on the street.
I'm considering the jump to metalcloak 4.5 full link bolt on long arms OR the 4.5 Midarm gamechanger. Trying to save the $$$ if possible but wondering if I'll regret the midarm decision? It does have the DB3 drop bracket. Hoping to get your opinion? 🙏 I gotta decide before black friday sale I'm really struggling cuz it's a big investment
I would stay away from metal cloak personally. Metal cloak does a lot of things in their marketing to convince people they are better…when they aren’t any better. For example…”mid arms” aren’t a thing. They are short arms. You aren’t changing the attachment point in the frame or the axle. So they are just as long as the factory short arms. They call them mid arms because they are adjustable (for alignment purposes) so they can be made SLIGHTLY longer than a factory short arm. But it’s not long enough to make a difference. They also do this with their “long travel” shocks. The compressed length and extended length of their shock is the same as a comparable Bilstein. But because they call them long travel people thing they are getting something better….and then they over charge for it all. Like you even said, it’s a big investment with them. Get a 4.5 inch spring from someone like Rock Krawler. Get a Bilstein shock that is comparable. Use the control arm relocation bracket in the front and pick up a set of control arms when you can. If you go 4.5 you’ll still need a front drive shaft immediately and eventually a rear as well. Pick up extended brake lines from powerstop. That is the cheapest way you’ll be able to put your jeep 4.5 inches taller with something that performs well. That’s my advice.
You sir are a champ! How come just 3.94K subscribers. You deserve way more. Learned a lot from you so far.
Thanks for the support! The Channel is fairly new. Only about a year. But lots more to come….hopefully it will get there. Thanks again! Spread the word! Haah.
You are hands down top 3 channels on RUclips! It blows my mind you don't have SO MANY MORE SUBSCRIBERS! You're videos have helped me so much.
Very informative. I’ll start off with drop/relocation brackets on my JLU. Awesome video.
It’s not a bad way to go! They’ll work very nicely.
Lots of people don’t have acsess to a shop with welders and stuff but it’s not expensive to buy the hardware and build them yourself. But it’s time consuming
Exactly. That’s the ehe point of this channel. Doing things in a normal guy garage with normal tools. The biggest thing anyone can do for themselves in the offroad world is learn to weld. It doesn’t have to be a SUPER expensive welder…but learning how and being able to will make the builds possible and save a TON of cash.
Thank you ! I'm new to this. Made more sense watching this instead ads buy this or that .
I’m glad it helped! There is a lot of info out there. The point of this channel is to just try to put good info out there that isn’t influenced by something and skewed. Also a few fun builds coming this fall that will go step by step and show you how to do things yourself! That way it’s affordable to build the “big”jeep.
@@WarPaintOffroad cool beans . Have follow you
Just followed you on instagram
Thanks for the support! What is your name on there? I’ll follow you back.
Great video so clear and straight. Question, with long arms do you really need to be lifted or to have a high lift at all. Reason i am asking is. I purchased jku that already has the long arms and it is lifted . The lift is a bit higher than what i prefer. I dont do rock crawling i do just light off road so i would like to know if i can remove the lift, keep the long arms for smooth ride but just lower. As long as tire size is adecuate of course
Thanks for the support! You don’t have to be lifted at all. But lots of times if it’s a custom lift the control arms will be made to have some adjustment, but might not be enough adjustment if you went back to stock. The other things to consider are drive shafts. If they are aftermarket, they might be too long once you go back to stock.
Could you tell you opinion, please: what is the main reason of changing short arms with relocation brackets on long arms?
I checked the angle of my short arms with relocation brackets and it looks more parralel than long arms mounted to the transmission crossbar. I have Metalcloak 3.5" lift springs. So the riding comfort would be the same, right?
I see the only one reason: more flexing axles. But i would be happy to read the thinks of person who changed relocation brackets on long arms.
Hey! So changing to a longer arm might not be as parallel, but because the arm is longer…the tire in the wheel well doesn’t move in as much of an arch and is able to perform better because of it. If you were to shine a laser straight bump from the ground and the. Droop and compress the suspension you’ll notice that the factory arm even with the relocation bracket will move in an arch. The long arm does too…but barely.
@@WarPaintOffroad
okey, i think i understand. You mean the bigger radius does less from-front-to-back axle moving. But i can't understand how it can improve the riding comfort.
Thank you for reply!
You sent me over here from Instagram! Great info and I really enjoyed it being explained this way. I have a JKU with adjustable short arms, I don’t full on rock crawl but there are some in the way on trails I do.
I’m seeing quite a few companies who make these brackets. Who do you recommend? Metalcloak, AEV, or another?
Hey! I remember you! Thanks for the support! So tbh, they are all good. And it’s a simple design. As long as the steel is thick enough they will work. And even without rock crawling, it will make the on road experience more comfortable too.
Tbh, I have had experience with Rough Country brackets. The steel is thick enough. The powder coating is good. I would use them. No point in paying a bunch for steel just because another company makes them. Tbh I wouldn’t run their lifts or shocks. But this is just steel plate. In my experience they worked great. Save a little cash where you can.
@@WarPaintOffroad thanks for the recommendation! How much ground clearance do you say you lose with the bracket sticking down.... 2-3?
@@Fairchild_JKU maybe 2 inches. Not much. And what I experienced was my lower control arm contacting things on larger drop offs and stuff and it just slid over then. Never bent them or anything. It’s about the same ground clearance you lose when going to long arms.
@@WarPaintOffroad thinking I’m gonna pull the trigger on a set of these brackets. Thanks for all the great info!
@@Fairchild_JKU you’ll love them. And thanks for all the support! It’s people like you that make RUclips channels what they are! Which is exactly why I’ll be doing giveaways as often as I can to help give back to the people that make it what it is. Once it’s a little bigger I fully plan on doing a fun offroad crawler build and giving those away. I’d love to get to the point of doing something fun once a year and giving it away (not new vehicles, just old stuff with good bones that I can make into fun offroad toys). But we will see. In time.
Question about anti squat and long arm, would a radius style long arm have major anti squat issues due to the upper arms not actually going to the frame?
That’s a great question. I have never thought about that simply because I stay away from them. They bind up really badly. But tbh, I don’t think it would. The “upper” arm on a radius arm set up doesn’t have a pivot point that acts like a tradition upper arm. So I don’t believe the point of intersection would be as important. In that situation. Metalcloak makes a radius arm “upper” that disconnects to prevent binding. But by the time you pay for them and the ready of their kit you could have just done a traditional long arm set up…and those work best. But I think anti squat wouldn’t be an issue with a radius arm because like I said above, the upper isn’t its own bar. Basically all it’s responsible for is holding the caster angle..but they bind really really fast when flexing offroad
I think adding super modified components to a jeep is a waste of time and money. Just buy a rock bouncer.