Street xj steering, heims or Tre?

marty79

marty79

Well-Known Member
Joined
Nov 24, 2013
Location
Newton, NC
I need to replace my outer tie rods and the one going to pitman arm. (Pretty much whole setup lol)
I noticed 5/8 heims cost bout same as good brand Tre so any reason to not use heims for long distance travel street rig?
Ive read many good points on both sides but not convinced of which one, Thank you.
 
I think most people are going to tell you TREs but I prefer heims myself, most of the junk I’ve owned is older so the steering box has enough play it doesn’t make the steering so touchy it’s sketchy.

Just my opinion.
 
I'm a huge fan of the GM 1 ton TRE offered by Ruffstuff and I believe Barnes. I've run them on the last three rigs. I too street drive mine a lot. A Heim joint works well too if you can keep it well lubricated, or they'll squeak worse than a dry unit bearing.
Both are great IMO. Keep in mind that the thread pitch on a 1ton tre is nowhere near the same as any heim joint, so once you decide on one or the other, that's it unless you want to cut the weld-in bungs out and start all over.
 
XJsavage said:
too if you can keep it well lubricated, or they'll squeak worse than a dry unit bearing.
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this was what I've read so it's true then.. last thing I want is more squeeks LOL
 
well I thought I had a awesome deal on a 1ton TRE set here but just noticed it magically disappeared :confused::confused::confused: ehhheemm @Jody Treadway
 
Jody Treadway said:
5/8" x 3/4" good heims are plenty strong for steering. Whether or not the knuckle attachment point is, however, is another debate.

Double shear, bruh.
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yeah that's what I was going to order from Barnes but i've heard like xjsavage said they can squeak, don't want any squeaks wife has anxiety already so last thing I need is more noises going down the road to freak her out lol, plus I hate noises
 
The other advantage to 1 ton TREs is they are basically available at any parts store.
 
I dont know what size tires you plan to run eventually, but if you are keeping it under 35s , I have had good luck with v8 zj steering in my jeeps. Cheap and seems reasonably strong.
 
@Jody Treadway btw you still need/want this xj trailer hitch and air box

junkxj said:
I dont know what size tires you plan to run eventually, but if you are keeping it under 35s , I have had good luck with v8 zj steering in my jeeps. Cheap and seems reasonably strong.
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that was my next option, I've done that before but here not readily available and might still end up having bad ends like mine, I have the 1/4 wall tubing already so figured building a new set would benefit me all around. and this jeep is staying on 33s. It's just a Wife and daughter friendly DD with trail adventures we're calling it, locked front and rear with 10k winch for insurance HAHA
 
marty79 said:
this was what I've read so it's true then.. last thing I want is more squeeks LOL
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In all fairness, the set that I had that got really squeaky on me was some old Ballistic Fab 3/4s. 12 years ago they were top of the line but I'd be curious to see if their competitors joints would wear out in a steering application as fast as they did.
 
Ok so i hate to ask but I need to. I have never "properly mounted" over the knuckle TREs or Heims...I know I'm stupid but I made it work just as good but was ghetto as hell.
On this DD jeep, I obviously want to mount the TREs (or Heims) over the knuckle the "right" way so what is the "right way" of doing it. thank you
 
If you need a better tie rod, I can build you one out of 3/4 ton rod ends and .250" DOM. I've built a ton of them and they hold up well. However, that does nothing to address the drag link bending.

If you want the TRE part numbers, I can send them to ya tomorrow. Then you can #fullerweld it up
 
Jody Treadway said:
If you need a better tie rod, I can build you one out of 3/4 ton rod ends and .250" DOM. I've built a ton of them and they hold up well. However, that does nothing to address the drag link bending.

If you want the TRE part numbers, I can send them to ya tomorrow. Then you can #fullerweld it up
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well I figured build a whole new steering system, tie rod drag link and all. 3 out of 4 of mine are sloppy as can be so why not just build a whole new over the knuckle steering kit that will net me strength and little clearance as well for about same price as just buying factory replacement ends. I have tubing already so figured why not.. (sup with this "fullerweld" :shaking:)
isn't there something I need to properly do TRE over the knuckle? some kind of inserts right?
 
for heims i now know I need to drill the hole to the size of the bolt not the size of the heim itself (I know stupid me last 2 rigs I drilled the arms 7/8 and had to sleeve it with the misalignment spacers rather than drill the size of the bold)
but for TRE ends to go OTK there is a insert and a tapered drill bit I need right? that's what I'm understanding
 
I would not recommend the Barnes heims for steering on a street driven rig. They won't last.
 
a_kelley said:
You can get weld in tapered sleeves or you can use a tre reamer ("tapered bit")
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The GM 1-ton tie rod end reamer tool will set you back either 60 or 80 bucks. I still have one I bought years ago and have used it many many times. It's one of those tools that I really do not like to loan out for obvious reasons. They will ream a knuckle or pitman arm very easily but when you get into flat top/kingpin knuckle high steer arms, they struggle. It's a difference in alloy. But regardless it is a buy once, use forever type of tool as long as it's taken care of.
 
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