Also this is really dumb but I've been researching a lot and trying to figure this out...so bear with me. I'm reading that heim joints are somewhat superior to TREs but they wear out a lot quicker if they see mud. But I've also read that running heim joints on a truck that sees a lot of road time can cause extra wear on the heim so this is how TREs are superior.
If you read my above posts you will see that I already mentioned that. For a given size shank (7/8" is common for a TRE, while commonly used Heims in steering setups are 3/4") a heim is only stronger than a TRE when mounted double-shear. If mounted single-shear, the TRE is stronger since it locates in a taper. As a practical aspect, you won't break a TRE. Period. As I also mentioned, Heims are completely unsealed, and most are not greasable. They might have fancy Teflon composite inserts, but they still get contaminated with water, road grime, dust, etc. and wear out prematurely. They are fine on a trail-only rig, but TRE's are much preferred on a rig that sees mixed use and/or is daily driven. TRE's have seals and they're greasable. Thats why OE's still use TRE's and don't use Heims on production vehicles.
Many Jeep forums were saying running double heim with hydro assist or a beefy steering box really makes a huge difference and makes the heim a lot more capable and reliable.....my question: is it a dumb idea to convert to double heim and run a beefier box/possibly install a hydro assist? And is this a more expensive fab than switching out knuckles (NEW knuckles and TREs seem to be quite pricey...)?
You're mis-reading. They are not saying to use double heims; they are saying to use heims in DOUBLE SHEAR. What is double shear? That is when you have two brackets that the heim goes between, with a bolt through the entire assembly. In such an arrangement the bolt is loaded in shear across a relatively wide area. This contrasts to single shear, where you have a single bracket with a bolt through the bracket and heim. In this case a large amount of bending load is applied to a very small area on the bolt. Bolts aren't designed for bending loads, and having it concentrated on such a small area means that the strength is actually less than half of the theoretical difference between double and single shear. Also, in some cases single-shear heims tend to work loose and/or wallow out the mounting hole.
By contrast, while TRE's are a single-shear arrangement, they generally have a larger shear area and because the stud is tapered and locks into a mating taper in the arm the stress concentration is reduced by a very large margin. Also, the tapered fit if the TRE in it's mating hole means there is no clearance, so it doesn't try to wallow out the hole. The taper also prevents it from working loose - in fact, removing a TRE from it's mating component usually requires a ball joint press, pickle fork, or (last resort) a BFH to break the fit between the tapered shank and it's mating hole.
Sorry for the lack of knowledge on my part haha seems that heims are super heavy duty but require lots of maintenance. I need to learn how to fix em too in case one breaks on me. Much to learn...much to learn.
Like I said, if heims were suitable for everyday automotive use the OE's would use them since they're actually cheaper to make and mount than TRE's. Apparently, nobody has yet come up with a suitable system of sealing a heim while allowing it's full range of travel.
As far as switching out knuckles, yes they are spendy if you get new Reid knuckles. OTOH, a set of good used knuckles is pretty reasonable. As I mentioned, if you decide to go that route I have a pair of flat top D44 knuckles already drilled and tapped for a pass. side crossover arm. I also have an arm. They are in excellent shape, and I will sell em to you for less than the cost of ONE Reid knuckle :deal:
With regards to the TRE's and DLE's, you can get them from Parts Mike for less than most chain stores. For the tie rod, you need one
EX2234L and one
EX2234R. For the drag link, the ends needed depends on who made the parts. Some crossover steering arms use tie rod ends, while others are reamed for drag link ends. Drag link ends have a deeper taper than TRE's and are capable of operating at higher angles, so they are preferred, but MANY setups run TRE's on the drag link and do just fine. To be honest, I would need to check the arm I have to see what it is reamed for, although if it is reamed for TRE's I could easily have it reamed for DLE's. Ideally, you want the arm reamed for a drag link end, and use a
ES2026R. If you use an arm reamed for a TRE, use the EX2234R.
On the pitman arm side, first off you need a new pitman arm. The standard one to use on your Toyota box is the
FJ80 arm. For a drag link end, you have two choices: A) you can use the
23mm FJ80 left-hand TRE, which will require a proper metric end welded/tapped into the drag link, or B) Ream out the pitman arm to use a standard 1-ton GM drag link end (
ES2027L), which has 7/8-18 threads, just like the tie rod ends.
