Front disconnect knobs and a couple of questions..

[Aquamander]

I don't know if any of you have seen these before or not, but I thought they were pretty cool.

They are available at Grainger for $7.95 each. They are listed under "threaded knobs" Grainger part# 4X040. They are made from 300 series stainless, dimensions are 3/8-16 threaded, 1-1/4 diameter x 3/8 thick (knurled large OD) , 3/4 (small diameter) and 7/8 tall. The knurls are deep enough that you should be able to get them pretty tight with a rag or glove. The plastic ones I've seen look like they're easier to break. These stainless ones are the same height as the plastic but are nearly a 1/2" smaller in diameter.

I was wondering what people have been replacing the stock rubber bushings with. Any particular brand? Anyone have a manufacturer/part number and a place/website where I can obtain some?

Also, besides the obvious advantages, what are the pro's and cons of front sway disconnects? Searched here and (the other place) but didn't find too much info on it. Some folks are talking about the sway bar hitting, others talk of the hardware mounted to the frame being too flimsy and running the risk of breaking.

any low down on that?

thanks

[Synchro]

it is definitely possible for the sway bar to hit the tie rods. Ian posted a pic on XOC, i think, of his X disconnected and on a ramp with this phenomenon. but you have to do a series of events for this to happen. a few people here have been driving around disconnected full time in the front for quite some time, on and off road with no problems. Nissan Mike seems to be the only one who has bent tie rods in the past 10 months and he was still connected. if any part would fail from what we are talking about here it would be the tie rods. and i know for a fact that the PNWX and MAXC guys (i only single them out cause i can remember pics off the top of my head, i am sure there are others) have been slamming around their trucks enough that if this were a serious repetative problem we would have been hearing about it. which to me is a true enough test. not to say that it cannot happen, as Ian's pics show it defiitely can, but the sequence you have to do to get it to be a problem is something you can correct for with your own personal driving from what i understand.

so far i have not heard of anyone who has cracked one of the plastic knobs. if there is, they'll be appreciative of your find.

the pros:
1) substantially more articulation.
there are probably more but it is late and i am tired.

the cons:
1) the tie rod thing above
2) when you have them removed, if you do not have aftermarket front shocks it is quite dangerous to drive around town unless you are used to the body roll.

for me the pro far outweighs the cons, and i carry spare tie rods and only run disconnected whie wheeling.

hope this helps.

[lemsip]

Mike H had a problem with one of the plastic disconnect nuts. The nut was slipping inside the plastic, which meant it was impossible to remove the bolt without mangling the entire nut. I think this may have been caused by over tightening, but as there appears to be disgreement on how tight they should be done up then I think this problem will happen in future.

I have a separate question also. Is it normal for one side of the sway bar to be much cloer to the attachment point than the other ? My passenger side is so far away when disconnected that I have to park on a side hill to be able to reconnect. Similarly I sometimes have difficulty removing the spacer on the driver side because its jammed in so hard by the sway bar.

Is this normal ? and is it likely to be made worse by driving when disconnected ?

[Aquamander]

Could you imagine having that happen to you on the trail? Talk about f'in up your day. I have some of those plastic knobs too. I didn't like the way they looked, so I found something IMO I think is better. I tighten mine until I can see that I've squished the bushings down a bit. The reverse pressure should hold the knob on.

[Synchro]

lemsip;

sounds about right to me. many times i have to put one tire on a curb at the gas station after connecting one side. the first time i had to reconnect with no ones help, i didn't know the trick and didn't have time to think about it (i was splitting from a run to make a wedding i had to be at 3 hours away and was running late).

afterwards what i do it get the bolt and one nut just barely on the threads and then do the same on the other side. it is the only way i can get the sway bar on without the curb trick. our line is "they are called quick disconnects, not quick connects."

and yes getting the bushings out sometimes when disconnecting can be a pain.

kirk

[lemsip]

Syncho

Thanks for the reassurance. I was worried I was bending something that shouldn't be bent.