CAGE or DUFFS extended radius arm install???

[Colo77Bronco]

I am looking to get some CAGE extended radius arms and I am trying to avoid dropping my passenger side fuel tank. How many of you are welding the brackets to the frame versus relying on the bolts. I see a lot of pictures without any welding.

Has anyone tried welding the brackets without removing the fuel tank?

 

[SaddleUp]

Welding would probably hold up fine however there is something like one bolt holding the aux. tank in (Maybe 2). If I was welding next to it I would want it removed anyway since it's plastic.

 

[slyjki]

i was going to just weld mine but decided to go ahead a follow the instructions so i wouldnt have any of those "YOU DUMBASS WHY DIDNT YOU FOLLOW THE INSTRUCTIONS!" Like i usually do. I would take the tank out. I hate grinding and welding under my rig with the gas tank 3 or 4' away. I feel one of these days a spark is going to hit a small leak or something a caboooooooooomb. God forbid!

 

[SaddleUp]

i was going to just weld mine but decided to go ahead a follow the instructions so i wouldnt have any of those "YOU DUMBASS WHY DIDNT YOU FOLLOW THE INSTRUCTIONS!" Like i usually do. I would take the tank out. I hate grinding and welding under my rig with the gas tank 3 or 4' away. I feel one of these days a spark is going to hit a small leak or something a caboooooooooomb. God forbid!

I had one of those events. Not a caboom but close. I was cutting off an old shock mount and it melted through the gas line. As the gas dripped from the line it was splattering fire underneath. Fortunately I had 3 extinguishers in my rig at the time and one was within easy reach. Otherwise it could have been spectacular.

 

[claytargethntr]

I did the cage arms just after christmas, and I am pretty sure it will go much quicker with the aux tank out of the way. Not even sure you would be able to do the install with the aux tank in anyway. Hard enough fitting a drill up in there without the tank. Plus trying to get the bolts in the holes. The aux tank comes out pretty easy. Well worth the time in my opinion, I would venture to guess you will end up pulling it out anyway during the install. Not to mention the safety factor.

claytargethntr

 

[Buckin74]

Cali77Bronco

Don't particularly want to hear the BOOM from San Diego. Besides looking like a roasted Iguana, it would be better to remove the side tank even if you just drill the frame for the brackets

From: Standing behind the blast wall in San Diego

 

[ransil]

I used 1 bolt and welded mine. See pic's here:

I did add support to the rear of the bracket.

http://www.classicbroncos.com/forums/showthread.php?t=55480&page=5

 

[Cactus killer]

with the BC arms you don't need to do any welding or cuting up your bronco and they are cheeper.

 

[TJK74]

with the BC arms you don't need to do any welding or cuting up your bronco and they are cheeper.

Thats if you get the standard length ones if you get the extended ones you would need to. Unless you are having serious caster problems I don't see the reason to go with the BC arms for stock length. %)

 

[SaddleUp]

with the BC arms you don't need to do any welding or cuting up your bronco and they are cheeper.

That's like trying to compare a wristed axle housing with a wristed radius arm. I.E. You can't. The BC arms probably are a big benefit to someone running the WAH because both sides are not connected and therefore it would make it easier to get the castor the same on both sides. For an extended radius arm though nothing is really comparable to the Cage Arms except the Duff ones which are just an earlier design of the same thing.

 

[Cactus killer]

well if you have long arms you can get a little more down travel but less up, if you look at the top side of the long arm you will see where the arm hits the frame. with stock length arms this cannot happen. I have a 7" lift and 37" tires with stock arms and uncut front finders, I can get to the top of most ramps just fine. Once you cut your frame it is too late and to bad, IF you ever change your mind. The reason I will be buying a set of the BC arms is for strength over stock (I actually bent one into a u),the adjustability,I don't have to cut anything and I have seen a set in person. + they are made in America ( I am not sure but I would guess the Duff arms are cast in Canada)Far superior to any thing available. when you see a set you will understand.

 

[TJK74]

OK Saddleup.... Take it away! ;D

 

[bsaunder]

If you want beefy stock length arms and the ability to adjust castor then the BCs are the way to go - I don't think anyone will argue over that.
If you want long arms, the Cage arms are the way to go. Hitting the frame with the arms is a moot point as your springs will bottom out well before the arm hits the frame - also if the springs didn't bottom out, I'd still hit my oil pan with my differential about the same time the Cage arms hit the frame.
Right now I have 4.5" of spring lift in the front and I can cycle my suspension from 1/2" below my oil pan at full bump stop compression to full droop which is limited by a 12" strap to keep my front driveshaft from binding. With stock arms I always had at least 2" of slack in the limiting strap due to binding in the stock arms (no wristed housing or twister arm, but did have the ultra soft angled bushings at the frame).

For articulation, my I can hit the fenders on the up (with 2" body lift and flares cut to the body line) and max out my 14" travel shocks on the way down, stock arms I could barely reach the limits of my 11" travel shocks

 

[Colo77Bronco]

Thanks guys. I knew that if I welded I would drop the tank but a lot of people seem to just bolt the brackets on.

Another problem is that I can do the entire install except for the welding but everyone I call will only weld at their shop which means the work has to be done there and they won't let me do the rest for insurance reasons.

Anyone in Colorado Springs area wanna travel with a welder?

 

[TJK74]

Thanks guys. I knew that if I welded I would drop the tank but a lot of people seem to just bolt the brackets on.

Another problem is that I can do the entire install except for the welding but everyone I call will only weld at their shop which means the work has to be done there and they won't let me do the rest for insurance reasons.

Anyone in Colorado Springs area wanna travel with a welder?

Cant you just do the install. bolt it all up and drive on over to a fab shop and have it welded up? I would think so But I may be wrong

 

[bsaunder]

Cant you just do the install. bolt it all up and drive on over to a fab shop and have it welded up? I would think so But I may be wrong

I know several people that have done exactly that.

 

[natureboy300]

on the cage website there is a little rundown on the install and it says that "it should be welded as soon as possible" might not be the exact words but something to that effect, which sounds to me like it can be driven with just the bolts.

NB

 

[SaddleUp]

well if you have long arms you can get a little more down travel but less up, if you look at the top side of the long arm you will see where the arm hits the frame. with stock length arms this cannot happen. I have a 7" lift and 37" tires with stock arms and uncut front finders, I can get to the top of most ramps just fine. Once you cut your frame it is too late and to bad, IF you ever change your mind. The reason I will be buying a set of the BC arms is for strength over stock (I actually bent one into a u),the adjustability,I don't have to cut anything and I have seen a set in person. + they are made in America ( I am not sure but I would guess the Duff arms are cast in Canada)Far superior to any thing available. when you see a set you will understand.

Your way off base.
1: You gain travel both directions and it is more than just a little.
2: The Cage long arms do not hit the frame nor do any of the long arms setups I have ever seen.
3: (Assuming you don't have a wristed axle housing) If you are getting to the top of ramps with that setup then they are either very short ramps or your not stopping when one of the tires comes off the ground. The maximum distance up a ramp you can get with stock arms is in the range of 31 to 33 inches. (Rubber bushings and soft springs) Typically it is more like 27". Compare that to 48" or so which is what long arms can generally get close to with a soft set of springs. (I'm also assuming the rear suspension has nothing more than a soft set of springs)
4: All that would be required to go back to a stock set of arms would be to weld new mounts back into the stock location. So far I don't know anyone that has ever been sorry that they went with long arms over the stock ones though.
5: If you bend a set of Cage arms then you have done something pretty serious. They are made from 2" x .313" tubing. I'm sure the BC Arms are strong as well but the cost is extra unsprung weight in the frontend. (I've heard they are pretty heavy)
6: I'm not certain whether Jim builds the Cage arms in his shop in Oregon or farms them out to someone else nor do I know where Duff's has them done. They are both Jim's design though. The only cast parts are the ends for the C-Bushings.
7: Regardless of where Jim has the arms made it is a certainty that they are a quality product. If they were not then he wouldn't be selling them.
8: Where did you get the idea that Canadians can't build a great product? I'm sure TOFIC and a few other Canadian members here would take offense to that.

 

[Colo77Bronco]

I can bolt up the extended arms and drive it to a fab shop but not the dual shock hoops that need to be mounted at the same time. Be a crazy ride without shocks and all of the extra articulation.

 

[trailpsycho]

I havent had a chance to install them yet, but I have the Cage arms and they are quite heavy (~65 lbs each), super beefy and very high quality. From the FK heim to the tubing to the wleding to the cast cap piece. They are fully boxed and welded from inside of the boxed end(according to J. Cole) where the tubing comes into the boxed portion of the arm. There is basically no way you can put all that engineering in your own homemade set-up for close to the same money without alot of wasted steel and time. I was told by Jim that 3.5" springs would be necessary or you could run into frame contact problems under full compression...plus they are set up for the castor correction of a 3.5" lift, so why fight it. The frame brackets are very nice as well. I would put in all the bolts for the bracket to frame and just run a couple of tacks on each face of the bracket. My understanding is that its often better to run small (~1" tacks than to fully seam weld these type of brackets.?.? Anyone else have opinions on this. Looking forward to this install.