owenst7
1/2 ton status
What is everyone using for their steering (specifically you big-tire guys)? There's so much confusion and misconception behind these, I'm going to clear some stuff up so we're all on the same page with part names/numbers first...
ES2234R (stock K5 TIE Rod End) This isn't a "1-ton" TRE as it is sold frequently. The shank is 7/8"-18. A true 1-ton end is 1"-18 but has the same taper. ES2010 is a Dodge part, pretty much the same as this but a shorter shank. Mostly, I want there to be a clear difference between "DRAG Link Ends" and "TIE Rod Ends" for the purposes of this discussion.
ES2026R (standard GM DRAG Line End) These were the same 1/2 ton - 1 ton to my knowledge. They handle significantly more angle than the TREs do (ES2234R).
Here's my dilemma:
I've been looking for a couple years in two different states plus the interwebs, finally found the pitman arm I wanted, two actually. Point here is that these arms are priceless to me as they are not likely to be replaceable.
I took these down to a local fab shop. Told them I want them reamed to ES2234R (an 8* taper I believe). I even left my hi-steer arm with them to make sure he couldn't screw this up (I know the TREs and DLEs use the same taper, just different diameter, so it would be easy to misunderstand).
Well the shop guy there ignored what I said, even told me to my face he looked at the hi-steer arm I left with them. He reamed my two super-valuable pitman arms to the DLE diameter (bigger of the two).
I read online (forums, ORD, Ballistic) that the DLEs are weaker and prone to bending at the neck. That's my reasoning for wanting to run TREs on all my steering links. TREs (ES2234) do have the disadvantage that they handle significantly less angle than DLEs do (ES2026, just a reminder).
Should I bust their balls over this and make them find me a replacement and ream it for ES2234? Or, should I just run ES2026? I'd really like to be running 4 of the same end, so I will always have a spare no matter what fails (I'm going to run everything RH threads, bent draglink and assist mount on tie rod anyways).
The shop guy was telling me he did it that way because the DLEs are stonger. Had I not read otherwise on forums, I would agree with him. ES2026 is bigger, and has a more gradual transition from the threads to the head. The engineer in me feels that this is a stronger design, as the abrupt angle change at the shank of ES2234 looks like a lot of stress concentration as force changes direction almost 90*.
Part of me feels people have been calling these by the wrong name. Hell, NAPA even lists ES2026 as a tie rod end. Most people I talk to don't know the differece between a TRE and a DLE. Most 4x4 shops sell ES2234R as a "1-ton" TRE (huge peeve of mine!).
Should I just run ES2026R everywhere (tie rod and drag link)? Is it going to be a strength issue on the tie rod when I add assist?
Currently the truck is on 35"s, but I really don't want answers about "it's strong enough for this application" etc (that's what the shop is telling me, but I want it done right the first time). I'm not planning on getting rid of this truck, and it will get bigger as necessary. It will have assist on it in the near future. It will probably run 42"s while I'm down in NV and AGs if I move back to AK after college. I want this to be as strong as it can be without using heims. I don't like breaking things that can be made stronger by doing it correctly, and I don't want to be limited in size by the strength of my steering.
ES2234R (stock K5 TIE Rod End) This isn't a "1-ton" TRE as it is sold frequently. The shank is 7/8"-18. A true 1-ton end is 1"-18 but has the same taper. ES2010 is a Dodge part, pretty much the same as this but a shorter shank. Mostly, I want there to be a clear difference between "DRAG Link Ends" and "TIE Rod Ends" for the purposes of this discussion.
ES2026R (standard GM DRAG Line End) These were the same 1/2 ton - 1 ton to my knowledge. They handle significantly more angle than the TREs do (ES2234R).
Here's my dilemma:
I've been looking for a couple years in two different states plus the interwebs, finally found the pitman arm I wanted, two actually. Point here is that these arms are priceless to me as they are not likely to be replaceable.
I took these down to a local fab shop. Told them I want them reamed to ES2234R (an 8* taper I believe). I even left my hi-steer arm with them to make sure he couldn't screw this up (I know the TREs and DLEs use the same taper, just different diameter, so it would be easy to misunderstand).
Well the shop guy there ignored what I said, even told me to my face he looked at the hi-steer arm I left with them. He reamed my two super-valuable pitman arms to the DLE diameter (bigger of the two).
I read online (forums, ORD, Ballistic) that the DLEs are weaker and prone to bending at the neck. That's my reasoning for wanting to run TREs on all my steering links. TREs (ES2234) do have the disadvantage that they handle significantly less angle than DLEs do (ES2026, just a reminder).
Should I bust their balls over this and make them find me a replacement and ream it for ES2234? Or, should I just run ES2026? I'd really like to be running 4 of the same end, so I will always have a spare no matter what fails (I'm going to run everything RH threads, bent draglink and assist mount on tie rod anyways).
The shop guy was telling me he did it that way because the DLEs are stonger. Had I not read otherwise on forums, I would agree with him. ES2026 is bigger, and has a more gradual transition from the threads to the head. The engineer in me feels that this is a stronger design, as the abrupt angle change at the shank of ES2234 looks like a lot of stress concentration as force changes direction almost 90*.
Part of me feels people have been calling these by the wrong name. Hell, NAPA even lists ES2026 as a tie rod end. Most people I talk to don't know the differece between a TRE and a DLE. Most 4x4 shops sell ES2234R as a "1-ton" TRE (huge peeve of mine!).
Should I just run ES2026R everywhere (tie rod and drag link)? Is it going to be a strength issue on the tie rod when I add assist?
Currently the truck is on 35"s, but I really don't want answers about "it's strong enough for this application" etc (that's what the shop is telling me, but I want it done right the first time). I'm not planning on getting rid of this truck, and it will get bigger as necessary. It will have assist on it in the near future. It will probably run 42"s while I'm down in NV and AGs if I move back to AK after college. I want this to be as strong as it can be without using heims. I don't like breaking things that can be made stronger by doing it correctly, and I don't want to be limited in size by the strength of my steering.
