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4 link

Posted: Wed Jan 23, 2008 3:34 pm
by TUFF60
I would like to convert my 60 ute to 4 link rear and would like to know if someone could point me in some direction as to what angles, what lengths, what to make the arms out of and what to use as ends for the links. I am thinking of using 80 series arms for the front

Posted: Thu Jan 24, 2008 1:40 pm
by Harrow
Lukeys 4x4 customs can make everything for you in a kit and just send you the kit that you then just need to weld onto your car.

www.lukeys4x4.com

Posted: Thu Jan 24, 2008 6:01 pm
by chunderlicious
lots of people on here will be happy to give info. download the 4link calculator from pirate (google finds it) and then start reading all the thred they have on it.

one tip i can give is that if its being road driven etc. i recomend nissan bushes. theyre cheap and flex awsome. plus, you can go to the wreckers and buy the rear links off them and then cut them up and you got bushes and bush rings but get them pressed out before you put too much heat in there.

Posted: Thu Jan 24, 2008 8:49 pm
by CWBYUP
chunderlicious wrote:lots of people on here will be happy to give info. download the 4link calculator from pirate
That is the first thing I would do.

Then read read read.

Don't let anyone touch your truck before you know what you want from it and why its being done a certain way. Any good shop will explain it to you and if you do your home work you will understand why they do it a certain way.

Anyone can build a 4 link set up, hell even I can do it, but very few people can do it WELL.

I'd be speaking to Sam at Overkill because the work that I have seen that they have done is 1st class.

Nick

Posted: Sat Jan 26, 2008 7:09 pm
by AFeral
Petersons 4x4 magazine in the US did a very good basics of 4 link design. they still have info on there web site. google it.

Posted: Sat Jan 26, 2008 9:00 pm
by plowy

Posted: Sun Jan 27, 2008 7:37 am
by Gwagensteve
*I haven't built a 4-Link so these are only my impressions*

All 4 Link setups require a good understanding of your car's centre of gravity. From memory, the Petersen's article explains how to measure it. the less accurate this result, the poorer the performance of the 4 link.

Here's the catch though - when you work something out with the 4 Link calculator, you're really only solving for one ride height. If you want to lift your car as part of running the 4 Link, working out the COG gets much harder unless you can block your car up the height/tyre size you want and then measure it.

Bear in mind also, if you run a fabricated rear and 80 series arm front, the enormous difference in roll stiffness and articulation front to rear will result in a very unbalanced car. Personally, Id be linking the front first., which is a much bigger job, but others will disagree with this.

Another option is to buy a rolling chassis from something like an 80 series. then you can transfer all the brackets over and gain the wider diffs that make clearances a lot easier to deal with. you will only get "factory" performance, but with something like a dobbin X link in the front, very impressive performance and more importantly balance can be achieved, and you haven't had to deal with bushing and link issues etc.

Just some thoughts. If you're up to it, go crazy.

Steve.

Posted: Sun Jan 27, 2008 8:11 am
by -Richo-
If you were setting up a linked suspension i would figure youd have your desired ride height already worked out, why would you lift it afterward? Lift is Grimace anyway :D

Working out precisely where your CoG is isnt easy, but from my limited experience close enough is good enough. Top bolt on the bellhousing seems to be the rule of thumb (works for me).

I dunno about cutting out factory brackets and reusing them. Firstly i dont know how you would cut them off clean enough to reuse them, factory mounts werent designed for the extreme conditions we usually put them under, and unless your mounting them in exactly the same place on the same chassis they wont fit very well without modifying (plus you wouldnt be putting them on the same chassis) all that effort could be used on making new better brackets perfectly suited to the application.

Posted: Mon Jan 28, 2008 2:05 pm
by slosh
-Richo- wrote:I dunno about cutting out factory brackets and reusing them. Firstly i dont know how you would cut them off clean enough to reuse them, factory mounts werent designed for the extreme conditions we usually put them under, and unless your mounting them in exactly the same place on the same chassis they wont fit very well without modifying (plus you wouldnt be putting them on the same chassis) all that effort could be used on making new better brackets perfectly suited to the application.
x2.
The "cut off and reuse brackets" thing has been mentioned a few times in the past on here... I'm guessing it has something to do with Qld DOT rules or else fussy engineers.

Posted: Wed Jan 30, 2008 12:29 pm
by TUFF60
Thanks heaps guys. Done some reading but all it has done is confuse me somewhat. might not be what i realy need

Posted: Wed Jan 30, 2008 5:32 pm
by v840
TUFF60 wrote:Thanks heaps guys. Done some reading but all it has done is confuse me somewhat. might not be what i realy need
Thats the first step! Everyone is confused by it at first. Play around with the calculator and do some more reading. Trust me, it will click into place after a while.