After market upper control arms

Which upper control arms are best

  • Icon vehicle dynamics

    Votes: 7 25.9%

  • Total Chaos

    Votes: 13 48.1%

  • Desert products

    Votes: 7 25.9%
  • Total voters
    27
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Any of the three you mentioned are good quality. I opted for the a Desert Products ones since they are boxed construction. IMHO get a set that use 1" uni balls which are easier to get than 1.25" uni balls since the 1" are used in many Motorsports parts.
 
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ebg18t said:
Any of the three you mentioned are good quality. I opted for the a Desert Products ones since they are boxed construction. IMHO get a set that use 1" uni balls which are easier to get than 1.25" uni balls since the 1" are used in many Motorsports parts.
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Thanks for the info I just seen the desert products one just before I posted this

I am wondering what the advantage of Heim Joint Pivots are? these are only available on the total chaos
 
crashman said:
Thanks for the info I just seen the desert products one just before I posted this

I am wondering what the advantage of Heim Joint Pivots are? these are only available on the total chaos
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The heims give you more adjustability for your allignment. You can really fine tune the caster and camber too, and get it even side to side.

All of the arms you listed though are pretty similar. I went with camburg's as I got them cheap, but given the choice I would have gone with the DSM arms or total chaos to have a 1" uniball instead of 1.25"
 
A10MileHusker said:
Have you looked at Camburg UCAs with Moog Ball Joints? I just ordered them and have heard great things. My friend has ran them on his tacoma and loves them.

EDIT: Oops meant to link: Camburg UCA - 310040 "Ball-Joint" Upper Control Arm Set with Moog Ball Joints Pre-installed
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I was looking at those but I don't know if they give the extra 1" down travel the others do?

I called Total Chaos and spoke with a guy he told me they were the ones that designed the original upper control arms and everyone copied them. one thing I did like about the total chaos was I think they are the only ones that have a stainless steel uniball not coated ( or thats what this guy told me )
 
being in CO as well, i will be picking up a set of the camburg BJ arms. This decision was based on the environment we have out here. I am from socal and those guys overbuild everything and throw uniball arms on when not needed. for a daily driver, they squeak and make all kinds of noises even in dry weather.

BJs are sealed, strong enough for my needs and cheaper! i picked up a set of OEM FJ arms with less than 2k miles for $20 and plan on pressing those BJs out and using them in the camburgs.
 
yosh2000 said:
being in CO as well, i will be picking up a set of the camburg BJ arms. This decision was based on the environment we have out here. I am from socal and those guys overbuild everything and throw uniball arms on when not needed. for a daily driver, they squeak and make all kinds of noises even in dry weather.

BJs are sealed, strong enough for my needs and cheaper! i picked up a set of OEM FJ arms with less than 2k miles for $20 and plan on pressing those BJs out and using them in the camburgs.
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You have a good point but shouldn't the stainless steel hold up to the Mec chloride they use out here?
Plus I am wanting the extra 1" down travel
 
They may, but I can't imagine they would do it quietly! Plus with all the gravel they put down as well. In my opinion, you're just asking for trouble.

Concerning the extra downtravel, I believe they compensate for this. Don't take this as truth as I cannot confirm nor deny.
 
You are definitely giving me some great things to consider thanks
Oh by the way I like the work you show in your signature, I may be contacting you down the road
 
Im not sure where everyone gets the idea uniballs squeak. If you lube them up and keep them clean, they are completely silent. Plus the extra travel is definitely worth the extra money to me.
 
Driven next to and have heard plenty squeak in my days living in the bro IE in socal. Shoot, even the trophy trucks squeak! I don't know where you get the idea they don't. Plus, weather and road conditions are completely different than where you live. I know because I have lived in both places.
 
crashman said:
So I'm wondering which of these would be the best upper control arms?
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Why just those three? Have you compared the uniballs, and tubing side by side?

*Desert Products- 4130 tubing (box) and 1" FK uniballs- $589- great choice
*Total Chaos- 4130 tubing and 1" TC uniballs- $684.55
ICON- 1026 DOM and 1" ? uniballs- $734.95

4130 Chromoly tubing is stronger than 1026 DOM, so that's a good start. FK uniballs are the best, no questions about it.

I'll through one more out there for you to think about. Why not AllPro?
*AllPro- 4130 tubing and 1-1/4" FK uniballs- $649

You can get the AllPro's right now for $551.65 and free shipping. There's a group buy going on for them at this time, and it's going to be closing pretty soon. Group Buy Link

I'm not trying to get you to join my group buy. I'm simply trying to show you that comparing these UCA's side by side will show there isn't much of a difference. You'll pay more from the large companies due to the overhead that larger companies carry. Pick some that have 4130 chromoly tubing since it is stronger. I'd also go with something that FK uniballs since they are the best. Once you get past those two points the rest are poly bushings and color. Well except for the fact that ICON has dust cap that keep crap trapped inside of them.

The can squeak over time. The ones that do squeak are owned by people who don't take care of them. Like any other heim or ball joint, they need to be lubricated. The best lube for them is Tr-Flow Superior Lubricant, and should be used a couple times a year.
 
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so question, does one really need 4130 on UCAs? how much stress do those really see? i recall reading that this was just a marketing gimmick when they first came out. again, i go back to the whole overbuilding (not that this is necessarily a bad thing) and guys wanted to have the biggest balls by purchasing the most expensive equipment and not even using it close to its potential (ie Icon billet UCAs).

concerning the whole take care of them and they do not squeak...how many of you guys claiming this have driven in CO during the winter w/ the mag chloride/dirt they lay down on the roads? not trying to get all crazy, but want to hear from guys with actual experience with the conditions the OP will be driving in. thanks!
 
yosh2000 said:
so question, does one really need 4130 on UCAs? how much stress do those really see? i recall reading that this was just a marketing gimmick when they first came out. again, i go back to the whole overbuilding (not that this is necessarily a bad thing) and guys wanted to have the biggest balls by purchasing the most expensive equipment and not even using it close to its potential (ie Icon billet UCAs).

concerning the whole take care of them and they do not squeak...how many of you guys claiming this have driven in CO during the winter w/ the mag chloride/dirt they lay down on the roads? not trying to get all crazy, but want to hear from guys with actual experience with the conditions the OP will be driving in. thanks!
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While MO doesn't see as much snow as CO does. We do see plenty of road salt and cinder that rusts everything; including uniballs. It's not a matter of where you live, or what you do. Uniballs will lose the lubricant over time, and need to have more added. People add grease to there grease zerks because the grease gets used up and more is needed to prevent damage. This should also apply to any type of bearing (uniball). While 4130 chromoly tubing isn't needed since the UCA's don't see near that much upward force. Why pay $735 from DOM tubing when you can have something stronger for almost $200 less? It's not just dealing with salt for snow, or cinder that they use here. Anything that gets into them will cause damage. That can include, dirt, rocks, sand, and water. I know this from first hand experience, and from ruining a pair of Camburg's because I didn't take care of. So take it from me, 5 minutes a couple times a year goes along way, and dust cap will help you ruin them even faster. I sucks having to replaced uniballs after having them for less than a year.
 
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Yeah I wasnt saying its impossible for them to squeak, but if you take care of them and keep them lubed, they are silent.
 
Troymclure said:
Yeah I wasnt saying its impossible for them to squeak, but if you take care of them and keep them lubed, they are silent.
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That's the biggest problem. So many don't think they need to do anything to them. They never clean them,, never lube them, and let them go to crap. I ruined my first pair because I didn't know any better.
 
They're all good choices. I have the DSM and they're perfect. Way better than the junk light racing ones....

Just use the triflow and keep them clean. Takes 2 mins once a week and no squeaks on my daily driver. Clean right after trail rides too.

The dsm arms also come with zerks which keep the bushings happy!
 
I just want to make sure this doesn't happen to me again!
 

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