Homemade Panhard Drop?

[fightman80]

humm....I don't wheel my Mallcrawler that much....but would hate for that mount to break.......I'll have to give this more thought i guess......

 

[brian2sun]

It depends on what you do with your truck. If you plan on wheeling it hard. Its a horrible idea. You can try and brace the bracket and may have good luck with that. I saw Brian's mount start to taco and bend in from the extra force. The leverage really starts add up

If you are just going to be driving around and not really beating on the truck it fine. I have made a few for people that want them, even though i personally would never put one on my truck.

My truck is a wheeler. I dont care one bit about the axle sitting a little offset. I dont even notice it. My truck gets used. almost every weekend. To the edge of what i feel the truck can handle. A Ph drop not properly braced on a wheeler will end up ripping the stock mount

^^I agree. I'm just glad I noticed mine before the mount got really damaged. Jmoney and I were able to pry on the mount with a crowbar and a pipe and put it back into shape, but I think if I wheeled with it like that even one more time, I would have probably tore and/or bent it beyond help. Then I would have had to hack it all the way off and fab up a whole new mount.

Luckily I noticed it because once it started deforming the mount, my driveshaft starting hitting my gas tank skid and it was obvious something had moved under there.

 

[Nelsonmd]

Problem with that is that the mount you would extend up would end up hitting the existing rear crossmember/ and frame. That why you will always see a pretty big drop on the frame side. When its off set off the axle there is no way it can ever interfere with anything. A tall axle side mount would be smashing the frame at some point or the floor.

So there you go

Well that explains it.

 

[jmildoc]

i may have to make one of these too!

 

[fightman80]

I went ahead and built mine.... and have had no issues since installing it. I don't wheel mine much though... if at all. BTW, it did little to nothing to bring my axle back into spec.....

 

[hrt4me]

My driver side sits slightly lower than the passenger side, and the passenger side tire sticks out slightly more than the driver side tire......

got pics?

have you tried anything else to remedy this condition?

 

[cj80cruiser]

I was just about to order toytecs drop bracket but hesitated after I saw this thread.

The cost of an adjustable panhard wouldn't be too bad if I can find the ends for a decent price. Without checking prices on the ends I'm expecting either way I'd be in about $50.

What's the best option of the two?

 

[t4r4life]

I would just get a piece of c chanel and make one yourself, and i would not put it on top of the panhard mount, i weld it on the bottom mount on the axle.

 

[cj80cruiser]

It is tough when you are cantilever loading like this thing is and you have to extend it. I would still like to see someone make an extension bracket for the axle side, since that would keep the pivot point higher and reduce the moment. Why hasn't anyone done this yet? Or have I just missed the pictures?

Problem with that is that the mount you would extend up would end up hitting the existing rear crossmember/ and frame. That why you will always see a pretty big drop on the frame side. When its off set off the axle there is no way it can ever interfere with anything. A tall axle side mount would be smashing the frame at some point or the floor.

So there you go

According to the above its not a good idea to extend it on the axle side or am I missing something? :shrug:

 

[confyushus]

Hey, my mind wouldn't allow me to buy a drop for $50, I really like Toytec, but that's a little crazy. I searched for a good homemade option and C channel seemed like the best idea. One night at walmart I ran across a 2.5" to 2" hitch adapter sleeve for $12. I had to cut one side off and grind some of it down to fit, but it works perfect! Just make sure to weld it, and I added a small brace for peace of mind.

 

[cj80cruiser]

For you guys that built your own, should the bolt holes be 3" apart center to center on a 3" lift to get everything back in spec or is there some other factor that I'm not thinking of?

 

[Coastal616]

Hey, my mind wouldn't allow me to buy a drop for $50, I really like Toytec, but that's a little crazy. I searched for a good homemade option and C channel seemed like the best idea. One night at walmart I ran across a 2.5" to 2" hitch adapter sleeve for $12. I had to cut one side off and grind some of it down to fit, but it works perfect! Just make sure to weld it, and I added a small brace for peace of mind.

Please don't weld anything else structural until you learn how to weld a lot better.

Practice on bumpers and things that won't kill you if/when they break!

I do like the idea of the brace you made, just the execution needs some work.

 

[confyushus]

I will admit that I am not a great welder but I do know how. That was welded and rewelded, looks like ass but has held up great for 12-15k on road and plenty of offroad. Even went and tried to break it near my house after finishing to test it. I appreciate the concern, honestly, but as bad as it looks, its solid.

 

[jmildoc]

What did you weld it with?

 

[confyushus]

A Lincoln mig welder, the wire feed was slipping some so I had to grind it down and re-weld and in the process it came out looking not so great.

 

[krenaud33]

For you guys that built your own, should the bolt holes be 3" apart center to center on a 3" lift to get everything back in spec or is there some other factor that I'm not thinking of?

I didn't see this answered and I am curious to know too. thanks

 

[MStudt]

I didn't see this answered and I am curious to know too. thanks

The idea of dropping the pan hard bar is just to get it parallel with the axle again. Not really sure on the exact measurement between holes. Technically, if you place the bolts 3" apart from center to center for a 3" lift. If you're springs start to sag, you'll lose you 3" lift, and then the pan hard bar will be to low. So people don't like them, and some do. Some people don't like adjustable pan hards, and some do. It's really a matter of preference, and it also depends on what you use your rig for.

 

[cj80cruiser]

There is a divot made into the rear panhard bar crossmember that the axle side mount fits when the driverside is compressed. The only way I see an axle side panhard drop/lift working is if you lower your bumpstops.

 

[MStudt]

There is a divot made into the rear panhard bar crossmember that the axle side mount fits when the driverside is compressed. The only way I see an axle side panhard drop/lift working is if you lower your bumpstops.

Going with a 3" and 285/75/16 tires, it is recommended that you extend the bump stops. This is going to keep you from shoving your tires through your wheel wells (not literally).

 

[Fiddynut]

Does anyone know the ID of the stock pan hard bar? Any reason why I can't weld in the stuff to make the OEM one adjustable? Just an idea.