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Everything you need to know about Upper Control Arms (UCA)

Discussion in 'Suspension' started by csuviper, Mar 29, 2016.

  1. Apr 4, 2017 at 11:56 PM
    #31
    KevinK

    KevinK SGU - High Speed Overlander

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  2. Apr 5, 2017 at 8:23 AM
    #32
    trayday

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    7" BDS, ADS front and rear, Total Chaos UCA's, CB tie rods
    From my understanding, most aftermarket upper control arms wont work with the BDS lift kits. If replacing the factory set, go with the UCA's with heim joints if running the BDS kit.
     
    BabyBlackYota likes this.
  3. Apr 5, 2017 at 11:20 AM
    #33
    SikYota

    SikYota New Member

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    7" bds suspension lift with fox coilovers 37/13.50r20 cooper discover stt pros 20x10 -24 fuel mavericks with machined faces Nitro 4.88 gears Ekstrom design tie rod ends Zone carrier bearing drop Amp research steps Retrax pro bed cover http://www.gearinstalls.com/Chris2014Tundra.htm http://www.gearinstalls.com/Chris2014Tundrafront9.htm https://youtu.be/2P3yKKwG1ig

    Why would they not work with the BDS kit? I would think they would work since the kit is designed to work with factory ucas.
     
  4. Apr 5, 2017 at 11:43 AM
    #34
    trayday

    trayday New Member

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    Alot of UCA's are designed for 1-3" lifts. The BDS I believe run factory specs. I thought the same until I installed the TC arms, waiting to have them fabricated to work properly. There's alot of aftermarket control arms for sale used because of the BDS lift.
     
  5. Apr 5, 2017 at 12:31 PM
    #35
    SikYota

    SikYota New Member

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    7" bds suspension lift with fox coilovers 37/13.50r20 cooper discover stt pros 20x10 -24 fuel mavericks with machined faces Nitro 4.88 gears Ekstrom design tie rod ends Zone carrier bearing drop Amp research steps Retrax pro bed cover http://www.gearinstalls.com/Chris2014Tundra.htm http://www.gearinstalls.com/Chris2014Tundrafront9.htm https://youtu.be/2P3yKKwG1ig
    Are you talking about the 7" bds or 4.5" bds? The 4.5" should align to factory specs no problem since the drop bracket is equivalent to the amount of lift you are getting. The 7" on the other hand is equivalent to having a 3" spacer on top of the 4.5" lift. This will throw your camber and caster off and you may or may not run out of adjustment on your alignment cam bolts(that's one reason you would want aftermarket ucas). Either way I don't see why aftermarket ucas wouldn't work on either kit. The only problem I can think of that you might run into would be over compensation on the camber/caster that is built into the aftermarket ucas if you were to use them on the 4.5" lift. Is that the problem you ran into or is it something else?
     
  6. Apr 5, 2017 at 2:15 PM
    #36
    trayday

    trayday New Member

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    I have the 7" and ive seen CL posts with people running into the same problems with the 4.5"
    20170325_152845.jpg
     
  7. Apr 5, 2017 at 6:32 PM
    #37
    SikYota

    SikYota New Member

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    7" bds suspension lift with fox coilovers 37/13.50r20 cooper discover stt pros 20x10 -24 fuel mavericks with machined faces Nitro 4.88 gears Ekstrom design tie rod ends Zone carrier bearing drop Amp research steps Retrax pro bed cover http://www.gearinstalls.com/Chris2014Tundra.htm http://www.gearinstalls.com/Chris2014Tundrafront9.htm https://youtu.be/2P3yKKwG1ig
    I'm still not real sure what the problem your having is? Can you not meet specs even with the tc ucas installed? Or is it an actual physical fitment issue with the bds steering knuckles?
     
  8. Apr 5, 2017 at 6:37 PM
    #38
    TwoMoreChains

    TwoMoreChains New Member

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  9. Apr 5, 2017 at 7:06 PM
    #39
    trayday

    trayday New Member

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    Cant meet specs with the UCAs and the BDS lift. The OEM uppers work fine with the the BDS lifts, not aftermarket unless used with heim joints because of the extra adjustability at the end of the arms that the Icon billet arms have. TC has adjustable arms as well.
     
  10. Apr 5, 2017 at 7:14 PM
    #40
    SikYota

    SikYota New Member

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    7" bds suspension lift with fox coilovers 37/13.50r20 cooper discover stt pros 20x10 -24 fuel mavericks with machined faces Nitro 4.88 gears Ekstrom design tie rod ends Zone carrier bearing drop Amp research steps Retrax pro bed cover http://www.gearinstalls.com/Chris2014Tundra.htm http://www.gearinstalls.com/Chris2014Tundrafront9.htm https://youtu.be/2P3yKKwG1ig
    Oh ok so the tc arms actually had too much camber/caster built in for the 7" bds kit. That's good info to know. Are you running the fox coilovers?
     
  11. Apr 5, 2017 at 7:58 PM
    #41
    trayday

    trayday New Member

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    There's been multiple people that's ran into my same problem from not getting heim joints and some shops will say that there is no aftermarket uppers that work with BDS. Current is Bilstein 5100s and waiting for a call back about ADS coilovers.
     
    SikYota[QUOTED] likes this.
  12. Apr 6, 2017 at 7:39 AM
    #42
    csuviper

    csuviper [OP] Moderator Staff Member

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    Some Mods :) See build thread for details
    Guys from the Total Chaos website:

    OPTIONAL HEIM PIVOT UPGRADE

    • TC includes 3/4" chromoly heim joints for the pivots.
    • Heim upper control arms are fully adjustable to allow maximum tuning of caster and camber.
    • Designed for use on 6" or higher drop bracket lift kits.
    [​IMG]
     
    Beesta, tundra_20 and trayday like this.
  13. Apr 15, 2017 at 7:54 AM
    #43
    trayday

    trayday New Member

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    I've had the TC UCAs on for a few weeks now. The daily, normal driving i haven't experienced much of a difference besides alignment specs. Off road these things are a huge improvement over the stock arms! I can cruise across the desert at a higher speed and take bumps a little bit faster but the most noticeable improvement is when absorbing the impact when coming back down. With the stock arms, the hits felt like it was doing damage to the truck and myself from the impact. Now the impact is smooth and i haven't felt that hard hit yet, it's more spongy. I've got all 4 wheels off the ground and the landing was comfortable.
     
  14. Jul 9, 2017 at 6:22 PM
    #44
    BlueBottle

    BlueBottle not a PRO

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    See fine print
    Pros and cons w spc and camburg ball joint version? Does one have more travel than another? They are similar in price.

    *edit for a 3" lift it that matters any.
     
  15. Jul 9, 2017 at 7:03 PM
    #45
    zcarpenter92

    zcarpenter92 Yotas and Yellow Jackets

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    @Hattori highly recommends the Camburgs.
     
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  16. Jul 9, 2017 at 7:40 PM
    #46
    BlueBottle

    BlueBottle not a PRO

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    Then camburgs it is lol
     
  17. Jul 9, 2017 at 7:52 PM
    #47
    zcarpenter92

    zcarpenter92 Yotas and Yellow Jackets

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    Ha he convinced me on them as well. When my lift goes on that's what it'll have.
     
  18. Sep 2, 2017 at 5:18 PM
    #48
    OBXTundra

    OBXTundra Member

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    Anyone running these....
    http://jbaoffroad.com/toyota/tundra/jba-hd-upper-a-arms-for-lifted-toyota-tundra.html

    A friend of mine just put a set on his 5th Gen 4Runner. He researches things to the moon and back and settled on these. The set for the Tundra looks nice. I will be doing UCA's soon. These may be the ones. I want to stay away from Uni-ball because I'm not building a desert truck, don't want the frequent maintenance, and don't want the higher replacement cost. I want a UCA that has a ball joint that is found on most parts store shelves.
     
  19. Sep 5, 2017 at 4:57 PM
    #49
    OBXTundra

    OBXTundra Member

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    I know when this thread was initially created the JBA's weren't available yet. No one has these babies?


    JBA.jpg
     
    Medinasmoke likes this.
  20. Dec 28, 2017 at 7:58 PM
    #50
    Jim760

    Jim760 New Member

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    Maxtrac 3.5" lift spindles 5100 Bilsteins shocks
    Hello,
    I'm new to this page so forgive me if this question was already addressed.

    My current setup is a 2012 tundra 2 wd with maxtrac 3.5" lift spindles paired with the Bilsteins 5100 set at 2" of lift and a 1" lift spacer. I recently purchased the procomp pro runner upper control arms and installed them but now they can't get my alignment within specs. The main issue is the camber, it's way negative and they have a hard time getting it to positive. Previous to the procomps UCA I had the tuff country UCA and I had the exact same issue. When I put the stock UCA back on they can align it just fine. Anyone know why this happens or has had experience with this issue?

    In addition I've called pro comp and they are no help. I've also called maxtrac and they say their UCA maintain factory mounting and specs so any UCA that works with stock setup should work with their spindles.
     
  21. Dec 28, 2017 at 8:50 PM
    #51
    trayday

    trayday New Member

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    Sounds like you need more adjustability on the arms.
     
    Last edited: Dec 28, 2017
  22. Jan 30, 2018 at 1:08 PM
    #52
    SullyMoto19

    SullyMoto19 New Member

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    8" ReadyLift w/ ReadyLift and Bilstein Adjustable Coilovers w/ Reservoirs, 3" PA Body Lift, Fox 2.0 Shocks, 24x14 RBP Atomics (custom powdercoat Gloss Black), 40x15.5r24 RBP Repulsor, Relentless Fabrication Stealth bumper, N-Fab side steps, Bedlined/Paintmatched Honeycomb Grill, 2019 LED Headlights, 4 Backlit RBG Cubes, 16 RGB PlashLight Rocklights, 5% Tint & Brow, 2 10" Kicker CVT Subs with Kicker Amp in custom sealed box, Husky all weather floor mats, LED White interior bulbs
    ive got the ready lift 8".. you think the Total Chaos would work? I think RL and BDS are pretty similar as they can both run OEM UCAs. We're both running 6''+ worth of lift with 37s so i would think theyd work. Was the joint the only thing you were having a problem with? thinking I may dive in and get these if I can get a good price.
     
  23. Jan 30, 2018 at 5:41 PM
    #53
    trayday

    trayday New Member

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    The ends of the arm's is where the problem was, they didn't have enough adjustment. TC with heim joint's should work.
     
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  24. Jan 31, 2018 at 10:18 PM
    #54
    KevinK

    KevinK SGU - High Speed Overlander

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  25. Mar 13, 2018 at 10:25 AM
    #55
    john_z

    john_z New Member

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    I have had the Pro comp uca's for less than a year and they've been a total pain in the butt. After a few months of mostly city driving, I started to get a clunking noise. Took a while to figure out that it was coming from the driver side uni-ball. After repeated conversations with a Pro comp tech who kept suggesting that I wasn't maintaining them properly, he finally sent me some new bearings. Had them installed but after only about a month, the clunking returned. Pro comp is once again suggesting user or installer error. Very frustrating considering the cost.
     
  26. Mar 15, 2018 at 8:27 AM
    #56
    01erionracing

    01erionracing KJ6RKU

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    I have SkyJacker 6" lift kit on the gen 2 with SJ taller steering knuckle and drop bracket that works with stock UCA. Now I am thinking to replace the stock UCA and wondering should I go with adjustable UCA or non adjustable? Would adjustable UCA gives too much caster/camber? Thanks.
     
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  27. Mar 15, 2018 at 9:46 AM
    #57
    01erionracing

    01erionracing KJ6RKU

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    Contacted Camburg and the person there said it works fine with non adjustable UCA.
     
  28. Mar 15, 2018 at 10:52 AM
    #58
    OBXTundra

    OBXTundra Member

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    I prefer the non-adjustable arms. I also prefer standard ball-joint for longevity, easy replacement, and easy maintenance. That's what all led me to the JBA's.

    JMHO, the adjustable upper ball joint is just one more thing to fail, and it's a proprietary part that an auto part store in town or out on the road won't have.
     
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  29. Mar 15, 2018 at 11:16 AM
    #59
    01erionracing

    01erionracing KJ6RKU

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    I have Camburg on my Gen 1 and shopping for the Gen 2. Have you tested the JBA UCA off road? Also how's compared to the stock UCA on road?
     
    Last edited: Mar 15, 2018
  30. Mar 15, 2018 at 12:20 PM
    #60
    trayday

    trayday New Member

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    I bought the non adjustable with my bracket lift and the camber couldn't come close to spec so I had them fab'd to be adjustable, it would have been easier to just buy adjustable arms. I've seen 3 used sales of non adjustable UCA's posted because they didn't work with bracket lifts.
     
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