Just went back to look at the ad for the knuckles, and it said "have been machined to accept either normal high steer, or keyed arms".

Are there some kind of standard, non-keyed high steer arms? Sorry if that's a stupid question, but I'm a noob to this high steer thing.


Thanks blazenred, it's so much nicer working with new/like new parts. Makes everything go 10x smoother.

 

Generally most arm's have the same bolt pattern but I can't say for sure which ones are interchangeable. The issue you are going to have is that it's not uncommon to sheer the bolts due to force which is why they add a key to help take some of the force off the bolts but having the key machined and not filling that space is going to allow the arm to torque on the bolts in that open space even more than if it were two surfaces mated together and allow the boltsu to stretch and ultimately break. I would ask the seller if he knows who did the machining. Also if you could post some pics of the lettering on the arms perhaps I can help you identify them if they are aftermarket.

 

Contacted the seller, and he didn't know what brand, or who machined them, he got them thrown in with a complete axle he bought and had no need for them. If worst comes to worst, I could just mill my own, but hopefully I don't have to.


EDIT:from what I found researching, these are factory flat top knuckles off of a 70s wagoneer that have been machined. Looks like I'm not gonna be finding much info about what company's keys they are milled for.

 

Still a good find I think! Been searching for a set for some time and definitely don't want to pay 259 each for these things. Btw thanks for commenting on my build thread. Seems like you have a nice build going on over here as well

 

Thanks! Yeah they are pretty expensive, you might be able to find a pair of factory ones and have them machined yourself for cheaper.


Here's my progress as of last night:

Removed all front suspension components and front differential


Cut off shock mounts, differential mounts and control arm mounts off passenger side of frame with plasma cutter, and ground all the leftover metal away ( hours of grinding..)


Also cut off the leaf spring perch on the passenger side of the axle, but found out I need shorter u bolts before I can mock that up

Heading back to the shop I'm a few minutes.. will have more progress later

 

HAHAHAHAH yes all that grinding takes hours and hours of work. I have a little bit left to do still because I used up all my grinding discs. You have it a little easier since you're going with leaf springs up front. I'm having to cut part of my frame for the shock/coilover towers to fit nice and flush. Looks like you're getting it done though!

 

american1, thats going to be sweet with coils! a lot more work for sure though.

today i got the drivers side ifs brackets cut off, and started the fab/ assembly process from there.

cut the drivers side leaf spring perch so it fit over the casting for the differential for the spring over axle conversion(factory spring perch is part of the casting on that side)


notched the differential housing on the underside of the axle to cradle the U bolt.

ill take this time to mention that i found my u bolts were too long, and was only able to find 2 correct size ones locally without ordering them. so drivers side u bolt plate is shimmed temporarily.

with that being said, u bolts were snugged with leafs and new perches on while making sure the leaf springs were square. i will set pinion angle later on and weld perches once i do.


moved on to fabing my front leaf spring hanger. i already had the leaf spring brackets from Ruffstuff so i took my 2x4 rectangular tubing (1/4"wall) and cut it down to 36", set it on the brackets which i had tightened to the leafs, and after a bunch of adjustments i clamped it all together, removed the hanger from the leafs, and tack welded everything in place



went back and test fit again, and welded it all up. I'm a little disappointed in my welds, but they certainly arent going anywhere.



now i was ready to mount it back to the leafs, and test fit it on the frame




got it centered, and squared with the frame. clamped it in, everything looked good and i was ready to weld








tomorrows another day, and ill get the outriggers fabed up, shackle hangers on, and the truck sitting on its own weight again.

 

Got my shackle hangers welded up,


Bolted up the hangers to the leafs, made a pattern for my outriggers, cut them out of 1/4 inch plate, and clamped them in place.


Tacked the shackle hangers to the outriggers, tested the fit, then pulled them off to weld them fully, and reinstalled them.


All the way through I was checking my shackle angle to keep it where I wanted(set 89 degrees with no weight on it)


Ground the frame down to bare metal around where my outriggers were going to mount up, and after double and triple checking my mesurements and shackle angles I tacked them in place, put weight on the front end to make sure the shackles rotated the way they should and everything was square still. And then I welded them right up.


Still have to gusset the outriggers on the inside of the frame, and do some final details, but here she sits right now.



Hooked the steering up temporally just so I can move it out of the shop for the week. using the wagoneer pitman arm. Wheels turn left when you turn the steering wheel right and vice versa because I put the stock steering box back in for now . But will be getting Astro box soon, and doing high steer conversion.

Can't believe I finally have a solid front axle under my blazer now...Been talking about doing it for a long time now, and it's finally a reality. . Still a ton of work ahead of me, but it's a start

 

You're starting to make me feel like I'm not accomplishing much :P Now you need to go find some bigger tires. I'm trying to go with 37"x16.5 HMMWV Tires myself. Btw I'm fairly jealous of that fancy lift you got in your shop...Also, looks like you might be trying to go too fast or doing something funny in the movement of your puddle in your welds. They all look fairly decent from what I could see, other than a little undercut on a couple of your butt joints. Just my 2 cents/observations. I haven't actually been welding that long. Took a class to get started but picking it up fairly well I believe...

 

Haha don't feel bad, my blazer sat for almost 9 months with no progress last year. I put in about 35 hours in the last 3 days though lol.

I definitely have some practice to do with heavy metal welding... Most of what I do is low voltage, low wire speed welding sheet metal patches in classic cars. Thanks for the input. I'll have to sit down and practice a bunch with scraps.

My buddy had those tires and wasn't too fond of them. They are super thick and puncture resistant, and affordable at that....But on the downside they are heavy as all hell, and terrible in snow(not that that would be an issue in NC...But in upstate NY that is a deal breaker for me lol) and not the best in mud either. Also were very difficult for him to get balanced...Never quite got them right. Just things to consider before you grab a set.

I'm definitely grateful to have the lift available to me. Makes everything alot easier.