To me, that looks like he's checking the clearance of the Waag to the rock, and from the angle of the tires, he's trying to get the passenger front tire up on that rock also.

Oleg's crouched down so he can get a better view, but his hand is held up high so the driver can still see him.

What do you see wrong in that picture??????

If you thought it was bad spotting at the time, why didn't you help a fellow X'er out, instead of just taking a picture of it???

What you don't see is what happened next.. oLeG directed him to where he was stuck on that rock. He did make it down under Olegs direction but he was scraping things left and right.

FYI.. the correct line was about four feet to the left as you are looking at the picture. The drivers side tire should have been where the rock you see about to impact the WAAG is. ANd it was possible to go down and up without touching any part of the Xterra to any rocks. (Ian did it right after Todd blew out his sidewall)

Thanks Rich,
Carlton, plz do tell me whats wrong with that picture

I was just trying to see if Waag will clear the rock, and i was giving hand signals to the driver, keeping my hand above his hood, so he can see it

and if i remember correctly He did not get stock on the rock, waag cleared it , and then he climb on it with a passenger side tire, just as i planed it

You directed him directly onto the rock. He was scraping parts all the way down. If you remember.. the correct line was about 4 feet to the left as you are looking to the picture.

I wasn't there, so I don't know the complete situation, but 4 feet to the left would have put the truck up on that slope, causing the truck to hit that rock off camber. From what I can see in the picture, I would have taken Oleg's line there. It's just my opinion, but I would rather be level and taking an obstacle, than off camber while taking it. If Ian made the line to the left, that's great. Ian is an experienced offroader, with a modified X. From the looks of that black X in the picture, he's pretty much stock, except for mabyee AT's

I apologize for taking this thread offtopic too, so back to the steering system....it works GREAT!!! I have a couple of pictures, but won't have them up till later tonight...I'm off to work now.

so back to the steering discussion please....

CArLton mcMIllaN (read caps )
yes he was scraping FRAME all the way down, so your point is ?

The correct line is the line that will get you down/up wiht out damage

Geting back to the stering topic
I was not able to install it on the camping this weekened, i will be doing it after i will replace my center link Again ;(, and probably idler arm, but seeing it on different trucks sure looks promising, and much cheaper then Carltons system , and Slr's system

The point is that you, after seeing the correct line which did not have any scraping, directed him away from that line..

Geting back to the steering topic..

Any pics of this stuff installed?

Plz refer to my definition of the correct line above

Here is the one on FSRBiker's truck, but I don't know any details. Sometimes simple is better.



Richard

Does it interfere with an idler arm brace?

After reading 01SalsaXterra (aka Ken) I see that he had a brace on his.

Hmm, so it's something smooth that sits on top of the centerlink forcing it to hit the frame and slide under stress (or stay in constant contact with it) rather than something that can catch.
Looks to me like a thin metal plate with a layer of plastic bored for the u-bolts and counter-sunk for the nuts and washers. That seems a bit crude, but if it works...

Brent

A) If you read Ken's message, he said he has an Idler Arm brace on his setup.

B) Let's see if we can keep this thread on topic shall we?

I would be willing to test one out on my Frontier for you. Just thought I would let you know. I am looking for a cheap fix to this problem. I will be getting one of the solutions soon. I would much rather spend the extra $300 on something else!

Hey Carlton
check this thread out

http://www.xterraownersclub.com/cgi-local/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=7;t=000147#000001

as well as this one

http://www.xterraownersclub.com/cgi-local/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=7;t=000148

are you two done with your bullsh*t yet?

Edit: Nevermind, I see you created that new one somewhere else - thank you. I didn't feel like reading it all so I thought it was more ammo being flung back and forth.

Okay, where were we?

I know it work Andy, I just want to get higher on the list to get one if it works out.

Some UHMW plastic could be bonded to the frame rail somehow (just an idea, havent figured that part out). This stuff is very smooth and extremely durable. It would allow sliding without impacting frame paint.

How are the U-Bolts secured?

Has anyone given any thought to what might happen if those u-bolts loosten up and lock your steering by allowing that block to move? That would be a bad thing to happen on the trail (esp. on something like Black Bear)

Your solution looks interesting. It will definatly keep the center link from twisting up.

The thing to remember with the stock Nissan center link is, the bushing will eventually wear even without twisting. This will still lead to some play in the steering. Also the pin is made from a some what soft material. Every center link I've changed has had a bent pin.

I'm am going to do a Rockwell test to see what the hardness of the pin is when I have a chance to go to our other facility. I'm guessing it is quite a bit softer than a Grade 8 bolt.

As for the frame rusting issue I doubt it will have much of an affect unless you park the truck for a while. The constant motion of the block will keep rust from forming.

Good luck with your solution to the problem.

HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA !!!

OMFG, what next ?

If you're going to try and stop rotation of the center link, at least try something besides a huge friction plate band-aid.

What ideas have you come with einstein? While it may some refinements it is a good idea to start with. Very simple design.

Why should I have to come up with a design ? I'm not a parts manufacturer.

I do have a background in mechanical design though, and that thing is a band-aid, a crutch, not a solution.

Hmm...simple & not too big on aesthetics.
One interesting consequence (intended?) of the design is that it prevents stress on the idler arm (both the arm itself & the idler arm pivot).
It basically appears to put most of the vertical force transferred via the tie rods onto the frame of the truck.
One thing, though: doesn't the centerlink translate up & down some small amount as the steering moves from one extreme to another?
EDIT: Doh! Nevermind; CL doesn't move up/down; rather fore and aft as XOC mentions below.

It won't stop tie-rod breakage, about the only thing that will is staying on the road and only going to the mall.

Tie-rods break or bend due to an impact of the wheel, forcing the tie-rod through a quick arc faster than the steering components can respond to it.