Heim joints in place of factory tie rods???

[1995yukon65]

Hey guys and gal, ive been playing with this idea for a while and want your opinion on whether this is a good idea or just a waste of time. I would like to replace my factory tierods and ends with heim joints, and get the pitman and idler arm braces that nor-cal sells. How hard do you think this would be and do you think it would be worth the effort? Thanks for any advice

 

[Chicago TDP]

The Flaming River Rack and Pinion that is on my race car is has Heim joints on the end.

The issue with then as a normal vehicle is that there is no way to protect the joint. With a "ball" joint, the ball is located in the pocket of the tie rod and bathed in grease and protected by the rubber boot.

In climates where there is salt, you will experience corrosion which is going to lead to failure and then a bigger problem, no steering as the heim joint separates.

 

[davo727]

Seems to me the tie rod ends last a long time, its the idler and pitman that go out quick. I bet with the parts from norcaltruck dot com that you would be good to go.

I dont think there is much benefit in getting away from the factory tie rod ends.

http://www.norcaltruck.com/shop/index.php?cPath=2_385&osCsid=15983da0acd04613472961e0765f2212

 

[Missy Good Wench]

The factory joints have a much better seal setup and are designed to work in the mud the crud and the slop.

Far cheaper (factory ends) plus you would need a way to secure the Hiem joints as solid as the factory ends.

Safety is of course of the utmost importance.

I think that you will find that the cost of doing a good job with the hiem joints is gonna cost some serious $$$$$


MGW