hydro-assit vs full hydro

[aggielr]

i want to move the front axle forward 3 or 4 inches, but i don't know what i should do about the steering, if i go hyrdo-assist, then i still have to move the gear box and if i go full hydro then i just have to mount the ram, but full hyrdo has its drawbacks also, what are ya'lls opinions?

[Krawler68]

Go full hydro, but DON'T go with a single ended ram... they put WAY too much force on steering arms... Spend the money to get a cool double ended ram and have a professional mount it.

If you go full hydro make sure that all your Char-Lynn valve, pump, dist. valve (right name?), and ram are valved the same... if they aren't you could have A LOT of problems on your hand. I would suggest gutting an old tractor.

[robertf03]

3" wont be a problem for high steer arms. I've seen it done on daily drivers without high steer

oh, and jackasses, hydraulic assist is a factory option, you're talking about ram assist. get it right you morons

[aggielr]

sorry, and if i move the front axle forward 3", then it makes the drag link point more forward rather than parrell to the tie rod, and i found a tractor junk yard kindna near my house, so that's where i got the idea, i could use all that **** and get it for real cheap

[Cajun]

If this is going to be a trail only rig, go full hydro. I don't know what sort of axle you're running up front, but you'll probably want to beef up the knuckles, especially if it's not a 1 ton front. Proceeding along this line of thought, you'll be fine with a single ended ram. While not as bling bling as a double, it works, and it's a helluva lot cheaper. Your steering won't be balanced, that is it'll take more turns one way than the other, but it's just a matter of getting used to it.

If it's going to see street time, go ram assist.

[aggielr]

it'll have limited street drivin, mostly around town, just to have something w/ no top on nice days, and i'm using a scout d44 front w chevy knuckles

[Krawler68]

Hal's single ended ram actually broke his steering arm. I have never heard of such complaints from double ended ram.

I would most definetely suggest double ended ram...everyone that has done full-hydro that I've talked to has prefered it.

Full hydro single or double isn't that bad on the street.

[Cajun]

Originally posted by Krawler68
Hal's single ended ram actually broke his steering arm. I have never heard of such complaints from double ended ram.

Hal's single ended ram didn't break his steering arm. What broke Hal's steering arm was the psi that the ram produced. It doesn't matter if it's single ended, double ended, or has 17 ends. He's lucky it didn't break his knuckle.

As for street driving, I'm not saying it's bad. Hell, it's probably an improvement over some of our current setups. The CJ I had in high school had a 1/4 turn of play in the wheel. If anyone asked to drive my Jeep, they only did it once.

What is true about full hydro is that as you step up to larger volume pumps and more powerful rams, it tends to become very sensitive to steering wheel input. Not so bad around town, but it is exaggerated by highway speeds. Also, if you are found to be the cause of a wreck you open yourself up to a lot of liability, as the DOT jury is still out on it's legality AFAIK.

[Krawler68]

My impression is that if the ram isn't spaced properly it will exert more force on an arm than a double ended euivalent... This is merely knowledge imparted on me by individuals who actually run double ended rams and may have been trying to "smear" the good name of single ended rams... who knows...I just went assist... because I'm a big *****...

[Cajun]

I see what you're saying, I just don't understand why that would be true. My understanding of the advantage of a double-ended ram was that it was balanced, the same # of turns from center to lock both ways. A single ended ram is is different "pushing" than "pulling".

I just don't see why the "pushing" force exerted by a single ended ram would be any different than a double ended one.
However, I'm hardly the expert on this, and have no first hand knowledge.

[Chadnutz]

Do they push and pull at the same time?

[aggielr]

Doug, how much did they charge for the ram-assist? Im kinda leanin toward that because if something does go wrong i still have some steering ability

and if i do go full hydro, then i'll probably just buy all new parts because i don't want something to break and be w/out steering whatsoever

[Krawler68]

if you go full hydro all you'de really NEED new were a ram and hoses... the rest is pretty bulletproof.

I can't really say what Matt charged me for my assist steering, but I think the standard price for a steering box rebuild, porting, hoses, ram, and mounting brackets is something like $450... check their website...

www.westtexasoffroad.com

I'd highly recommend them for this... EVERYONE who has actually used them LOVES Matt the owner, and has thought REALLY highly of his work.

[Chadnutz]

$450 ain't too bad.

[aggielr]

i think i'm goin to go ram assist, i emailed him yesterday, and i'm goin to send him my gear box and pump and just buy the whole kit rather than try to piece it together