Anyone ever break a SBJ spindle at the upper BJ taper?

[Dezduster]

I'm considering going with the Bergman upper A arm with the ½" taller BJ that has the larger shank as I don't think Hotchkis is doing well enough to worry about my upper A arms.
I do some off road stuff also and it's common to use a tapered ream to go from a half ton tie rod ends to one ton, at the steering arm and at the steering knuckles, it's also common in the circle track community and those forms of motorsports are extremely hard on parts and I don't see them breaking in those areas often if ever without heavy collision.

 

[autoxcuda]

I don't see it as a issue.

I've seen plenty of bent 1/2" taller ball joint shanks when I crewed circle track racing. Many times the tubular A-arm bent or snapped before the pin completely broke. Actually I can recall a broken pin. But plenty of bent and broken UCA and LCA's ! Bent front clips, etc etc.

Are you committed to Small Bolt pattern brakes and/or rims financially or something ?

 

[junkyardhero]

i've certainly seen (and done) some ball joint & suspension seat reaming, so i'm not gonna say no. but i don't know if i'd do it on the small upper ball joint spindle, there just isn't a ton of material there.

on the small joint set i have there's between .38~.48" of meat from the OD to the outside, compared to the big joint there is .50" or more all the way around.

so i guess the question is, how much would be left after reaming and are you comfortable with that amount of material?

like steve said, you're much more likely to bend an upper or kink a lower before breaking out a joint but i don't know if i'd be brave enough to test that theory.

 

[Dezduster]

I don't see it as a issue.

I've seen plenty of bent 1/2" taller ball joint shanks when I crewed circle track racing. Many times the tubular A-arm bent or snapped before the pin completely broke. Actually I can recall a broken pin. But plenty of bent and broken UCA and LCA's ! Bent front clips, etc etc.

Are you committed to Small Bolt pattern brakes and/or rims financially or something ?

It's an H code car, I have the factory wheels as well as a set of centerlines and all of this stuff functions well. Financially I'm not loaded and I'm not hurting either, I don't want to be so I try and make do. I know I won't be competitive in cone killer events, but it will have to be better than it was with 225-65-15 bfg ecentia gt tires and the 275-65-15 bfg drag T/As oh and that was with a 24:1 steering box and I had a blast with that set up. Finished second out of 9 newbies and lost to a new Mustang by two seconds. the other cars were a mix of newer daily drivers.
AND now I'm going to say it, and I hate to admit it, but I want the easy button, I'm tired of the fight to get what I pay for and often end up disappointed with some products even when there isn't a problem with supply or the products reliability. Maybe I'm just impatient to drive it after twenty years, I don't know.

 

[junkyardhero]

given the above, personally i'd switch it out to big bolt pattern. the difference in price and availability of parts is considerable; and the BBP stuff enjoys a robust aftermarket of upgrade components that are relatively inexpensive in comparison.

take all the stock stuff, bag it, tag it and stash it under the workbench for the next owner or if you wanna change it back.

if it was just a burger cruiser, i'd say ream it and roll with it. but considering that you're essentially tracking the car the upgrade starts to make more sense.

 

[MidnightSwinger]

I don’t like the SBP stuff. It was designed for a smaller/lighter/more narrow commuter cars. I know the pics aren’t really related to your question but just to illustrate my point. The SBP stuff is just small, and I’d be worried personally to remove any material from the puny LBJ/knuckle.

If you want to drive it like it should be driven, it’s worth the upgrade to the BBP brakes/knuckle/steering components. I’ve got the 11.75” kit from @DoctorDiff and it’s the best value out there. You won’t be disappointed and Cass has customer service on lock down.

I went with CPP for the upper arms but I should have gone with @BergmanAutoCraft like I did on the lower Delrin bushings and control arm plates.

There is no easy button in life, everything is a compromise. I think it’s well worth the money and effort in this instance.

 

[autoxcuda]

It's an H code car, I have the factory wheels as well as a set of centerlines and all of this stuff functions well. Financially I'm not loaded and I'm not hurting either, I don't want to be so I try and make do. I know I won't be competitive in cone killer events, but it will have to be better than it was with 225-65-15 bfg ecentia gt tires and the 275-65-15 bfg drag T/As oh and that was with a 24:1 steering box and I had a blast with that set up. Finished second out of 9 newbies and lost to a new Mustang by two seconds. the other cars were a mix of newer daily drivers.
AND now I'm going to say it, and I hate to admit it, but I want the easy button, I'm tired of the fight to get what I pay for and often end up disappointed with some products even when there isn't a problem with supply or the products reliability. Maybe I'm just impatient to drive it after twenty years, I don't know.

I should have been more clear. I didn't mean that kind of financially committed. I meant like you've just or already spent money on rims and/or fancy brakes and didn't want to switch out a bunch of fresh stuff to go large bolt pattern. You avatar pic shows a minilite looking 17-18" rim.

I don't see anything wrong staying small bolt pattern as long as you're satisfied with the rims and brakes. And I think stock 4 piston will be fine for autocross.

 

[Dezduster]

Great news I received an e mail from Hotchkis.
"Hello, the Bill Sharp email was hacked, I will send this over to shipping and see about parts for you as we should have those almost ready to roll. Thanks"
So the spindle reaming is off. I know the small bolt stuff is not great but it's what I have and I'm keeping it for now if not always on this car.
The wheel is a T/A Super lite 17x8 I haven't bought the wheels yet. That's a dinged one that has been machined to 5.25" back space for fitment.