Magnumforce K-Member

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Duster

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Hi Guys

Does anybody has a Magnumforce K member and suspension in a A-boby? What is the handling, rigidity, steering like? What other alternative is there. Thank you for your feedback.

Robert
 
Most people stay away from the magnumforce K member, and opt for the AlterKation setup (which is the one I'll getting so, Tax returns a comin!!!). For more info on how it rides talk to AbodyJoe, he has both the front (RMS's AlterKation and RMS's Street Lynx setup).
 
So funny, I just made a thread in the suspension forum about Alterkation vs Magnumforce like a half hour ago! In my opinion Alterkation gets the win by far. They both drive amazing but the Magnumforce requires some serious bracing that has to be welded in so it doesn't destroy your unibody.
 
BadAss71 said:
So funny, I just made a thread in the suspension forum about Alterkation vs Magnumforce like a half hour ago! In my opinion Alterkation gets the win by far. They both drive amazing but the Magnumforce requires some serious bracing that has to be welded in so it doesn't destroy your unibody.
Click to expand...

You know I just read your thread about this and was looking for it so I could post it here but you beat me to it.
 
Pic says a 1000 words......



Pic lifted from another forum in which a similar questioned was asked.
 

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rjsjea said:
Pic says a 1000 words......



Pic lifted from another forum in which a similar questioned was asked.
Click to expand...

I would be PISSED!! to the makers of magnumforce :thebirdm: I wouldn't buy anything besides alterkation if I could afford either
 
Quote:
Originally Posted by rjsjea
Pic says a 1000 words......



Pic lifted from another forum in which a similar questioned was asked.

I would be PISSED!! to the makers of magnumforce :thebirdm: I wouldn't buy anything besides alterkation if I could afford either
Click to expand...

I don't see where the pic tells what K-member is in that cuda? ...I'm all ears on this one as I am planning a purchase of a fab K-member just haven't decided on which one yet.

I have talked to someone who had some issues with the CAP and a duster/big block combo so I'm a bit skiddish on that one.
 
66plyValiant said:
I would be PISSED!! to the makers of magnumforce :thebirdm: I wouldn't buy anything besides alterkation if I could afford either
Click to expand...

mopardude318 said:
HAHAHA. That's sad...Magnum Farce is JUNK...
Click to expand...

No info on what happened, no explanation, no link. The installer could have been a blind man with a MIG. For that matter, from this thread alone there's no proof that's actually a Magnumforce K-member.

I have Magnumforce dropped spindles on my car. They are high quality, well made pieces. I've seen their control arms, also quality pieces. I'd want to know the whole story before I started bashing. Installing a piece like the Magnumforce K member requires some significant fabrication skills, if it's done incorrectly it could easily lead to failure. If, of course, that's even what we're looking at.
 
Another pic......

PS-I'm not anti-MF just posted a pic for the OP to decide, I had their uppers on another vehicle. Zero issues with em.
 

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rjsjea said:
Another pic......

PS-I'm not anti-MF just posted a pic for the OP to decide, I had their uppers on another vehicle. Zero issues with em.
Click to expand...


Interesting. Do you have any more pictures? It looks like the LCA separated from the K member at its mounting location, looks like the lower Heim joint dragging on the ground there. I'd be interested in seeing if the mount actually came off the K frame, or if the Heim just failed. Or maybe the installer screwed up on mounting the LCA. Unfortunately, no manufacturing process is perfect, and sometimes you get imperfections in the process that can lead to bad heim joints, weak tubing, etc. But based on that picture, it looks like the failure happened right at the LCA pivot point. If the heim failed, its hardly Magnumforces fault. Same if the LCA pivot wasn't torqued to spec. Now, if the pivot mount ripped off the K member, that's a different story.

Even if it was the K-member that failed, I'd be more interested in how Magnumforce handled it. Some imperfections are inevitable, this is true of all aftermarket and even factory parts. This is the first failure of Magnumforce parts I've heard of, and if they stood up and replaced the necessary parts I don't think I'd hold it against them.
 
Looks like a product failure to me. That is definitely a Magnumforce unit. Just one more reason to buy the Alterkation.
 
BadAss71 said:
Looks like a product failure to me. That is definitely a Magnumforce unit. Just one more reason to buy the Alterkation.
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So, what failed exactly? From the picture, its impossible to tell if the Heim joint failed (not Magnumforce's fault), if the pivot bolt failed (not Magnumforce's fault), if the installer botched the LCA installation (not Magnumforce's fault), or if the LCA pivot bracket failed (ok, that one is Magnumforce's fault).

And yes, its definitely a Magnumforce K member. Don't misunderstand me, I'm not advocating for or against Magnumforce's K member. I don't have one installed in my car, and I'm not best friends or anything with anyone at Magnumforce. The Alterkation set up is a great way to go.

But before everyone on the forum writes off Magnumforce, it would be nice to actually have some kind of evidence, or information on the failure. It seems to me, at least from that last picture, that there's a good chance that Magnumforce's K-member design and construction had nothing to do with the failure. RMS could just as easily get a bad batch of heim joints or pivot bolts, or have someone botch the installation.

I mentioned it already, but how Magnumforce dealt with the failure is probably more useful information. If they stood up and replaced all the necessary parts, covered the damages, or in general had good customer service considering what actually happened, that's just as or more important than the failure in and of itself. Any manufacturer can get a bad batch of Heim joints, pivot bolts, or even flawed steel tubing. How they deal with the customer after the fact is what will really separate the different manufacturer's. I know from what I've seen here that Bill over at RMS is a stand up guy, and that by itself is a big reason to go with RMS as a manufacturer. But we aren't getting the whole story here, and based on the information that's here Magnumforce does not deserve a write off.

I sent an email to Magnumforce with a link to this thread, maybe they'll come over and explain their side of the story here.
 
Installing a piece like the Magnumforce K member requires some significant fabrication skills
Click to expand...

Other than if you opted for the use of a motor plate instead of motor mounts(which was my plan) what "fabrication skills" are needed? as far as I see it's a bolt-in deal isn't it??

Not counting assembly of course.
 
Duster said:
Hi Guys

Does anybody has a Magnumforce K member and suspension in a A-boby? What is the handling, rigidity, steering like? What other alternative is there. Thank you for your feedback.

Robert
Click to expand...


before i had my alter-k i would read and follow all the threads i could find on tube front ends. the entire time i never heard one bad thing about the alter-k. everyone had nothing but good things to say about the installation, the function and the customer service.

at the time i did see quite a few bad posts about the magnumforce set up. guys complained about it not fitting properly, the geometry being off and it not driving right and early on bad welds. haven't really heard about bad welds in a while now. i have a friend that went through three magnumforce k-frames before he got one to fit properly. again that was a while ago so i don't know if that part has gotten any better over the years. the other thing is the magnum force uses the stock shock towers to suppoer the entire weight of the car. thats no good. they were never meant to do so. the frame rails tend to twist with use. i know a guy with a cuda that has had that problem. the fender to hood gaps have opened up over use because of using the shock towers to support all the weight. they do now sell a brace that runs from the fire wall to the frame rails to stifen things up but thats pretty much a band aid for it in my opinion. i see that magnum force is now using a modified mustang spindle now so i'm sure that helps in the geometry dept over the earlier ones.


after reading all those posts i decided that i wanted the alter-k. i ended up meeting bill at RMS for the first time at the mopar nats in 2001 i think it was?. i asked him a few questions and he explained how everything worked, showed me on his lap top right there why it works so well. we talked for quite a while. he didn't know me, didn't know if i would ever buy a system and he still spent all that time explaining it all to me. took me a few years but i finally got mine. put it in the car just before carlisle in 2006. its been awesome. practically fell into the car it was so easy to install. i couldn't be happier with it. when he says its a true in he means a true bolt in.


there are a lot of street driven alter-k equipped cars out there. and a tone of track cars with the alter-k in them and i still haven't seen anyone have a bad thing to say about the system. i like real world feedback from people that actually use a product. when i see something i want i will follow any posts i can find on the product, it hasn't failed me yet.. :)

give them a call Phone - 570-443-7440 . bill will answer any questions you may have.
 
The only car I ever worked on with an alter k had a broken tie rod tube. This is the part that is welded to the steering arm to make up the height difference between the outer tie rod and the steering arm. Fortunately its through bolted which saved the loss of steering...
 
GMachineDartGT said:
The only car I ever worked on with an alter k had a broken tie rod tube. This is the part that is welded to the steering arm to make up the height difference between the outer tie rod and the steering arm. Fortunately its through bolted which saved the loss of steering...
Click to expand...


and how was the issue resolved? did RMS make things right?
 
They did. Bill swapped the knuckle for a new on right away.

I like to AlterK, but the cast/forged knuckle with the steering arm welded to it seems like it could be a weak point. As with any aftermarket system your safetly relies solely on the welds. Every time I've seen an aftermarket system fail, its been because of poor welds.
 
http://forums.moparmusclemagazine.c...alterkation-or-magnumforce-k-frame/index.html


Hmmmm.......... is this a bit of info on our mystery cuda?

the last post on the page.


Edit: Why didn't I just copy & paste this in the first place?............


I used the AlterKation on my 72 Road Runner and it is great, no problems at all. I was at Goodguys Lone Star in October and met a guy with a silver cuda that was really upset with the magnumforce set-up he was backing in to a parking spot and a pin had shirred off on the a-frame.
 
abodyjoe said:
before i had my alter-k i would read and follow all the threads i could find on tube front ends. the entire time i never heard one bad thing about the alter-k. everyone had nothing but good things to say about the installation, the function and the customer service.

at the time i did see quite a few bad posts about the magnumforce set up. guys complained about it not fitting properly, the geometry being off and it not driving right and early on bad welds. haven't really heard about bad welds in a while now. i have a friend that went through three magnumforce k-frames before he got one to fit properly. again that was a while ago so i don't know if that part has gotten any better over the years. the other thing is the magnum force uses the stock shock towers to suppoer the entire weight of the car. thats no good. they were never meant to do so. the frame rails tend to twist with use. i know a guy with a cuda that has had that problem. the fender to hood gaps have opened up over use because of using the shock towers to support all the weight. they do now sell a brace that runs from the fire wall to the frame rails to stifen things up but thats pretty much a band aid for it in my opinion. i see that magnum force is now using a modified mustang spindle now so i'm sure that helps in the geometry dept over the earlier ones.


after reading all those posts i decided that i wanted the alter-k. i ended up meeting bill at RMS for the first time at the mopar nats in 2001 i think it was?. i asked him a few questions and he explained how everything worked, showed me on his lap top right there why it works so well. we talked for quite a while. he didn't know me, didn't know if i would ever buy a system and he still spent all that time explaining it all to me. took me a few years but i finally got mine. put it in the car just before carlisle in 2006. its been awesome. practically fell into the car it was so easy to install. i couldn't be happier with it. when he says its a true in he means a true bolt in.


there are a lot of street driven alter-k equipped cars out there. and a tone of track cars with the alter-k in them and i still haven't seen anyone have a bad thing to say about the system. i like real world feedback from people that actually use a product. when i see something i want i will follow any posts i can find on the product, it hasn't failed me yet.. :)

give them a call Phone - 570-443-7440 . bill will answer any questions you may have.
Click to expand...
X2 in this.I went the alter-k route. Mark
 
Every aftermarket R&P system I've seen seems to increase the turning radius over stock. Do either of these manufactureres NOT do this?
The reason I ask is, with my current project I went back to the stock K-member/steering box for ease of installation and smaller turning radius. I saw no reason to create problems when it SEEMS all these aftermarket systems cause a problem of some sort....
 
hemicop said:
Every aftermarket R&P system I've seen seems to increase the turning radius over stock. Do either of these manufactureres NOT do this?
The reason I ask is, with my current project I went back to the stock K-member/steering box for ease of installation and smaller turning radius. I saw no reason to create problems when it SEEMS all these aftermarket systems cause a problem of some sort....
Click to expand...


i'm sure you lose a little radius with the alter-k but i have never had any problems turning into anyplace or parking. not sure how tight you actually need to turn. i've never had to turn so far that its ever been a problem. don't know what other kinds of problems you have heard about the systems but i can tell you have never driven or even ridden in a car with an alter-k in it.
 
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