Kmod arms/heim joints

[Yaeger34]

I bought some used Kmod 37 a arms. Every single heim joint that connects to the spindles is extremely loose. I am talking 1/8" or more of play. The arms also came with a spare upper that I was told had only 100 miles before he bent it. That one even has the heim joint loose 1/32". Just curious if anyone else has had this problem?

 

[richracer1]

I bought some used Kmod 37 a arms. Every single heim joint that connects to the spindles is extremely loose. I am talking 1/8" or more of play. The arms also came with a spare upper that I was told had only 100 miles before he bent it. That one even has the heim joint loose 1/32". Just curious if anyone else has had this problem?

Did you get the inserts with the arms? Kevin sells the arms with inserts that go inside of the ball joints (there are no heim joints on KMOD arms) that the bolt goes through.

Here's a pic of Kmod arms with the spacers circled that I'm referring too.

 

[Yaeger34]

Yep got the inserts. It's the actual ball on ball joint that are worn and loose with a lot of slop. Got new ones on the way, just curious if I will have the same issue again.

 

[mountainhorse]

Which shock and shock lenght (exactly) did the sled these came off of use??

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[Yaeger34]

It was a pro and it's now on a pro, I guess I'm just assuming it was the stock length. But that's a good questionight. Maybe that could have bwent the reason.

 

[mountainhorse]

What year pro??

Longer shocks than intended can have a deleterious effect on the ball-joints...

The ball joints on the K-mod arms, to my knowledge, are not prone to premature wear when used as designed.

I've seen this type of slop on quite a few narrow fronts, of differing brand, when too long of shocks have been used... it puts too much stress on the ball at a more extreme angle.

It would be good to find out.

With the K-Mod arms, you should be running the 2013/14/15 Pro Rmk length shock at 16.68" (eye-center to eye-center)... and you will be in the sweet spot.


Of course... it could be something else all together ... but this is a good thing to check into.





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[LoudHandle]

Improper installation / removal is my bet

Pressing / hammering them in or out via the ball will destroy them also.

When installing or un-installing the ball joints they should be pressed on at the outer race.

By applying force to the ball you effectively loosen the factory swage that holds the ball in place, or extrude the Teflon lining to a point of uselessness.

 

[tdbaugha]

He bought them from me. I was running proper length Raptor shocks and never installed/uninstalled the ball joints.

I guess I am hard on stuff. Regardless, new ones are super cheap, less than half the cost of polaris ones (darn near 1/4 the cost), so for a few bucks you can get brand new ones.

 

[LoudHandle]

He bought them from me. I was running proper length Raptor shocks and never installed/uninstalled the ball joints.

I guess I am hard on stuff. Regardless, new ones are super cheap, less than half the cost of polaris ones (darn near 1/4 the cost), so for a few bucks you can get brand new ones.

If they are that cheap, they are a garbage ball joint and I would source replacements from a quality manufacture of ball joints. You get what you pay for and garbage in equals garbage out plus the pain in the azz of changinging them out way too often.

 

[tdbaugha]

If they are that cheap, they are a garbage ball joint and I would source replacements from a quality manufacture of ball joints. You get what you pay for and garbage in equals garbage out plus the pain in the azz of changinging them out way too often.

Kevin builds hundreds of sets so he can get a pretty good price. And he extends that good price to his customers.

I'll bet they are just as good or higher quality than the Polaris ones that retail for $50. Polaris probably doesn't pay more than $2 for them. I worked there, you'd crap your pants if you saw what "cost" is on parts.

 

[ZRP Engineering]

Kevin builds hundreds of sets so he can get a pretty good price. And he extends that good price to his customers.

I'll bet they are just as good or higher quality than the Polaris ones that retail for $50. Polaris probably doesn't pay more than $2 for them. I worked there, you'd crap your pants if you saw what "cost" is on parts.

A couple Hundred ball joints is a drop in the bucket to ball joint manufacturers, you don't get a good for that volume. If you custom order a ball joint, the minimum amount is typically 500

 

[LoudHandle]

Kevin builds hundreds of sets so he can get a pretty good price. And he extends that good price to his customers.

I'll bet they are just as good or higher quality than the Polaris ones that retail for $50. Polaris probably doesn't pay more than $2 for them. I worked there, you'd crap your pants if you saw what "cost" is on parts.

I don't consider the stock Polaris joints a quality item either. And your cost estimate proves my point. To get a quality joint you need to go straight to a quality manufacturer and look at the specs. Because there are way too many low quality hiem / ball joint manufacturers. Your use / or abuse of the ones K-mod has sourced just further proves my point. Sure the guys that sell them and Kevin's buddies will defend them but that just further proves my point. If a quality part was utilized it would hold up to any use or abuse you threw at it, and you would not need the bro-mance defenders of their beloved hero's cheap product.


As you can tell by now, I'm not a K-mod fan. Kevin is just one of many who copied the M-10 rear suspension and made a lot of coin in the process.

 

[tdbaugha]

I don't consider the stock Polaris joints a quality item either. And your cost estimate proves my point. To get a quality joint you need to go straight to a quality manufacturer and look at the specs. Because there are way too many low quality hiem / ball joint manufacturers. Your use / or abuse of the ones K-mod has sourced just further proves my point. Sure the guys that sell them and Kevin's buddies will defend them but that just further proves my point. If a quality part was utilized it would hold up to any use or abuse you threw at it, and you would not need the bro-mance defenders of their beloved hero's cheap product.


As you can tell by now, I'm not a K-mod fan. Kevin is just one of many who copied the M-10 rear suspension and made a lot of coin in the process.

Your point is totally valid. There is definitely a line that needs to be draw with regard to a quality/price ratio.

Yes you could get bomber ball joints and make the a arm kit cost $1000. Would anyone buy it? Hardly. And if they did, they would last forever. Is that needed? No. A product like that needs to last 3-5 years of average usage. I used them for 2 years and it was most definitely not 'normal'. Now they "need" $40 worth of new ball joints and the new owner will get at least 3 more years of satisfaction out of them. I'd call that a win in my book.

So to your point, yes they are not the most durable ball joint on the planet, and yes they are cheap, but I'd say they're plenty good enough for the intended use.

 

[mountainhorse]

K-Mod is using a high quality ball joint. (spherical bearing).


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[Yaeger34]

Well I got the new ones installed and right now they fit tight. Appears the the black teflon coating(or whatever it is) inside of the old ones is possibly what wore, I am talking 1/8" or more of up and down play. So we will see how the new ones do! I will say Kevin did a great job of calling me after hours and getting them sent out and delivered within about 2 or 3 days so that is awesome service. Now to wait for snow and see!

 

[CROW]

Will the Kmod lowers work with stock Polaris arms?

 

[richracer1]

Will the Kmod lowers work with stock Polaris arms?

No they won't. Upper & lower have to match for width.

Common sense.

 

[LoudHandle]

Will the Kmod lowers work with stock Polaris arms?

richracer1;

I believe he was referring to just the K-Mod ball joints.

At least that is the way I read it.

 

[CROW]

Sorry, I meant lower ball joints, but I really appreciate richracers, "common sense" jab. How was that helpful? Some people just cannot wait to pounce on someone else's mistake.

 

[mountainhorse]

I hope we can keep this thread calm...

Life is good... looking forward to some good snow.


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