New member

[Warthogg]

Wow.......

Learn something new everyday. That's unfortunate that individual had problems with his conversion. I haven't heard of anyone having problems, but I know they're out there. Seems anytime you have any major work done there's always some problem.

I had a neighbor with a UJoint conversion and he swore by them. I'll agree the pushed forward axle does look different, but he had a B190 that was just about best looking RV/Van I'd ever seen (one of the reasons I sold my Sportsmobile (and she wanted a real bathroom)). I made it a point to speak with him every time I saw him at the gas station. It looked similar to this one but had the stock grey paint scheme. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6R_BZALti6w

One of the other advantages of UJoint is they'll address the rear springs as well. Most conversions just add a block. That is not the answer. I had Weldtec replace the rear springs and that was the single greatest improvement I've made to date. Did Weldtec make any mistakes.....Yes, they did, but I corrected that and moved on. Most people on this forum would be amazed at the improvement of their machine by just replacing the 20 year old worn out coils and springs (everybody does shocks so they don't count).

After my Advanced 4wd conversion, I trimmed my front bumper and later replaced it. If the biggest concern is trimming the bumper after the time and cost of major suspension and drive train modification, maybe you're right, a UJoint 4wd conversion isn't the best idea??

[dougm]

You seem to miss the point completely. If im going to spend over $20,000 to have a rig converted to 4x4, i expect the components used to be engineered in such a way that chopping up my bumper isnt a requirement. But youre right, i would expect some minor problems that need resolving perhaps. What i wouldnt expect, is to have the entire front axle rebuilt because it wasnt put together properly after you paid over $5 grand for the axle alone.

[Baja Bilo]

You seem to miss the point completely. If im going to spend over $20,000 to have a rig converted to 4x4, i expect the components used to be engineered in such a way that chopping up my bumper isnt a requirement. But youre right, i would expect some minor problems that need resolving perhaps. What i wouldnt expect, is to have the entire front axle rebuilt because it wasnt put together properly after you paid over $5 grand for the axle alone.

You can buy a brand new rig off of the showroom floor and wind up
with major issues. Shit happens, things fail. It's part of mechanics.
I've talked to every major 4x4 van converter in person. They all tell
you that theirs is the best and the rest is shit. I had my new van
converted by Advanced. In the span of one year it broke down on
me 3 times. I got to the point where I was afraid to go anywhere
in it. I told them I wanted a Dana 60, they stuck in a Dana 44 and
told me that was good enough. I wound up taking it to Salem Kroger
and had it redone. Never had problems with it again. Advanced also
sourced used axles and cobbled them together with their own in
house parts. One of the times I broke down i had to wait for over
a week for them to send the parts needed to get back on the road.
Ujoint has a lot of RV's out there that they converted. They all claim
to have rigs all over the planet. Quigley probably has done more than
anyone. Salem Kroger is now White Feather. Quad van does a nice
job using the Ford coil spring setup. Ujoint weighs the vehicle and
has springs made to match the weight of the vehicle and they probably
offer more extras than anyone else. Advanced is now hacking up Nissan
vans. Go wherever you feel comfortable. Once again, it's mechanical,
shit happens.

[Warthogg]

dougm wrote: ↑August 16th, 2020, 8:46 pm
You seem to miss the point completely. If im going to spend over $20,000 to have a rig converted to 4x4, i expect the components used to be engineered in such a way that chopping up my bumper isnt a requirement. But youre right, i would expect some minor problems that need resolving perhaps. What i wouldnt expect, is to have the entire front axle rebuilt because it wasnt put together properly after you paid over $5 grand for the axle alone.

No...I didn't miss the point at all. Maybe I need to clarify.

I completely agree with you. When I spend $20k of my hard earned money, I expect everything to be perfect. Reality...it rarely is and I need to repair/replace/fix or adjust something to make it correct.

I think opinions vary when comes to the aesthetics of the finished UJoint product and the modification of the existing vehicle to properly install the product.

Baja Bilo wrote:
Ujoint weighs the vehicle and
has springs made to match the weight of the vehicle

This is probably the most important and best advice statement on this thread. How do you design and install the proper system without knowing the real world weight?

[Baja Bilo]

dougm wrote: ↑August 16th, 2020, 8:46 pm
You seem to miss the point completely. If im going to spend over $20,000 to have a rig converted to 4x4, i expect the components used to be engineered in such a way that chopping up my bumper isnt a requirement. But youre right, i would expect some minor problems that need resolving perhaps. What i wouldnt expect, is to have the entire front axle rebuilt because it wasnt put together properly after you paid over $5 grand for the axle alone.

No...I didn't miss the point at all. Maybe I need to clarify.

I completely agree with you. When I spend $20k of my hard earned money, I expect everything to be perfect. Reality...it rarely is and I need to repair/replace/fix or adjust something to make it correct.

I think opinions vary when comes to the aesthetics of the finished UJoint product and the modification of the existing vehicle to properly install the product.

Baja Bilo wrote:
Ujoint weighs the vehicle and
has springs made to match the weight of the vehicle

This is probably the most important and best advice statement on this thread. How do you design and install the proper system without knowing the real world weight?

On my Advanced conversion they stuck a 4" block on the
rear spring pack but they didn't extend the bump stop.
Salem Kroger took care of that. I have chatted with the
member who purchased the twin vehicle to my rig. He
had his conversion done at Quad van. It looks good and
he's happy with it. That's all that matters. Quad van by
far uses the most off the shelf Ford parts. I think that
is their strong point.Ujoint weighs your rig and has the
springs built for the rig. that is their strong point and
with a leaf spring front suspension I believe that they
are a little stronger than the coil spring setup.

[markatherton]

Million dollar question is what company are you going to have do your conversion?

[dougm]

I wont pay any of them to do the conversion "for me". I just need the conversion bracket kit. Its looking like Timberline is the only option remaining for me at this point and have fired off an email to them with questions. But im not keen on the 4 link arm design, i would prefer that at least one of them (upper/lower) was adjustable to aid in caster adjustment. Timberline is in Golden, Colorado so that makes it simple since i have family that lives thirty minutes away from them. Im waiting for their email reply and depending on their answers i will just go visit family and drop in to look at their product while im there. If their kit doesnt fit my needs, i will most likely just leave the truck the way it is for now and address it again next year as its already nearing the end of August and the Chinook doesnt fit in the garage.

[dougm]

.

[Baja Bilo]

Million dollar question is what company are you going to have do your conversion?

Although Portland Oregon is a lot closer to me than
North Carolina, I'm leaning towards Ujoint. I've met
Chris in person and he seems like he's passionate
about what he does. He always answers my questions
and I like the simplicity of the leaf spring setup, and
the fact that he has the springs built for the rig. Are
his conversions perfect? Maybe not, but I'm sure you
could find something wrong with any conversion.

[Scott]

but I'm sure you
could find something wrong with any conversion.

Then why convert?