03 RAM 2500 DESERT/GO FAST BUILD

[Glakeler]

Truck info:
2003 Ram 2500 CCSB
5-speed NV4500 trans
NP 271 transfer case

Previous Set up:
AAM 9.25 w/ thuren truss and Synergy C gussets
Synergy long arm kit
Synergy Steering
Synergy track bar
16" Fox 3.0 IBP coil over
Cheapo daystar poly bumps

New Set up:
Ford Super Duty 60 w/ custom truss
Radius Arms, my own design (little chunky, will likely trim down the profile of the arms for V2)
Custom Steering using Synergy drag link for 14+ Ram and Synergy Ford 05+ Super Duty tie rod (all heims)
Custom track bar and mounts
Same 16" Fox IBPs
2.5x2.5 Fox bumps

Design:
I've been planning on trying this swap for about a year now so I had plenty of time to sit and stare at the computer to get the system all laid out. Goal was to retain all of the uptravel and gain a ton of droop to fill in the holes in the dirt that seem to get bigger every year. Started with axle placement and made sure that I could fit it all under the truck without any major conflicts for space at bump (things get very tight) then moved to arm design. Due to the super short length of my front drive shaft I landed on a radius arm platform to keep the pinon pointed at the t-case output to keep the angles down and reduce driveshaft plunge. another plus to the radius arms if the inherent bind that the system presents, I'm hoping that the binding will act as a sway bar and keep the truck stable enough that I don't have to package a sway bar in the future, but we'll see. Wanted to keep the pivot as high and tight to the frame as possible, this dictated a lot of the arm design. Couldn't use the traditional singe bend arms as the transmission crossmember hangs down enough on these trucks that the arm would contact it at bump, this is where the more complex bend profile of the arm came from. Synergy double adjuster assemblies were used on the upper links to easily dial in the caster on the truck without a need to remove links.

The truck can cycle the full 16" of the shock with room to spare however I strapped it at 15" to be safe. The axle moves just under 2" to the driver side at full droop, but there is very little bump steer. Once I get the new pitman arm fabbed up there will be ZERO bump steer through the travel. Ended up loosing .5" of uptravel but that's still less than an unchained kit lol.

 

[Bebop]

Rad !

 

[Glakeler]

Backtracking a little bit and throwing out some info on the cantilever system I've got going on in the rear of my truck.

In the hunt for more than 9.5" of travel in the rear of my 03 I decided that canti was going to be my best bet. Keeps all of the bed space for dirt cycles and beer while doubling the rear wheel travel capabilities. Beyond that, the last thing I wanted to do was chop up the truck and let it sit for the next 5-15 years.

Started by looking at other cantilever set ups and figuring out what ratio of wheel travel to shock travel I wanted and how I could use the inherent ratio changes to my benefit. I finally landed on a cantilever system that included both a rising and falling rate. The goal was to have a rising rate until about 7" from bump, then a falling rate after that. This would allow for the highest shock shaft speeds right around ride height to try and help mask the inherent low speed damping issues that bypass shocks have and keeping some of the harshness at bump at bay. 12" shocks were also chosen for the increased shaft speed. The ratio average of the system is at 1.6:1 meaning for every inch of shock travel the axle moves 1.6".

I bounced around quite a bit deciding the pivot style and materials used. Started with ball bearing or roller bearings, but I didn't like any of the mounting styles I came up with either due to strength concerns or not being able to preload the bearings like I hoped. Finally, I landed on bronze oilite bushings on a precision machines shaft. Cheap and super strong. They have been on the truck for a year and a half without issue.

12" travel Fox 3.5 5-tube shocks were decided on because fuck it, if you're gonna do it might as well do it for real. 2.5"x 2.5" fox bumps were also selected as they fit nicely inside the frame of the 3rd gens. Thuren 1" rear leafs and some custom shackles rounded out the rear end.

the rear tires cycle all the way up and touch the top of the fender well at full bump.

 

[Yotota]

Well that's just badass. Front and rear.

On the radius arms, are you running a mix of poly bushings and heim joints? All poly? I'm always curious what setups work well to get some articulation and reduce absolute bind, but also utilize the binding like you want for some anti-sway characteristics.

How does the camber [shit, I meant caster] change feel throughout travel? I'm also curious if the front end feels floaty when drooped a bit. Do you have to build in a little extra camber at right height to account for that?

I've always wanted a TTB truck for doing fast dumb driving but in reality a radius arm truck probably makes more sense...

 

[Glakeler]

arms are using uniballs at the frame side mount, heims at the upper link mount on the lower arm, and the factory poly bushings from ford in the axle.

No camber change through the travel, LOTs of castor change. I don't notice it too much, got hydro assist to help out with any weird handling characteristics. Total castor change is about 14 degrees, and I run my truck with more castor at ride height (7-8 degrees) so it never goes negative.

 

[Yotota]

arms are using uniballs at the frame side mount, heims at the upper link mount on the lower arm, and the factory poly bushings from ford in the axle.

No camber change through the travel, LOTs of castor change. I don't notice it too much, got hydro assist to help out with any weird handling characteristics. Total castor change is about 14 degrees, and I run my truck with more castor at ride height (7-8 degrees) so it never goes negative.

Haha I totally meant caster, but my brain made me type camber.

Your radius arms look pretty long, right? That helps caster the most. Glad to hear it doesn't go negative though, that would be my main concern too.

 

[chays2464]

Needs 40s

 

[GGRR 4555]

Looks burly. Caging it anytime soon?

 

[Ghetto Fab.]

Oh boy!

 

[RPS1030]

DTX

 

[Gunwalls_Buckthorne]

Awesome!

I have heard that cantilevers can be a little sassy with tuning. Excited to see it come together.

 

[06h3]

Badass. Cantilever stuff is so cool but seems unobtanium to me

 

[McBastard79]

Fuckin Dope Truck!

 

[Glakeler]

Looks burly. Caging it anytime soon?

its on the list!

 

[Glakeler]

Awesome!

I have heard that cantilevers can be a little sassy with tuning. Excited to see it come together.

Yeah I'm on revalve number 3 currently, and it just keeps getting better!

 

[Glakeler]

A buddy sent me this the other day from the weekend we threw the rear suspension together almost 3 years ago! Glad I had some help as there were a ton of little projects wrapped up in getting the rear all put together!

 

[arse_sidewards]

I really like that shock linkage and that it doesn't go through the bed like the typical low effort setup people run in desert trucks.

 

[Glakeler]

I really like that shock linkage and that it doesn't go through the bed like the typical low effort setup people run in desert trucks.

Through the bed is easier and I would argue works better, but I couldn't bring myself to cut mine up and lose all that bed space.

 

[arse_sidewards]

Through the bed is easier and I would argue works better, but I couldn't bring myself to cut mine up and lose all that bed space.

Better is debatable. Hard to get a nicely rising motion ratio with direct axle mounting or near the axle on an arm or whatever.

 

[Jedrattle]

Badass! How long are your radius arms?

 

[Glakeler]

Badass! How long are your radius arms?

56" from pivot to axle centerline

 

[Burns]

In for updates cause Cummins long-travel

 

[wvracer821]

I see you have good taste in trucks. I’ve got the newer less capable version

 

[mobil1syn]

Finally, I landed on bronze oilite bushings on a precision machines shaft. Cheap and super strong. They have been on the truck for a year and a half without issue.

why not delrin?

 

[Glakeler]

why not delrin?

IDK wasn't sold on using plastic in the pivots. Went the oilite route and haven't looked back.

 

[Glakeler]

Ended up bending the rear axle on the same jump that junked the AAM front. Been driving on the bent axle for a while now, but I finally got that bent POS out from under the truck!

Finally got the new rear axle back together! Made some stainless brake lines and painted the thing up. Axle went together super smooth and is a helluva lot straighter than the last one.

Stoked on the look and fitment! The truss grew a bit more than anticipated to make room for the u-bolts so it gets pretty close to the canti arms approaching full bump but should clear without issue. We'll see if the axle moves around enough to let the truss and arm contact, if it does I'll just make some new canti arms with more clearance on the bottom side.

 

[McBastard79]

That truss is beefy!

 

[Glakeler]

Well after 2 desert trips (250 miles of dirt) I found that the truss does in fact contact the cantilever arms. Just barely touches, hasn't pulled paint off the parts but I can see the dust has been cleaned off the truss and the arm on the driver side.

To prevent any more contact I'm building a new set of arms. Decided to change up the pivot point a bit to modify the ratio change approaching bump. I thought the digressive ratio change would work to my advantage, however the ratio drop off seems to be too much. The new arms provide a more linear ratio approaching bump (still digressive, but just slightly) as well as giving me the clearance needed to not contact the axle truss.

The old arm design:

New arm design (minus overlays and the bushing tube):

 

[mobil1syn]

that new design is fugly, notch the truss.

 

[Glakeler]

that new design is fugly, notch the truss.

eh it'll look cooler once its welded up with overlays and such.

Definitely not notching the truss