Bmrc trailing arms

[Mollett89]

I'm looking at buying the bmrc stage 2 rear trailing arm set up and was hoping to hear from some folks that have real experience running a wraith with it. How does it crawl ? I know it increases the flex but that isn't always a good thing ha. I spent some time searching and reading but there really isn't a whole lot of first hand info out there.
Thanks


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[Eric0424]

Originally Posted by Mollett89

I know it increases the flex...

If you have been searching a reading up on trailing arms you should know that's not true. They do not increase travel or flex/articulation if they're the same length as the stock links and bolted to the same mounting points. Shock length, angle and mounting location are where you're going to get more/less flex and travel. Bolt up one trailing arm but keep the shocks on the axle, see which side travels further and flexes more.

If you're looking for more articulation and/or travel, experiment with upper shock mounting points and shock length. If you want the "cool" or "sick" trailing arm look, drop $90 on the Blue Monkey 2-stage kit.

[Mollett89]

Well with the relocation of the shocks like the trailing arms do it should increase articulation. I didn't ask if it changed the flex while keeping the shocks in the stock location, why would somebody do that if they were upgrading to trailing arms ? If you read bmrc's description of the product it even states increased articulation. The increased flex or articulation isn't even why I'm buying it. I like the look and already have a 4 link wraith so I thought this might be a nice change for a second rig. If it works as good or better than standard links like my other wraith I'll be happy.
Thanks for your advice


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[Eric0424]

As mentioned earlier, "If you want the "cool" or "sick" trailing arm look, drop $90 on the Blue Monkey 2-stage kit." Since it includes the mandatory shock mount system. The only real drawbacks I see are mandatory battery relocation (but most do this anyway) and shock maintenance. Getting the shocks off looks to be more annoying than the stock upper shock mount as the shocks are now closer to center as well as further forward and they reside where the battery would be.

If you've already relocated your battery and don't mind a little more hassle getting the shocks on/off then there's really no reason not to send Blue Monkey $90.

My earlier point was, "Shock length, angle and mounting location are where you're going to get more/less flex and travel." and these shock alterations can be done from the axle as well as a couple of inches up the arm/link if anyone cared to put some thought into it.

It's a wonder we don't see these awesome/magical/mystical arms up front as well. I mean, we need more/better flex and travel up there too. Right?

[snicklefritz]

Originally Posted by Eric0424

It's a wonder we don't see these awesome/magical/mystical arms up front as well. I mean, we need more/better flex and travel up there too. Right?

Del Monte Jake did do this with amazing results on his U4RC wraith in the earlier series of the socal races. He is a great driver, but he was pretty much unstoppable with that wraith versus more stock configured rigs. He chopped his so much it was almost unrecognizable, but the front and rear trailing arms let him dial that thing in.

[Eric0424]

Originally Posted by snicklefritz

...but the front and rear trailing arms let him dial that thing in.

Not anymore than he could have done with his shocks mounted to the axle. It's simple physics, fulcrums, pivot points, shock angles, etc.. It has nothing to do with the shape of the lower link. With the numerous shock oils, pistons, springs and different shock lengths available to us, you can dial anything in. Whether it's the round rod links, or canoe shaped arms, it just doesn't matter.

[allanon1965]

exactly the point, the stock shock length re-positioned from the axle to the middle of the trailing arm gains flex and articulation by creating a larger arc of motion. the closer the shock is to the front pivot point the more travel you get at the rear.

to the op, I dont know how the full BM kit works as my trailing arms are setup on my DMG trailing arm stiffy rig, the stiffy was setup specifically for dual shocks with trailing arms and it performs beautifully on the rocks and trails...much better than all the wraiths with traditional links did at the last comp...I was pleasantly surprised.

[Eric0424]

There's nothing you can do with a trailing arm that can't be done with the 4-link. It's really that simple.

You can get more articulation than you'll ever need with the 4-link, so there's no way the over hyped, waste of time/money/effort, trailing arm is going to give you more. There are too many shock options available.

If we were limited to just one shock length, one piston, one oil weight and one spring rate for a Wraith, then the trailing would be a tuning aid at best. But we have several options in each category, so articulation and travel are not hard to find.

If you like the way the trailing arms look, great, buy the kit, install it and enjoy. But don't expect anyone with some knowledge of suspension to believe it's the be-all end-all of lower suspension arms or the only way you'll get any articulation and lift from a Wraith. That's just not the case.

[SCREAMER]

I will give my own personal experience with my trailing arm setup. I tried every shock position/angle, link position, spring weights and preload settings, and (quality) shock options I felt were available and none of them made half the difference that my DMG stiffy kit and UCFab trailing arms made. Yes, there are no less than 700 shock options available to us Wraith owners but most of them are either poor quality, leaky attempts at 1:1 copies or poor quality copies of existing good quality designs just cheaper in every way. I can't, for 1 second, accept that trailing arms are over hyped, unnecessary, suspension components that just so happen to exist on so many proven competition vehicles, both scale and 1:1, simply to look good. Again, my own personal experience has shown me that installing a pair of $60 trailing arms made my Wraith substantially more capable than it was before. I am also willing to concede that my particular experience may be a fluke, but given the fact that many others have seen obvious improvements in performance and the fact that trailing arms exist in almost as many applications both aftermarket and stock as other suspension modification options, I would think my experience is not unique. I am curious what experience Eric had with trailing arms before deciding they were snake oil placebo components.

[Eric0424]

Originally Posted by SCREAMER

snake oil placebo components.

Exactly.

[allanon1965]

[gottorque]

I like my "snake oil, placebo" trailing arms. Bummer some people have to come off so aggressive because they cant accept there is more than one way to do things, especially things that go against the norm.

No, trailing arms will not necessarily give you more flex, but if you look at all the 1:1s that run them, notice none of them are flashy flex queens. They have a genuine purpose in the offroad world, particularly in high speed off road racing. Hence they are popular with U4 guys. Can you crawl with them? Absolutely! It all comes down to how you setup that rear suspension. I am certain there are a few build threads on RCC that go over setup with trailing arms; they would be a good spot for ideas, but you would need to fine tune it based your personal preferences and terrain.

[snicklefritz]

And there's nothing wrong with liking them even if your only reason is they look "sick". Let's not forget that these are scale toys and looks are just as important as performance, otherwise we'd be on the comp crawler thread.

[Eric0424]

Originally Posted by gottorque

Bummer some people have to come off so aggressive because they cant accept there is more than one way to do things, especially things that go against the norm.

I've got no problem with the trailing arm suspension and I am in no way being "aggressive". The real bummer is that some are trying to justify their purely aesthetic decision to convert. They're trying to convince us it's the only way you'll get flex, articulation, "rotation" or whatever else they can think up. I'm just saying, and it's been clearly expressed, you can get the same performance from another system with all the options we have available.

Not sure why you chose to accuse me of not accepting variable ways of suspending a vehicle, but it's the complete opposite of what I've said. I've not made one mention of either system being superior or inferior to the other, they both work just fine. If you go back a read the posts by a couple of others you'll see who can't accept the fact the "norm" works just as well. The trailing arm is not the only way to get what you need from your Wraith suspension.

I do appreciate your honest input (and that's not sarcasm) and I agree. I believe true trailing arm suspension is used on the faster paced vehicles (like desert/Baja trucks) that are leaving the ground and landing hard because they're more durable in that respect. A 4-link like what we see on the Wraith would get beaten to death early and often in that environment.

[Eric0424]

Originally Posted by snicklefritz

And there's nothing wrong with liking them even if your only reason is they look "sick". Let's not forget that these are scale toys and looks are just as important as performance, otherwise we'd be on the comp crawler thread.

I agree with that, I've posted nearly those same words regarding the trailing arm suspension in the past. I was not being sarcastic when I posted: "If you want the "cool" or "sick" trailing arm look, drop $90 on the Blue Monkey 2-stage kit."