88-98 4wd front sway bar upgrade?

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offroadtahoe

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Been looking into the threads on a front sway bar upgrade,seems there's really only two made for the 4wd unless custom made,does anyone have any experience with the
Hellwig 7575 1.125 in
Addco 528 1.250 in
 

Erik the Awful

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Isn't the factory "big" sway bar 1.25"? Pardon the pause while I grab my tape measure...

Yes, grab a factory big bar from Pull-A-Part before you buy an aftermarket bar. They're common. I have one on both my '88 and '89. I'm sure it was factory on the '88.

Or is the 4wd bar significantly different?
 

Schurkey

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The 2wd bar is totally different from the 4wd bar, as are the end-links.

My '88 did not have a bar at all as-built. I bought a bar from a 2wd truck and tried to make it fit. Nope.

Got a 4wd bar from my favorite Treasure Yard, and put it in place when I upgraded the brakes and replaced the defective steering knuckle some years ago.

If you're adding more sway-bar to the front, you'd better think about a rear bar to balance the suspension.
 

454cid

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I think stock bars are hollow, and aftermarket are usually solid. I'm not sure how that affects their spring rate.

Mine is 1-3/16" according to my Rockauto purchase history for bushings. There are several sizes of bushings I see listed on Rockauto, and they go up to 1-5/16".
 

offroadtahoe

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The 2wd bar is totally different from the 4wd bar, as are the end-links.

My '88 did not have a bar at all as-built. I bought a bar from a 2wd truck and tried to make it fit. Nope.

Got a 4wd bar from my favorite Treasure Yard, and put it in place when I upgraded the brakes and replaced the defective steering knuckle some years ago.

If you're adding more sway-bar to the front, you'd better think about a rear bar to balance the suspension.
I have Hellwig #7555 1" 1/8 rear sway bar on the way,Haven't been able to run a rear sway bar since the stock one won't fit on a 14bff,If anyone is wondering the stock rear sway bar is 0.86",I figured I'd go ahead and get a front solid one too.
 

offroadtahoe

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I think stock bars are hollow, and aftermarket are usually solid. I'm not sure how that affects their spring rate.

Mine is 1-3/16" according to my Rockauto purchase history for bushings. There are several sizes of bushings I see listed on Rockauto, and they go up to 1-5/16".
Im honestly having trouble figuring out what aftermarket front bar would actually work better,I also have the 1-3/16" front sway
Addco is just a bit bigger,made out of steel
Hellwig is just a bit smaller,made with 4140 chromoly.
both are solid,I'm not sure how material affects spring rate
 

Erik the Awful

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I think stock bars are hollow, and aftermarket are usually solid. I'm not sure how that affects their spring rate.
Minimally. From what I've read, solid vs hollow matter less than another 1/4" of thickness. Typically, factory bars are solid because bar stock is cheaper than tubing, and aftermarket bars are tubing for weight savings.

Hollow is usually preferred because of the comparable stiffness with weight savings.

As far as the need for a rear bar, you'd have to track it and judge it. The need for a rear bar is affected by the existing stiffness in the rear and your driving style.
 

offroadtahoe

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I have installed the Hellwig #7555 on the Tahoe with a rear 10.5 (14bff) with endlinks in the stock location.It should have been the first thing i did definitely a huge difference,there is way more control and just all around easier to drive.

I had seen a few comment's from lowered guys about how out of all the upgrade's done,Nothing was like adding a rear bar.(Eric the car guys video states this too) pretty spot on.out of all the things this truck has that helped but not quite like this.



Addco will make a 1-1/2" front bar,looking at these charts most newer trucks run this size with either a 1-1/4" rear or a 1-1/8 rear"
 

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