Wheels spacers ?

2405 Views 11 Replies 10 Participants Last post by bionicman, Dec 25, 2010

blkrubi05

Discussion Starter · Nov 28, 2010

Anyone run the 2" wheel spacers? pics please?

Also, I can save some $$ going with either of these two, All-Pro or Trail Gear rather than Spidertrax...thoughts?

http://www.polyperformance.com/shop/All ... 24836.html
http://www.polyperformance.com/shop/Tra ... 16779.html

Thanks!

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Lots of guys don't like spacers. Seems to be if they use them, they want them indexed on the axle flange. I am running a pair similar to the ones in the first link on a stock Rubicon rim, with 33" Mickey Thompson's. Mine are only 1.25" though. I installed mine by torquing very carefully, and applying lots of red lock tight. The only thing I noticed is that the front end alignment is much more sensitive. My toe in has to be very good or I can get a slight wobble with them on. I had a shop do the alignment, then I had to adjust it again on my own. new use for my old laser level.

Gold03

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KaiserJeep

· #3 · Nov 28, 2010

There are two serious problems with the Poly Performance spacers:

1) They are not "hub centric" spacers, which would have a center raised rim which indexes the Jeep "Moab" rim by fitting into the matching recess on back. Likewise they lack the recess on back to fit around the raised rim cast into the Jeep axle hub.

This is an often debated topic on Jeep Forums. Let me just say that it is better, safer, and much stronger if you have BOTH a center raised hub and five wheel studs, than it is to have five studs alone. The stock wheel stays centered even if a wheel nut or two loosens and falls off.

Without the hub-centric feature, you had best check and re-torque wheel studs every tank of gas. With the entire weight of the Jeep on the studs, they wiggle and flex as the wheel turns, and it is common for the studs to fatigue and break.

2) The spacers shown are made from the correct alloy and have the correct Grade 8 hardware, but are bare aluminum. When water is added to the bare aluminum which has been bolted directly to the bare cast iron of the axle hub, electrlytic corrosion occurs, the aluminum turns to white powder and the spacer is weakened.

The two known good brands of spacers are the SpyderTrax and the Rugged Ridge, which are both hub centric design, and are anodized finish (blue for SpyderTrax, black for RR).

The reason this is such a hot debate is that many people fit aftermarket wheels, and every tire place I have ever seen has had one wheel size with a large and oversized center hole. This is the size of the largest center hub of the many vehicles that the same wheel is supposed to fit - but it only fits that one largest axle hub tightly, the hole is oversized for every other vehicle with the same 5x4.5" stud circle. This is an unsafe practice, but when faced with the choice of buying the wheel that is in inventrory and driving the Jeep the same day, versus waiting for the dealer to order and receive the correct wheels for a Jeep, almost everyone has to have instant gratification. So they buy the wrong wheels for a Jeep, and increase the chance for a wheel to fall off due to the oversized center hole, then argue endlessly that they did not spend their money incorrectly, and did not make their Jeep less safe. But of course they did. They also created the new periodic maintenance check for tight wheel studs. Whereas with the correct hub-centric fitment, both the spacers and the wheels remain tight and centered for years with no attention at all.

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blkrubi05

Discussion Starter · #4 · Nov 28, 2010

Good stuff, thanks! Has anyone had DW after installing spacers?

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wsm04rubi

· #5 · Nov 28, 2010

blkrubi05 said:
Good stuff, thanks! Has anyone had DW after installing spacers?

I did, but it wasn't the spacers fault. It was worn out front control arm bushings, and the extra wheel offset was enough to throw it over the edge and make the DW show up.

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Rubik0nkidd45

· #6 · Dec 11, 2010

I just bought some Spidertrax Spacers for my Lj, but they convert the bolt pattern to a 5x5!?
Is that going to be a problem, will I have any issues on the trails? My driving style is soft on the pedal!
And now I am just worried that it's going to suck!? Also will it mess up the front Bearings in the front?

***
The reason I bought these was because I got the rims for almost nothing $$...
And the problem was there were 5x5 but, I plan to get the correct Bolt pattern soon.
(6 months or so...)

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seapahn

· #7 · Dec 11, 2010

I've been running 2" spacers on the rear axle of my blazer for about 10 years now (90K miles) without any problems. I am running 2" spacers on the jeep now for about a year but not too many racked up miles yat (maybe 5K or so). These are generic 6061 aluminum non hub centric spacers. Well actually they are "hub centric" on the hub side but not on the wheel side since I use aftermarket wheels.

There are a lot of people that are just terrified of spacers without really a good reason other than a bunch of hearsay about them possibly failing or maybe failing or wheels flying off etc etc. They key is you have to retorque the spacer bolts on the axle after a few hundred miles. Also if you rotate wheels regularly, you retorque them again then after a few thousand miles. After a couple of checks, you can usually just let them be.

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rubitx

· #8 · Dec 11, 2010

In my initial build I purchased the wrong offset on my new wheels, therefore I was more or less in a position to have to buy spacers. I chose spidertrax as they were highly recommended on ROF and available locally. I've run them 25k miles now without fault.

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mariodesmo

· #9 · Dec 12, 2010

I've had mine on four years, no issues at all. Just install them as instructed
and they should be fine. Here is a pic of mine when installed and they look
the same today, except for a little dirt and dust...

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Rubik0nkidd45

· #10 · Dec 12, 2010

Thanks for the info guys! After reading this post I was kind of worried about the purchase I had made! Feel alittle more certain about the Spacers now! Especially since they are a brand like Spidertrax!

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f9k9

· #11 · Dec 12, 2010

seapahn said:
I've been running 2" spacers on the rear axle of my blazer for about 10 years now (90K miles) without any problems................................

X2

Very common with the S-10 crowd. My S-10's have been on for 6 years without problems. I tossed the tube of red Loctite, that came with my spydertrax spacers for my heep, in my tool and followed the other instructions about checking the torque. I'm not going to fight with Loctite on a trail repair. I believe the Loctite was included to cover liability issues and totally unnecessary. Both are DDs and not trailer queens.