Sponsored

Need advice on vertical links (brand, materials)

toplesstripcruiser

Well-Known Member
Joined
Feb 24, 2016
Threads
13
Messages
354
Reaction score
79
Location
Me and Evo: NJ, Mustang: NV
Vehicle(s)
Race Red 50th Mustang GT vert, '03 yellow Evo
Hello. I plan on installing BMR CB010 cradle lockout Level 1, Steeda alignment kit, may or may not do LCA bearing from Steeda or the standard from BMR. I am looking at BMR and J&M for vertical links. Anybody have experience with J&M? Their links are priced very competitively even against BMR's sale price which is why I am looking at them. I also noticed that BMR comes with bolts and the other brands such as J&M and Steeda don't. Also the torque settings differ in the top bolt with BMR being 81 and others being 76. Is there any advantage or real difference with this?
Also I need help in deciding if I should do spherical or delrin. I saw Steeda only does Delrin and wonder why. BMR and J&M offer both. I definitely want to put power to the ground the best and I hear spherical is the way to go. But then I hear that sphericals clunk. I read that Delrin is self-lubricating? Does that mean spherical isn't? I also read that Delrin squeaks. Then on BMR site says not to install Delrin without addressing rear LCA front bushing and toe knuckle bushing as it can increase NVH and stress, and toe and geometry changes. Delrin needs supporting modifications.
I would just like the best option as far as low maintenance, simplicity, reliability, durability, and no noise.
Thank you.

And Merry Christmas!

Joe
Sponsored

 
Last edited:

BMR Tech

Well-Known Member
Joined
Sep 4, 2014
Threads
168
Messages
5,141
Reaction score
3,691
Location
Tampa, FL
Website
www.bmrsuspension.com
First Name
Dion
Vehicle(s)
2018 GT, 2010 GT500, 2019 F-150 5.0
I would just like the best option as far as low maintenance, simplicity, reliability, durability, and no noise.
Thank you.

And Merry Christmas!

Joe
Hey Joe, I hope you enjoyed your Christmas! :headbang:

I wanted to point out your sentence about what you want in the links.

From our offering, (3) different sets meet your requirement and I would almost say to just either flip a coin, or buy on price (in reference to the 3 offerings from BMR)

TCA045: Dual Bearing

When talking just performance and quality - this is my absolute favorite. These are links that work well for just about anyone from a daily driver to a racecar (and are what I use on my "racecar"). The NVH on these is typically not noticed. That being said, NVH CAN occur. After the bearings get some serious use/abuse and a lot of miles the bearings can develop just enough tolerance to allow the body of the links to twist when driving. This twist "can" allow the body of the link to contact the lower mounting point of the control arm and cause a clicking noise. This is something that really hasn't happened yet, but I suspect that it will occur years down the road for some.

Repair costs for this part # if it were to be needed is the most expensive, since the bearings we use would cost roughly $15 on the retail side (there are 4 total). Of course, if it were something that was defective prematurely, we would warranty it. But years down the road, if the bearing is a little on the loose side...that would be something that is not covered as bearings of ANY kind are a wear item.

TCA046: Delrin/Bearing

This is my favorite "cool" factor Link...and is very cost effective. This is a cool design because the top mount has a delrin bushing and the lower has a bearing. In this configuration, you do not run into the link twisting which can lead to the NVH described above - the Delrin mount on this part keeps the arm indexed / aligned at all times, enough to never make contact with anything else.

Cost of repair if needed is similar to the above, you have CNC machined Delrin bushings and spherical bearings which are both "pricey". And again, if the cause is due to the design or a defect, it's covered.

NOTES:

-The TCA045 was our first design, and the first bearing only links on the market. I have not had a single issue with them, and they are our best seller.

-The TCA046, also the first to the market, was prone to NVH occasionally. I worked with the team to redesign these, and that has been excellent. People with the older design, I typically offer to update them to the new design at no charge to them if they have excessive NVH issues. The design change was changing the Delrin bushing to the upper mount, and the bearing to the lower mount. We also revised all of our Delrin bushings AND sleeves for NVH free performance quite some time ago.

TCA048: Poly

These are what I use on my Daily Driver. They are, in my opinion, THE best bang for the buck links on the market. Innovative and the most cost effective all in one. Due to BMR being most efficient at steel fabrication, we are able to price these below $100 and still make the money we need to feed the family. These are the lowest cost links on the entire market, but do not let that fool you. They are 100% American Made pieces and everything but the bushings are made in house right here at BMR.

This design is the only link available that is able to be greased properly without being removed from the car. Greasing them is needed upon initial install, and then past that point there really isn't a specific time to do it - if you use a quality synthetic when installing you may never need to lubricate them again. :headbang:

Performance: These pieces perform very well. On paper when looking at the product alone and comparing deflection, etc, these are not going to "perform" like most other non-poly options. However, in the real world and on the car they work very well. I went from TCA045 to TCA047 to TCA046 to these on my 2016 GTPP and I can honestly say that I liked having these Poly links on that car the best. They are light, NVH free, and fight off deflection just enough to notice the difference when pushing the car.

Price point on these is $85 shipped until Jan 2nd.:first:
 

SteedaTech

Well-Known Member
Diamond Sponsor
Joined
Aug 8, 2016
Threads
71
Messages
2,067
Reaction score
1,592
Location
Pompano Beach, FL
Vehicle(s)
2016 Mustang Q750
Hello. I plan on installing BMR CB010 cradle lockout Level 1, Steeda alignment kit, may or may not do LCA bearing from Steeda or the standard from BMR. I am looking at BMR and J&M for vertical links. Anybody have experience with J&M? Their links are priced very competitively even against BMR's sale price which is why I am looking at them. I also noticed that BMR comes with bolts and the other brands such as J&M and Steeda don't. Also the torque settings differ in the top bolt with BMR being 81 and others being 76. Is there any advantage or real difference with this?
Also I need help in deciding if I should do spherical or delrin. I saw Steeda only does Delrin and wonder why. BMR and J&M offer both. I definitely want to put power to the ground the best and I hear spherical is the way to go. But then I hear that sphericals clunk. I read that Delrin is self-lubricating? Does that mean spherical isn't? I also read that Delrin squeaks. Then on BMR site says not to install Delrin without addressing rear LCA front bushing and toe knuckle bushing as it can increase NVH and stress, and toe and geometry changes. Delrin needs supporting modifications.
I would just like the best option as far as low maintenance, simplicity, reliability, durability, and no noise.
Thank you.

And Merry Christmas!

Joe
Hi Joe,

Steeda offers two maintenance free Vertical links one in Delrin and the other in Urethane.

We found that the spherical bearing option in our testing put to much control in the IRS which created excessive bounce or control for street driven and Road Race applications, under hard braking from 170 mph the car became very nervous in the rear to the point of dangerous. Once we changed out the spherical vertical links the issue went away. No wonder the Pro- Continental GS S550 use a production style vertical links in competition

With that being said, for hard launches and Drag race applications we recommend the Steeda Delrin option which do not squeak. We achieved 1.29 shortimes in a production built S550. Furthermore, with the Steeda Delrin Vertical links no other modifications are required.

For everyday use, handling and Road Race applications the Steeda Urethane Vertical links are the ticket. They provide exceptional ride quality and great stability under high speed braking!

Check out our New one piece Steeda Billet Aluminium Polyurethane kit, is on promotion for 149.95

https://www.steeda.com/Steeda-S550-...yurethane-Bushings-2015-2018-All_p_13786.html

https://www.steeda.com/steeda-s550-mustang-billet-aluminum-vertical-links-2015-all-555-4121.html

Happy New Year!

steeda-s550-mustang-billet-aluminum-vertical-links-2015-all-555-4121.jpg
 

wildcatgoal

@sirboom_photography
Joined
Feb 8, 2016
Threads
76
Messages
6,589
Reaction score
2,500
Location
USA
Vehicle(s)
TBD
I've used BMR spherical. Can confirm twitchy feel on a road course, even with street tires and they did not make but did transmit additional road thunk noises in my car. Not the end of the world, but... if you care. Spherical I'd use on a high power drag car only, personally.

Then I went to Steeda Delrin, those new noises were all but gone and no squeaks ever. Excellent all-arounder and I'd stick with these if I was focused on straight line speed (drag). I now have Steeda Urethane. Excellent balance for a road course/handling oriented setup/driver as proven by lap after lap of testing by Steeda. I don't have any increased wheel hop that I've noticed but the back end stays more stable under the very late, heavy breaking that I'm able to do more and more (especially with sticky tires). Steeda's vertical links aren't cheap, but the bushings are large on purpose and you can see my thread here showing the Steeda Delrin links after 10 track days and 20K miles - the only issue is they got dirty - oh boo-hoo! No squeaks, no cracks, no problems.
 
Last edited:

Sponsored

5LTR550

Well-Known Member
Joined
Sep 29, 2016
Threads
9
Messages
402
Reaction score
324
Location
San Jose Ca
First Name
Efren
Vehicle(s)
2018 Premium GT A10 401a 2017 Focus ST
Vehicle Showcase
1
Hey Joe, I hope you enjoyed your Christmas! :headbang:

I wanted to point out your sentence about what you want in the links.

From our offering, (3) different sets meet your requirement and I would almost say to just either flip a coin, or buy on price (in reference to the 3 offerings from BMR)

TCA045: Dual Bearing

When talking just performance and quality - this is my absolute favorite. These are links that work well for just about anyone from a daily driver to a racecar (and are what I use on my "racecar"). The NVH on these is typically not noticed. That being said, NVH CAN occur. After the bearings get some serious use/abuse and a lot of miles the bearings can develop just enough tolerance to allow the body of the links to twist when driving. This twist "can" allow the body of the link to contact the lower mounting point of the control arm and cause a clicking noise. This is something that really hasn't happened yet, but I suspect that it will occur years down the road for some.

Repair costs for this part # if it were to be needed is the most expensive, since the bearings we use would cost roughly $15 on the retail side (there are 4 total). Of course, if it were something that was defective prematurely, we would warranty it. But years down the road, if the bearing is a little on the loose side...that would be something that is not covered as bearings of ANY kind are a wear item.

TCA046: Delrin/Bearing

This is my favorite "cool" factor Link...and is very cost effective. This is a cool design because the top mount has a delrin bushing and the lower has a bearing. In this configuration, you do not run into the link twisting which can lead to the NVH described above - the Delrin mount on this part keeps the arm indexed / aligned at all times, enough to never make contact with anything else.

Cost of repair if needed is similar to the above, you have CNC machined Delrin bushings and spherical bearings which are both "pricey". And again, if the cause is due to the design or a defect, it's covered.

NOTES:

-The TCA045 was our first design, and the first bearing only links on the market. I have not had a single issue with them, and they are our best seller.

-The TCA046, also the first to the market, was prone to NVH occasionally. I worked with the team to redesign these, and that has been excellent. People with the older design, I typically offer to update them to the new design at no charge to them if they have excessive NVH issues. The design change was changing the Delrin bushing to the upper mount, and the bearing to the lower mount. We also revised all of our Delrin bushings AND sleeves for NVH free performance quite some time ago.

TCA048: Poly

These are what I use on my Daily Driver. They are, in my opinion, THE best bang for the buck links on the market. Innovative and the most cost effective all in one. Due to BMR being most efficient at steel fabrication, we are able to price these below $100 and still make the money we need to feed the family. These are the lowest cost links on the entire market, but do not let that fool you. They are 100% American Made pieces and everything but the bushings are made in house right here at BMR.

This design is the only link available that is able to be greased properly without being removed from the car. Greasing them is needed upon initial install, and then past that point there really isn't a specific time to do it - if you use a quality synthetic when installing you may never need to lubricate them again. :headbang:

Performance: These pieces perform very well. On paper when looking at the product alone and comparing deflection, etc, these are not going to "perform" like most other non-poly options. However, in the real world and on the car they work very well. I went from TCA045 to TCA047 to TCA046 to these on my 2016 GTPP and I can honestly say that I liked having these Poly links on that car the best. They are light, NVH free, and fight off deflection just enough to notice the difference when pushing the car.

Price point on these is $85 shipped until Jan 2nd.:first:
I just got mine thanks to Kelly and Kyle at BMR. thank you guys for the hook up and great service!!!!! part looks amazing! then factor in it was $85 bucks! cant be beat.
 

BMR Tech

Well-Known Member
Joined
Sep 4, 2014
Threads
168
Messages
5,141
Reaction score
3,691
Location
Tampa, FL
Website
www.bmrsuspension.com
First Name
Dion
Vehicle(s)
2018 GT, 2010 GT500, 2019 F-150 5.0
I just got mine thanks to Kelly and Kyle at BMR. thank you guys for the hook up and great service!!!!! part looks amazing! then factor in it was $85 bucks! cant be beat.
Thanks for the support!

We do our best to ensure the consumer gets the best value possible. :thumbsup:
 

Boomba Racing

Well-Known Member
Joined
Oct 30, 2014
Threads
155
Messages
1,340
Reaction score
181
Location
Wood Dale, IL
Website
www.boombaracing.com
Vehicle(s)
2015 Mustang Ecoboost TY 6MT w/ PP
Our links do wonders for improving the handling characteristics of your S550 Mustang. They work at eliminating wheel hop and aim towards providing a more engaging driving experience. Due to the polyurethane bushing, there is minimal deflection when exiting turns which helps keeps your car planted to the road!

Since we use a poured-in poly bushing, they feature no-noise operation!

We weighed our links vs the OEM links:
Stock:
Pair = 1440g
Individual = 720g
Boomba:
Pair = 730g
Individual = 360g
As you can see, the Boomba pieces are MUCH lighter. One stock piece is heavy as both of the Boomba pieces! What a difference.

As always this product is designed and manufactured 100% in-house in the USA.

Let us know if you've got any questions!

LINK TO BUY

38461661035_83c91a2def_b.jpg


27562197839_4850ec4bf0_b.jpg
38461661035_83c91a2def_b.jpg
27562197839_4850ec4bf0_b.jpg
 

M151A2

Skinny old dude
Joined
Dec 6, 2016
Threads
1
Messages
170
Reaction score
52
Location
Central Florida
First Name
Emmett
Vehicle(s)
2016 GT
Kelly recommended the TCA045 before Thanksgiving. Simple install and no NVH noted.
I’m sure all three products are good.
I have been sticking with the BMR products as they appear well made and I have had no problems with performance or installation.
Not saying that I’m not open to other manufacturers, but I do tend to stick with a vendor that has done well for me.
Thanks Kelly!
 

AJ ROJO

Well-Known Member
Joined
Aug 8, 2016
Threads
17
Messages
201
Reaction score
64
Location
SE Florida
Vehicle(s)
2017 GT PP
I had the TCA045 BMR links and they started making some knocking noise when I went over speed bumps at an angle or up driveways from an angle. I also was having some unsettling and bounce (auto x and HPDE). I switched to the Steeda poly and now have zero of the unwanted issues. I don't think it was Steeda over BMR as both are great products I do however believe the bearing material is what is the difference In how the car reacted.

My take is:
spherical = max effort straight line style car.
Delrin = middle of the road street drag style car.
Poly = street and road race type of car.


Just make sure you get the right material for your driving style and choose the manufacturer that is giving the best price at any given time.
 
Last edited:

Sponsored

Tuxedomouse

Well-Known Member
Joined
Sep 2, 2017
Threads
14
Messages
217
Reaction score
107
Location
Cinci, OH
Vehicle(s)
17 GT Grabber Blue Premium PP
Hi Joe,

Steeda offers two maintenance free Vertical links one in Delrin and the other in Urethane.

We found that the spherical bearing option in our testing put to much control in the IRS which created excessive bounce or control for street driven and Road Race applications, under hard braking from 170 mph the car became very nervous in the rear to the point of dangerous. Once we changed out the spherical vertical links the issue went away. No wonder the Pro- Continental GS S550 use a production style vertical links in competition

With that being said, for hard launches and Drag race applications we recommend the Steeda Delrin option which do not squeak. We achieved 1.29 shortimes in a production built S550. Furthermore, with the Steeda Delrin Vertical links no other modifications are required.

For everyday use, handling and Road Race applications the Steeda Urethane Vertical links are the ticket. They provide exceptional ride quality and great stability under high speed braking!

Check out our New one piece Steeda Billet Aluminium Polyurethane kit, is on promotion for 149.95

https://www.steeda.com/Steeda-S550-...yurethane-Bushings-2015-2018-All_p_13786.html

https://www.steeda.com/steeda-s550-mustang-billet-aluminum-vertical-links-2015-all-555-4121.html

Happy New Year!

steeda-s550-mustang-billet-aluminum-vertical-links-2015-all-555-4121.jpg
Quick question, how do we grease these poly units and how often to keep them from squeeking?

And how any idea how long they'll be on promotion for?

Thanks
 

Competition Orange

Well-Known Member
Joined
Aug 25, 2015
Threads
40
Messages
1,402
Reaction score
436
Location
Columbus, Ohio
Vehicle(s)
2017 GT350
I've used BMR spherical. Can confirm twitchy feel on a road course, even with street tires and they did not make but did transmit additional road thunk noises in my car. Not the end of the world, but... if you care. Spherical I'd use on a high power drag car only, personally.

Then I went to Steeda Delrin, those new noises were all but gone and no squeaks ever. Excellent all-arounder and I'd stick with these if I was focused on straight line speed (drag). I now have Steeda Urethane. Excellent balance for a road course/handling oriented setup/driver as proven by lap after lap of testing by Steeda. I don't have any increased wheel hop that I've noticed but the back end stays more stable under the very late, heavy breaking that I'm able to do more and more (especially with sticky tires). Steeda's vertical links aren't cheap, but the bushings are large on purpose and you can see my thread here showing the Steeda Delrin links after 10 track days and 20K miles - the only issue is they got dirty - oh boo-hoo! No squeaks, no cracks, no problems.
Shocking seeing you in a steeda vs * thread...
 

SteedaTech

Well-Known Member
Diamond Sponsor
Joined
Aug 8, 2016
Threads
71
Messages
2,067
Reaction score
1,592
Location
Pompano Beach, FL
Vehicle(s)
2016 Mustang Q750
Quick question, how do we grease these poly units and how often to keep them from squeeking?

And how any idea how long they'll be on promotion for?

Thanks
We pre lube them at the factory, with our new poly design they should go for at least two or three years with out lubing. Harsh winter conditions may be more frequent.

The promotion should be running until the end of January 2018.

Happy New Year!

Steeda Tech
 

M151A2

Skinny old dude
Joined
Dec 6, 2016
Threads
1
Messages
170
Reaction score
52
Location
Central Florida
First Name
Emmett
Vehicle(s)
2016 GT
As far as the three products, knowing that they are pre-lubed, how does one go about lubing them when needed?
Are there directions to lube them?
 

SteedaTech

Well-Known Member
Diamond Sponsor
Joined
Aug 8, 2016
Threads
71
Messages
2,067
Reaction score
1,592
Location
Pompano Beach, FL
Vehicle(s)
2016 Mustang Q750
As far as the three products, knowing that they are pre-lubed, how does one go about lubing them when needed?
Are there directions to lube them?
Yes, the Steeda instructions will include the lube procedure. Which is very simple.

Steeda Tech
Sponsored

 
 




Top