Spidertrax Wheel Spacers
		CONTENTS 1) Vehicle Setup 2) Performance Review 3) Installation Write-Up 1) VEHICLE SETUP BEFORE INSTALL - 2001 Tj 4.0L Automatic - Rubicon Express 2" Budget Boost The wheel spacers do not require pre-installation of any other components. 2) PERFORMANCE REVIEW After careful consideration I decided that I wanted to step up to a 32x11.50 tire and no more for two reasons: A) less stress for the stock Dana 35 rear axle than 33"+ tires and B) it's much more cost effective to lift a Jeep to accomodate a 32" tire vs. a 33"+ tire. I also wanted to retain the nice, expensive, light weight stock Canyon wheels that came with my Jeep. To fit 32x11.50's without rubbing your wheels need to have at least 4.5" of back spacing and the Tj must be lifted at least 2" The Spidertrax 1.25" wheel spacers would drop back spacing from a stock 5.5" to 4.25". Excellent. I had experience with Spidertrax on my old Samurai and had absolute confidence in their products. Everything I ordered from them in the past was always top notch quality, design, and function. Benefits of the Spidertrax spacers: - Keep your light weight and expensive stock alloy wheels - Gain clearance between tires and chassis/suspension - Widen the Tj's stance, increasing stability - The only hub-centric spacer on the market - High quality alloy - Anodized to resist corrosion Spacer Myths Dispelled: Many people have reservations about using wheel spacers. Many of the objections center around a few points: A) they aren't safe because they limit thread engagement of the lug bolts B) more force is exerted on wheel bearings and hubs from a longer leverage arm C) for almost the same price you can get a new set of steel wheels. These are valid points but they are somewhat misleading providing you use quality wheel spacers such as the Spidertrax versions. These spacers come with extra lug nuts and bolt first to your existing hub the way your wheel does. The new wheel lug bolts that are pre-pressed by Spidertrax then have plenty of thread length to safely engage the lug nuts holding the wheel onto the spacer. As an added safety feature, Spidertrax supplies Loctite for with the spacers. The spacers exert no more added force on the wheel bearings and hub assembly than an aftermarket wheel with less back spacing. Adding to this is the fact I have not heard of anyone blowing out a hub due to less back spacing. Naturally, too much of anything is not good but the 1.25" spacing of these spacers shouldn't cause problems. Finally, the price issue is debatable. Yes, you can get cheap steel wheels for about the same price as the spacers but you give up a few things. The steel wheels are heavier than the light weight and expensive stock Jeep alloys. Plus, most steelies (as they're called) are not hub-centric wheels. These spacers are a hub centric design, the only spacers on the market that I know of that are. Hub-Centric Design: One of the biggest deciding factors in favor of the Spidertrax spacers was the hub-centric design. I hadn't seen any other spacers on the market with this feature. By utilizing the hub-centric design, these spacers are made to "perfectly" match and fit your stock OEM wheel, which are also a hub-centric design. You'll notice in the pictures a raised lip or ridge, and on the outer face and a groved race on the inner face. This is the good bit. In a hub-centric design these ridges and groves carry the weight of the vehicle far more effectively than the lugs. Thus, the only job the lugs have to do is keep the wheel tight to the hub/spacer face instead of trying to do double duty by also resisting the shear forces. It's a much safer and stronger design, one reason most auto manufacturers have gone with this method. It's also a more expensive design and a reason you only find this feature in expensive aftermarket wheels (not cheap steelies). Another reason to hang on to your OEM wheels. Road & Trail Performance What's to say? Quite simply put you don't notice the spacers are on the vehicle. There are no vibrations or wobbling. There is also no rubbing of tires on the TJ with the swaybar connected. Exactly what I wanted: tire clearance with out any drawbacks. These worked perfectly. 3) INSTALLATION Installation is very easy and straight forward. Jack up and remove the wheels from the Jeep. Clean the mounting surface on the hub so there is no dirt or grit there. Place some drops of Loctite on the OEM lugs and slip the spacer onto the hub. Torque down the newly supplied lug nuts to the recommended setting in a star patter, the way you would do with a wheel. Reinstall the wheels. Like all new alloy wheels, spacers should be re-torqued after 50 - 100 miles of driving. After this they're good to go. this requires jacking up the Jeep and removing...
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