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[nomadsz]

OK guys i know my wood, that stuff you use to make fences, decks etc, but when it come to metal i need some advice.

SO with a little help from my friends.

Could i use aluminium solid round bar for tie rods, track bars and control arms

I have been looking at either 50mm ALuminium round bar or Cold drawn steel 41.28mm with 9.53 wall and 50.8mm with 9.53mm wall.
WHich should i use for what??

Where is the best place to get rod ends / jonny joints?

[gazjeep]

Steel for steering bits, Aluminium way too soft

[Bishops Finger]

err yop and one knows feck all...

[chrisjones]

Yes you could, but i wouldn't

To get similar strength from aluminium bar you're probably not going to save any weight over steel and it'll be a lot more expensive.  More importantly aluminium gains it's strength from the heat treatment it receives (which bar stock probably hasn't had) so it will be soft and won't withstand impact.

You could probably use T6 treated ali tubing for steering components but it would be expensive and they'd need replacing regularly as aluminium doesn't like cyclic loading it goes brittle and then fails catastrophically.

Oh and add to that......unless its anodised it will turn to a substance similar to talk in double quick time under a truck.

In comparison, steel is strong, cheap and easy to work with and weld.  which is why suspension and steering components tend to be made from it.

[Dave69]

Steel ally will corode like hell and bend at the first sign of a bump

thick wall steel tubing.

search stateside for TRE's and what the upgrade options are