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I'm replacing the tie rods and ball joints on my Wagoneer project and now that I have everything off the Jeep, I had a thought which I'm sure has been covered ad nauseam somewhere but I couldn't find any direct write ups. Your inner and outer tie rod ends that screw into the sleeves are roughly 4" long and are pretty standard parts. The long tie rod and the drag link are typically more expensive than just the ends. I'm wondering if it's possible to cut off the worn ends and just sleeve/weld/tap whatever in order to be able to use cheaper and more easily replaceable tie rod ends on your otherwise functioning tubing. It just seems kind of a waste to replace a 3'long section of tubing and end when it's just the end that really needs replacing. I may be completely off on this one and if so please let me know.
There are after market solutions for other vehicles that can be adapted to our vehicles. But these are typically used when running big lifts and tires.
Do you plan on having the TREs wear out faster than normal by running big tires or the like? Otherwise, chances are you won't ever replace those TREs again. So may not be worth all the work. Also, I would not re-use the stock tubing if you wanted to go this route. Get some better quality DOM or the like.
I think you're right about the longevity of my replacement tie rod ends. I don't have a significant lift or tires going on the Jeep so they shouldn't have to be replaced again. I ordered up a new set all the way around. I may still play around with the old ones to see if that mod is within my limited skill set.