700: Inside TK1 – Sway Bars & Aerospace

Episode 700 is a milestone — and Jimmy and Tyler marked it by getting off their chairs and going on location. They recorded this one inside an airplane hangar at TK1&#8217;s facility in the Lincoln, CA, sitting down with Garrett to finally get the full story on a company they&#8217;ve been recommending for years. Most SnailTrail listeners know TK1 for one thing: sway bars. But the real story is wilder than that. TK1&#8217;s founder Tony didn&#8217;t start in aerospace — he started in off-road racing, building tube chassis under the Rocky Equipment name. After the 2008 crash hit the racing industry hard, the business pivoted. A bush plane owner who&#8217;d tried mounting Fox off-road shocks to his aircraft got denied by Fox over liability concerns — so he called Tony. That conversation launched what would become TK1&#8217;s aerospace division. Today, TK1 does everything from billet aluminum sway bars to aviation landing gear shocks to titanium components — all machined in-house, all in Sacramento. Garrett walks Tyler and Jimmy through what actually makes TK1&#8217;s sway bars different: every bar is custom-spec&#8217;d for your vehicle, your suspension setup, your use case, and your goals. The conversation gets technical — how diameter and arm length affect torsion rate, how sway bars interact with front-end articulation, why a stiffer rear bar can actually free up your front axle, and how TK1&#8217;s pneumatic adjustable sway bar concept would let a King of the Hammers racer change stiffness between the desert lap and the rock section. Tyler shares his own hard-won lesson after a spine block came loose on Kermit and he suddenly understood — from behind the wheel — what sway bars actually do. Jimmy walks Garrett through Samantha&#8217;s build specs to start the process of ordering her sway bar. His setup — a custom link rear, T100 axle, and goals still being dialed in — highlights exactly the kind of conversation TK1 has with every customer before they cut metal. Beyond sway bars: TK1 is developing its own off-road air shocks (still in R&#38;D, watch this space), building an electric single-motor buggy with a Hyper 9 motor in the shop, and partnering with a local high school machining program to pipeline young fabricators directly into their crew. If you need a custom billet part — trailing arm, tie rod, suspension link — they&#8217;ll take that call too. The episode wraps with a standing invitation: get Jimmy and Tyler on a day trip to Loon Lake, and maybe a future R&#38;D deep-dive episode at the TK1 shop. Follow TK1:Instagram &#8211; https://www.instagram.com/tk1racing/Website: https://store.tk1racing.com/Facebook: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/tk1racing/ ">https://www.facebook.com/tk1racing/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@tk1racing760 SnailTrail4x4 Discord: https://discord.gg/yFyFFkQbuyCome hang out with us on the SnailTrail4x4 Discord — it&#8217;s the easiest way to connect with Tyler and Jimmy directly, chat with fellow offroad enthusiasts, and get first access to Group Buys and Treasure Hunt token drops. Group Buy for the Devos LightRanger 500We reached out to Devos, and they are in. Here&#8217;s how the discount tiers work: 10 people → 15% off (~$60/light) 20 people → 20% off (~$56/light) 30+ people → 25% off (~$52/light) These retail at $70. To get in, just send us your email and how many units you want. You can email us at [email protected] or [email protected], or DM us on Instagram. Deadline: April 30th. Want to learn more about the LightRanger 500? Click Here: https://www.devosoutdoor.com/products/lightranger-500 MORRFlate Giveaway at 900 Reviews on Apple Podcast. But our next giveaway is when we reach 800 reviews; we are giving away an OnX Elite Membership. We will also give away an OnX Elite membership when we get to 850. However, when we reach 900 Reviews, we are teaming up with MORRFlate for a $1000 MF Product Giveaway. Go over to Apple Podcasts to leave your review now and become eligible to win. Congratulations to A13XMONT, who won a set of tires from Yokohama Tire! Call us and leave us a VOICEMAIL!!! We want to hear from you even more!!! You can call and say whatever you like! Ask a question, leave feedback, correct some information about welding, say how much you hate your Jeep, and wish you had a Toyota! We will air them all, live, on the podcast! +01-916-345-4744. If you have any negative feedback, you can call our negative feedback hotline, 408-800-5169. 4Wheel Underground has all the suspension parts you need to take your off-road rig from leaf springs to a performance suspension system. We just ordered our kits for Kermit and Samantha and are looking forward to getting them. The ordering process was quite simple, and after answering the questionnaire, we ensured we got the correct and best-fitting kits for our vehicles. If you want to level up your suspension game, check out 4Wheel Underground. SnailTrail4x4 Podcast is brought to you by all of our peeps over at irate4x4! Make sure to stop by and see all of the great perks you get for supporting SnailTrail4x4! Discount Codes, Monthly Give-Always, Gift Boxes, the SnailTrail4x4 Community, and the ST4x4 Treasure Hunt! Thank you to all of those who support us! We couldn&#8217;t do it without you guys (and gals!)! SnailSquad Monthly Giveaway For the Month of April, we are giving away Gift Boxes. Its Gift Box month and two luck indiviuals will win a one of our gift boxs. These are jam packed with goodies from tools to whiskey smokers. They are always different and always random. If you want a chance to win, sign up for the Giveaway Tier on Irate4x4 Congrats to Roger Lutz on March&#8217;s Giveaway. We gave away the new Devos LightRanger500. This little light is jam-packed with features, from red, orange, and white lights to a motion sensor. It would be perfect for inside a tent, under a canopy, or just general use around the vehicle. If you want a chance to win, sign up for the Giveaway Tier on Irate4x4 Listener Discount Codes: SnailTrail4x4 &#8211;SnailTrail15 for 15% off SnailTrail4x4 MerchMORRFlate &#8211; snailtraill4x4 to get 10% off MORRFlate Multi Tire Inflation Deflation™ Kits4WheelUnderground &#8211; snailtrail 10% offIronman 4&#215;4 &#8211; snailtrail20 to get 20% off all Ironman 4&#215;4 branded equipment!Sidetracked Offroad &#8211; snailtrail4x4 (lowercase) to get 15% off lights and recovery gearSpartan Rope &#8211; snailtrail4x4 to get 10% off sitewideShock Surplus &#8211; SNAILTRAIL4x4 to get $25 off any order!Mob Armor &#8211; SNAILTRAIL4X4 for 15% offSummerShine Supply &#8211; ST4x4 for 10% offBackpacker&#8217;s Pantry &#8211; Affiliate LinkLaminx Protective Films – Use the Link to get 20% off all products (Affiliate Link) Show Music: Outroll Music &#8211; Meizong Kumbang Midroll Music &#8211; ComaStudio