I re-drilled my swaybar links

[danq]

Reducing the length of the lever arm will effectively stiffen the bar. Race cars have adjustable bars to adjust the balance of the car. Should do exactly the same thing on a sled.

You can calculate the sway bar rate:
http://buildafastercar.com/tech/Sway-Ba ... Calculator

 

[Bradford]

Reducing the length of the lever arm will effectively stiffen the bar. Race cars have adjustable bars to adjust the balance of the car. Should do exactly the same thing on a sled.

You can calculate the sway bar rate:
http://buildafastercar.com/tech/Sway-Ba ... Calculator

Thanks danq! I'll take some measurements tonight to see what the effect should be

Brad

 

[danq]

The shorter arm gives less mechanical advantage to twist the sway bar than a longer arm does, so its like stiffening the bar.

Please post your A-B-C measurements. I'd like to compare your mod to the 13mm (D) bar people suggest. I'd bet they are close.. Your method is cheaper. In fact, we can calculate the length of arm needed to replicate the 13mm bar (assuming similar bar materials)

 

[SRXSex]

Not trying to argue here but think about this.

The bar is going to twist the same amount because both ends have a link attached that are the same size. The differance in yours is that you will now have a delay before the bar can transmit the force to the inside link. So it will take more outside body roll to input the same force as the original length. This means that you wont get an opposing downward output force to the inside link until the sled has rolled more onto the outside ski.

The idea of the larger diameter bar is that it doesn't twist as much and therefore transmits the force sooner ( by not twisting ) to the inside link to force the inside ski down.

I would have to agree with Rosco here but except one thing. You have shortend the distance on the links and thefore have reduced leverage on the bar.. Therfore the torsion will will be less than before. Oh wait a minute..... mabey that is what Rosco is trying to say.

 

[Bradford]

I'm finding this very interesting!

I haven't had a chance to take measurements but looking at the image for the swaybar rate calculator, the only measurements that I could have effected are A and C but both of these measurements are in reference to the swivel point on the A-arm and the location of the sway bar. Unless I'm missing something, these measurements haven't changed. The point that would have changes is shown by the red arrow in the attached imaged

Brad

 

[Charged RTX]

You also have to consider that the smaller link that connects to the a-arm is going to start to pivot more to horizontal as the suspension is compressed which will make it crank the sway bar less and less. Like I said before picture moving it to the next hole up the link and you can imagine how it would effect it negatively. the angle the pic was taken makes it harder to imagine. If it was directly from the side it would be more obvious.

 

[Master of Faster]

Charged RTX has this right, shortening the link does increase the effective rate of the bar and the force exerted on the small dogbone link, but the problem is that force is not transimitted to the a-arms equally.

To be most effective the small link needs to be vertical (in-line with the suspension travel), so to really make this work, what is needed is an extension on the a-arm mount. (Get the small link mounted closer to the bar but still vertical). A shorter dogbone link might be required to position the large link correctly.

The only thing to watch out for would be binding at full suspension compression, the combined length of both links will need to be long enough the reach the arm when the suspension is bottomed. By eye it looks like there's plenty of room to work with though.

It might be possible that there is a happy medium between the big link length and the small link angle that would net a little better result by just re-drilling, but it will be minor, and will be dependent on the ride height of each particular sled.