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Re: Adjustable Swaybars - One or Both Ends?

To: autox mailing list <autox@autox.team.net>
Subject: Re: Adjustable Swaybars - One or Both Ends?
From: "Mark J. Andy" <marka@telerama.com>
Date: Tue, 3 Aug 1999 18:26:55 -0400 (EDT)
Howdy,

On Tue, 3 Aug 1999 TeamZ3@aol.com wrote:
> Swaybars are cornering springs.  Spring rates are force per unit of distance, 
> not just force alone.  Your friend isn't considering that you will have two 
> different length lever arms by only adjusting one side; one side will 
> generate a different spring rate than the other.  For a given diameter, the 
> longer the lever arm the lower the swaybar spring rate and vice versa.  You 
> could potentially use this to your advantage if the car handles significantly 
> different turning in one direction vs. the other.  Generally speaking though, 
> you want to adjust both sides of the bar.

I'm far from an expert, but in the ideal realm, wouldn't the length of the
lever arm be the length of _both_ sides of the swaybar?  If you've got:


     ***********************
     *                     *B
     *                 
     *A

Then pushing up B gives you less leverage if you assume A isn't fixed to
anything.  If A is fixed to something, then you've got another lever
there.  Similar the other way,  pushing up A if B isn't fixed to anything
gives you more leverage, but if you attach B to something, you've got
another (way stiffer) lever there.  Seems (qualitatively), like it'd
balance out.

Not counting mount binding, reality, etc.

Mark


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