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warren57
08-09-2013, 11:33 AM
What are your thoughts on having both traction bars and sway bar. As C-Nut has said, they both provide a different function so it seems having both would be required for best performance??
Next, the sway bar mounts I have mount under the frame. My exhaust is under the frame. Do you see any reason I couldn't fabricate a mount on the side of the frame? Also, as the sway bar is in the general area of the exhaust coming over the housing, would it be an issue the modify the bends on the sway bar to allow better clearance?
Thanks

Run-em
08-09-2013, 11:46 AM
Re-bending the anti-sway bar would kinda be a no-no as they are tempered somewhat like a spring. As to side mounting the bar to the frame, you'd not pick up much in clearance. You might get your frame measurements and go junk yard hunting for a set that might better fit your needs. Things get kind busy under there with pipes, shocks, sway bars, and traction bars all hunting for the same room.

warren57
08-09-2013, 12:05 PM
Re-bending the anti-sway bar would kinda be a no-no as they are tempered somewhat like a spring. As to side mounting the bar to the frame, you'd not pick up much in clearance. You might get your frame measurements and go junk yard hunting for a set that might better fit your needs. Things get kind busy under there with pipes, shocks, sway bars, and traction bars all hunting for the same room.

Yes, bending may not work. Wonder if you built a bracket off the side of the frame (an angle iron) and built a bracket the same dimensions at the connection point of the actual bar? That way, if you offset the bracket an inch at the top, the attachment point at the bar could match?

chevynut
08-09-2013, 12:06 PM
Actually when I bought my custom swaybar the company that made it said swaybars are not heat treated, but are made out of alloy steel. They just bend, form, and ship them. Bending them should be no issue.

warren57
08-09-2013, 12:20 PM
Actually when I bought my custom swaybar the company that made it said swaybars are not heat treated, but are made out of alloy steel. They just bend, form, and ship them. Bending them should be no issue.

Thanks, I would imagine, you would want to bend both sides the same? I would like to bend the 90* a little more to accomodate an angle bracket coming off the inside of the frame. Essentially making the connection points a little narrower... Have a 20T pipe pender and a die that is pretty close to the bar size, so shouldn't have any issue getting it bent.

Rick_L
08-09-2013, 05:23 PM
Some manufacturers heat treat their sway bars and some don't. Allegedly you shouldn't be re-bending a heat treated sway bar. You usually are going to need heat to bend one yourself in a home shop. This will anneal the heated area and that area of the bar will have the strength of annealed alloy, not heat treated alloy. It would still be ok to heat and bend a heat treated sway bar as long as that in service you didn't exceed the yield strength of the annealed alloy. The stress you could put in the bar would depend on other things with your car like the spring rate, height of the bump stops, and how much traction you have. It's pretty difficult to estimate all that in detail. I took a chance with my Hellwig 5721 bar as my brake calipers were hitting the bar limiting the steering angle. I chose to bend the bar to narrow it. It didn't take much to get the clearance I needed and gain some steering travel. Also, bending the bar lessened its deflection (and stress) for a given amount of wheel travel, also helping just a bit.

Hellwig makes an adjustable rear bar for 55-57s with a pocket kit, p/n 8296. It looks like it will clear on most installations. Including a Dana 60 axle. The tailpipes would have to be exiting the center of the muffler or inboard of that (I think most are or can be that way).