sway bar end links

[younggun2.0]

i am planning to fabricate a system that uses rod ends for my attachment points for my front sway bar. on paper this looks like a great idea. i have ordered 1/2" cromoly rod ends, one male thread the other female. has anyone done this? or know of any pitfalls this may create. i am hoping to free up any friction in the front suspension movement. i have the RMS tubular upper arms with heim joints and the adjustable strut rods with heim joints as well. the car will be street strip and i want it to hook but handle better than a shopping cart on the street. any input good or bad is welcome.

 

[mcnoople]

Wouldn't it be easier to convert a end link from another model? There are some that use the old style rubber spacers on one end and a ball socket on the other. This would allow you to retain your factory style bar, but you would have to change the LCA tabs to match.

 

[younggun2.0]

Wouldn't it be easier to convert a end link from another model? There are some that use the old style rubber spacers on one end and a ball socket on the other. This would allow you to retain your factory style bar, but you would have to change the LCA tabs to match.

i already have the sway bar. its a kit i bought. i have already modified the lower control arm mounting point. i will be bolting a clevis bracket to the end of the sway bar for my mounting point on the bar and another clevis bracket on the lower control arm. i will be getting the parts tomorrow and will lay it out to create a visual. i am trying to get rid of all the rubber spacer bushings all together.

 

[wjajr]

i already have the sway bar. its a kit i bought. i have already modified the lower control arm mounting point. i will be bolting a clevis bracket to the end of the sway bar for my mounting point on the bar and another clevis bracket on the lower control arm. i will be getting the parts tomorrow and will lay it out to create a visual. i am trying to get rid of all the rubber spacer bushings all together.

I think you are inviting accelerated metal fatigue where the bar is attached to lower control arm, and at the least a lot of road noise transmitted into the car. Personally I wouldn’t rigidly connect an anti-sway bar to any suspension component, or frame member.

 

[younggun2.0]

I think you are inviting accelerated metal fatigue where the bar is attached to lower control arm, and at the least a lot of road noise transmitted into the car. Personally I wouldn’t rigidly connect an anti-sway bar to any suspension component, or frame member.

i just spoke with a tech at Art Morrison and they told me that it is completly safe if its mounted correctly. they told me that all of there sway bars are attached in this way. i have attached a picture so you can see what i have in mind.

 

[wjajr]

OK, I’ll amend my previous statement; you will have more road noise to listen to while under way, and this is more of a race car only method. If this were the preferred method to attach anti sway bars in “passenger cars and light duty trucks” all mass-market auto producers would be using this bushing less method.

I’m not sure how well those joints will react with ice melting chemicals, general road slop, and everyday driving conditions over the long haul.

Just my 2 cents…

 

[younggun2.0]

OK, I’ll amend my previous statement; you will have more road noise to listen to while under way, and this is more of a race car only method. If this were the preferred method to attach anti sway bars in “passenger cars and light duty trucks” all mass-market auto producers would be using this bushing less method.

I’m not sure how well those joints will react with ice melting chemicals, general road slop, and everyday driving conditions over the long haul.

Just my 2 cents…

i do appreciate the opinion. you make very valid points. i am willing to live with the road noise if it means gaining even the slightest amount of performance. as for road "grime"..... my car will live out the remainder of its life as a fair weather car.


i was just thinking that the rod ends would make the sway bar mildly adjustable and would free up some friction in the front end. i also was thinking that it could be un-hooked at the drag strip very quickly this way if need be.

 

[younggun2.0]

here is the parts that i got to do this with. the end with the bolt welded thru the bracket will be my mounting point thru the sway bar. i will trim the stud to the correct length once i have it bolted to the sway bar. the other end will be welded to my lower control arm. this should be super strong and hopefully function well.

and this is the current set-up that i will be replacing.

 

[younggun2.0]

i got one side set up today. dont mind the super long bolts. i will be cutting them to the correct length. i can now move the entire suspension thru the full range of motion with minimal effort. it will go from completely bottomed out to full extension with ease and no binding.

[ame=http://s370.photobucket.com/albums/oo147/johnnydart_photo/?action=view&current=swaybar003-1.mp4]

[/ame]

 

[needsaresto]

It looks solid,but I think I'd prefer urethane. All Im going to do to mount my factory bar up front is weld tabs to the lower arms and bolt up the bar using energy suspension urethane. I figure you need some give,just a bit.Metal on metal might be fine for a race car,but Im not so sure about a street car.

 

[younggun2.0]

when i had the urethane bushings set up i didn't get anywhere near the travel i have now. my car will be a street/strip car and will be a fair weather weekend driver. it will not be seeing daily driver duty. i figured that the force placed on the components will be the same wheather its thru a bushing or thru a rod end. the ones i used are chromoloy and should hold up. if not then i can always go back to the poly set up.

 

[needsaresto]

Why is more travel important with a swaybar? The sway bar takes effect when a car leans in a corner,not when your rock crawling...

 

[mcnoople]

It looks interesting, I would try to find a modern car style joint with weather seals and double ball sockets. You did a nice job fitting it up, I am more of a drive everything on the street kinda guy. I don't like strip only cars. I figure a part like this could be modified, would give full range of motion, have weather resistance, and easy to find replacements.

http://www.autozone.com/autozone/pa...8oxl1?itemIdentifier=819447_0_10695_4145,4231

 

[khaley71]

My buddy had setup kind of like what you are doing on his 70 Super Bee. It worked great, but it did have some minor draw backs. The longer it was on the car the more noise it made, and the hiem joint style ends would wear out pretty fast. He did drive the Bee like he stole it though lol

 

[younggun2.0]

Why is more travel important with a swaybar? The sway bar takes effect when a car leans in a corner,not when your rock crawling...

i have the cal trac rear suspension and i am trying to get as much front end lift as possible for weight transfer.

 

[autoxcuda]

i have the cal trac rear suspension and i am trying to get as much front end lift as possible for weight transfer.

Disconnect the sway bar at the drag strip.

But the rod end will help reduce resistance when just moving the front end up and down equally on both sides (drag launch).

Of course there's a bunch of other points of resistence too.

 

[needsaresto]

Ditto .Disconnect em.

Anyways,maybe you have discovered something unique and usefull! Let us know how it works out in the long run.