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Can a sprint car type torsion bar suspension work on a street driven hot rod??

Discussion in 'The Hokey Ass Message Board' started by Devin, Oct 4, 2012.

  1. Devin
    Joined: Dec 28, 2004
    Posts: 2,369

    Devin
    Member
    from Napa, CA

    Like sThe subject says. I like the clean look and sense of purpose of sprint car suspensions. Perhaps with less machined aluminum and more fabrication.
     
  2. Devin
    Joined: Dec 28, 2004
    Posts: 2,369

    Devin
    Member
    from Napa, CA

    Rear suspension to be specific.
     
  3. gimpyshotrods
    Joined: May 20, 2009
    Posts: 23,264

    gimpyshotrods
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

  4. My buddy scratch built a 27 T roadster with a flat head and a quick change and installed torsion bars from a sprint car. Came out real neat and although he does not drive it much he says he was quite satisfied with the ride
     

  5. gnichols
    Joined: Mar 6, 2008
    Posts: 11,345

    gnichols
    Member
    from Tampa, FL

  6. XWYNNSGUY
    Joined: Dec 7, 2008
    Posts: 105

    XWYNNSGUY
    Member

    You need to check out Joey Saldana's hotrod, torsion front and rear I think. built and set up by Lee Osborne. Who was one heck off a shoe himself.
     
  7. Devin
    Joined: Dec 28, 2004
    Posts: 2,369

    Devin
    Member
    from Napa, CA

  8. Moal sells their torsion bar suspensions separately if you don't want their frame. Michael Moal recently quoted me $2,850 for the front or rear. Sounds like a lot but it is an engineered system. I have ridden in a car that they built and it is really worth the bucks if you have them.
     

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  9. designs that work
    Joined: Aug 29, 2005
    Posts: 411

    designs that work
    Member

    Yes you can put sprint car torsion bars on a street car. With a solid rear axle 8", 9" it is fairly simple, with a I R S it gets a little complicated.
     
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  10. Built one in the seventies with sprint car stuff and it was really a cool ride and totally adjustable. 1940 Ford chassis.
     
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  11. Devin
    Joined: Dec 28, 2004
    Posts: 2,369

    Devin
    Member
    from Napa, CA

    What is the concensus of orienting the torsion bars in a horizontal fashion (as shown in the pics) versus a longitudinal manner?


    Posted from the TJJ App for iPhone & iPad
     
  12. BCR
    Joined: Dec 11, 2005
    Posts: 1,265

    BCR
    Member

    Was it the ride quality or the handling? How much better is it than a spring system?

    Just curious.
     
  13. Ride quality. I was not driving. It was very smooth and there was very little lean in the turns.

    I saw a Model A at the Tunica show with a home made torsion bar suspension. It had the bars parallel to the frame and the ends of the arms rode on pads welded to split original Ford wishbones.

    Schroder Racing (the same people who make the sprint car steering boxes) make torsion bars and they can size based on load and the length of the arm.
     
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  14. Devin
    Joined: Dec 28, 2004
    Posts: 2,369

    Devin
    Member
    from Napa, CA

    I think that setup would be really cool. I would
    LIke to be able to set the torsion bars within the frame rails for a super clean almost skeletonized appearing suspension.
     
  15. designs that work
    Joined: Aug 29, 2005
    Posts: 411

    designs that work
    Member

    These pictures are not very clear but they show the start of a torsion bar suspension using Toyota and Chevy luv torsion bars. More pictures in my albums. For ease of mounting torsion bar arms, in my opinion the rear bars would be mounted transversely or across the car. The fronts run parallel to the frame.
     

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  16. Degenerate
    Joined: Aug 5, 2007
    Posts: 239

    Degenerate
    Member
    from Indiana

    As many torsion bars and stops I have left over from racing this thread has me interested.
     
  17. rooman
    Joined: Sep 20, 2006
    Posts: 4,045

    rooman
    Member

    Steve Panaritis (aka The Greek) has being doing torsion bar frames for years here in Indiana and Lee Osborne was doing them before him.
    A coil spring is simply a torsion bar packaged differently but the advantage of correctly mounted torsion bars is that the spring base can be made wider and longer without having the coils hanging out in the breeze.

    Roo
     
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  18. oj
    Joined: Jul 27, 2008
    Posts: 6,454

    oj
    Member

    Heres' the front end of one from the Jalopy Showdown a couple years ago
     

    Attached Files:

  19. 3wLarry
    Joined: Mar 11, 2005
    Posts: 12,804

    3wLarry
    Member Emeritus
    from Owasso, Ok

    no disrespect, but that don't look right hangin out in the breeze...coulda hidden it better me thinks...
     
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  20. hugh m
    Joined: Jul 18, 2007
    Posts: 2,143

    hugh m
    Member
    from ct.

    The springbase used to be a sort of critical item on old midgets, maybe they were after that...but on a hotrod hidden would be nice.
     
  21. sdluck
    Joined: Sep 19, 2006
    Posts: 3,186

    sdluck
    Member

    Moal bros did a car for I think Alen Ness and the front bars were long ways,very nice car.
     
  22. I'm putting a ford rear end in a sprint car chassis for a street rod.
    It's not as easy as I first thought...I think it will be a four bar with the rear torsion arm mounted with a shackle to allow some motion. Any advise from somebody that's done it?
     
  23. Can they work, sure. Just have to get the rates right on the bars.

    Check my my build thread in my signature. There are some pictures of my chassis about 1 or 2 pages back from the last page of the thread. Real clean torsion bar install on all four corners.



    .
     
    Last edited: Nov 26, 2014
  24. gasserjohn
    Joined: Nov 9, 2008
    Posts: 1,218

    gasserjohn
    Member

    few years ago in a radir wheel add was a photo of HellzaPop'n coupe the cleaness /simple torsion bar setup /like on front ends of fed dragsters


    will look for photo if no one else posts it

    would like to see details
     
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  25. .

    I got on my computer and have a few minutes to post some pics before work. Here is my chassis being built by JoKerr Fabrication. Jo has built and raced sprint cars and that is apparent in the design of this chassis. Torsion bars front and rear with a nice clean install.

    I hope these help you with some ideas.

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]


    The rear set up:

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]


    The front:

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    Jo is fabbing the torsion arms to tuck up behind the V8-60 Axle I'm using like the paper pattern on the driver's side shows.

    [​IMG]

    Most of these pics were taken last week right before the chassis was blown apart for paint. The completed car will be on display in the basement at the Detroit Autorama which starts on March 8th. If anyone out there is going, stop by and say hello.

    Here is a pic of the body that will be wearing a nice shiny coat of black very soon.

    [​IMG]



    .
     
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  26. gnichols
    Joined: Mar 6, 2008
    Posts: 11,345

    gnichols
    Member
    from Tampa, FL

    Thanx, it sure has. I've been sub'd to your build for just that reason! Gary
     
  27. View attachment PICT0594 (1).pdf

    torsion.jpg

    This is close to how my 9" is hooked up now, but I think it needs a shackle on the torsion arm to allow things to move as the suspension travels up and down..any thoughts? :confused:
     
  28. fossilfish
    Joined: Dec 16, 2010
    Posts: 320

    fossilfish
    Member
    from Texas

    A coil spring is nothing more than a torsion bar twisted in a coil. Both are just twisting steel. The cool deal about a torsion bar is the easy ride height adjustment.
     
  29. Rootie Kazoootie
    Joined: Nov 27, 2006
    Posts: 8,134

    Rootie Kazoootie
    Member
    from Colorado

    Yes, you need to free up the torsion arm, there's a lot of bind going on in that setup.
     
  30. 2OLD2FAST
    Joined: Feb 3, 2010
    Posts: 5,217

    2OLD2FAST
    Member
    from illinois

    Perhaps the setup has a slot in the arm instead of a round hole ?

    dave
     

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