Hot Rods nostalgia drag car front axle...HELP

As the title says, HELP. We bought a old school Bantam race car, and it has serious front axle issues . The tube on the frame was thought to hold a torsion bar suspension. It has a stack of 6, 1/4" " flat irons" put together fixed to 2 craftsman 1 1/4" 1/2" drive sockets ( picture in vise) it maybe worked 40 years ago, but now is all sloppy and uses the whole track!
Has anyone ever seen something like this? how do I find a torsion bar set up that will work with this set up?

 

Sorta like a VW beam?

 

Try places like Chris Alston Race Cars in Sacramento or Chassis Engineering in Florida, the one that builds race car parts.

 

Believe it or not I broke a Craftsman 1 1/4" socket, If I can do that with a huge pry bar that has got to be a week point, HRP

 

Well.. after looking this over, I think the Craftsman sockets are the "strongest" part of this.

 

Look into this:

 

^^^^^^^^ well look at that!

 

Exactly like one.

 

Kent Fuller used this style suspension on his rails and Volksrods. I saw a thread once, maybe here, where he mentioned the use of the sockets with the writer. I assume it was to more easily capture the leaves and seat againt the frame tube similar to the VW arms rather than going through the machining process of creating a square pocket in the arm.
I am guessing the slop you feel is in the arms/socket and not broken leaves.
A difference between the VW bug arms shownand these are the VW arms and the square pocket for the leaves extend about 6 inches into the tube giving more seating surface area against the tube and leaves. They also use an inner bushing and outer bearing between the tube and arm, and aftermarket replacement torsion leaves and full length bushings are available. In addition, a sleeve a few inches wide in the center of the VW torsion tube acts to locate the torsion leaves in the center of the tube without anchoring them.
Hope this helps you find a way to address the slop in the original setup if you choose to keep it.

 

The torsion bar package that Casual 6 posted is the lightweight unit meant for dragsters. Mark Williams also makes a heavier duty unit more suited to your application.
What you have now is what just about everyone ran back in the day (if they did not run a transverse leaf). The internal components were VW torsion bar leafs (spring steel). Most chassis builders used an arm with a 3/4" square hole and a tube welded to the inside face that supported the arm in the end of the front cross member. The center anchor was a bush with a matching 3/4" square hole (some used the drive portion of a 3/4 drive socket) that was either welded or secured with a bolt threaded into a nut/bush welded to the tube.

Roo

 

I'd say you guys guys have it right. That's what this set up looks like thanks again.