Another sway bar question...1 1/8 or 1 1/4"

[Strawdawg]

Firmfeel offers both sizes.  If one uses 1.03" tb's, would the 1 1/4" front bar be a better choice with a 440 car?

I ask because one can either go for a stiff spring set and a smaller sway bar set up, or softer spring and stiffer sway bar.  There is always an argument over which is the more correct route, and, I suspect the answer is, "It depends"   Theoretically, the stiffer tb and softer sway bar may be better, but.....

I see some use pretty stiff tb's, but, the 1.03" is an attractive price as are the 1.0"s so I think I will go for the 1.03".  I am not interested in Xcrossing...just good handling with a minimum of plow on the street. 

The extra 1/8" on the larger sway bar is a lot stiffer...is it too stiff with the 1.03"?

[brads70]

 

[dodj]

If it was me, I'd go for the 1 1/4". Doesn't affect ride stiffness but resists roll more.

You'll have to do a little research to make sure you also use an appropriate rear bar to work with it.

[Strawdawg]

If it was me, I'd go for the 1 1/4". Doesn't affect ride stiffness but resists roll more.

You'll have to do a little research to make sure you also use an appropriate rear bar to work with it.

a sway bar does resist wheel travel in certain circumstances when going in a straight line and the road surface is uneven.  It is a traverse spring that ties both wheels together...

[HP2]

Well, it depends.     Actually, mopars are somewhat handicapped by the available choices in t-bars compared to a coil spring car that can change rates in 50# increments to get the right balance.

A 1.125 front bar produces 1664# of force. A 1.25 bar will produce 2536# of force, or a whole lot more. Will that combo work, sure, so long as you balance it with the right rear combo.

So, just taking a stab at some numbers here; assuming your car weighs around 3800# with a 58% front weight bias, that front suspension combo would require a rear sway bar around 130# of force per wheel and each leaf spring would need to be around 175#. If you run without a rear sway bar, you need a whopping 212# of leaf spring force to balance things out.

Certainly the car's total weight and its front/rear bias is the key here. Taking 75# off the nose reduces front bias to 56% and the rear spring requirements by around 30# each, or gets you down around where the factor style XHD springs are.

The same deal with a 1.125 front sway bar will allow you to run the XHD leafs with no rear sway bar.

So, to simplify, if you want to run a rear bar, get the 1.25. If you don't want to run a rear bar, get the 1.125. Also, please understand that I'm just guessing at your starting weight here. If your higher or lower, or have a different bias, it can change things a lot.

I'd also add that despite the significant difference in size between frame hung and axle hung rear sway bars, the mounting methods bring them much closer to applied rate. Tyically within 30-35# of each other. This is where the Hotchkis bars is such a sweet design, you can alter its rate with the adjustment holes.

[Strawdawg]

LOL

this is what makes cars interesting....I prefer to run a rear bar.  I have been considering running either the XHD rears or the Hotchkis rears and at the moment, I have forgotten what the guesses are on the Hotchkis rears.

I prefer the factory mounting style of the Firm Feel bar, and the adjustability of the Hotchkis is really nice.

I have so much work to do on this car that I have not bothered to check the weight by corners...I would have guessed about 3700# but I would not argue 3800.  By the time it gets some new heads, and with the Al intake, I will shift a bit of bias to the rear.

I am trying to use some commonsense, but, I am old, and want to do it more or less right.  Like many, my commonsense and my right are often too different things.

PST has some 1.03" bars for $219 and that is what I am trying to match up with.

[HP2]

I can appreciate that. Seems I have less time to do things over, so I try harder to do them right the first time.

I ran all those numbers using 1.06 t-bars that I saw on Firm Feel's site. A 1.03 will alter that some, but not radically.

[Chryco Psycho]

from what I have read in the past I believe the softer spring rate & stiffer sway bar is the better route , the tire is less likely to chatter with the more compliant spring rate & will stay in contact with the road surface better

[Strawdawg]

HP2-I did not calculate the 1.06" bars for rate but I did compare the 1.03" to the 1.00" and it seems like they were 10-12 % higher rate altho a couple of weeks ago and not writing it down may have something to with whether I remember correctly


CP-I used to live in Houston which has some horrible roads.  I have a couple of turbo Regals, one that is lowered with higher rate springs and one with standard replacement springs.  Both have massive rear bars (1 3/8).  On bad roads, the first one tends to jitter around while the second complies with the road surface and is much more comfortable to drive.  On reasonable pavement, the first definitely handles better.

Out here, I have to drive a third of a mile up a rocky, caliche road to get to my gate on the highway.  I prefer something that will not try to shake the car apart-actually, I prefer my truck 


Of course, tire size has a bit to do with it as well....car has 14" wheels on it and I am thinking abut going to 17", but then I think about the jiggling that will occur on the road with  275/40s as opposed to 275/60s on 15s that I run on the back of the Buicks-on the other hand, I am fixing to turn 69 and I probably should let my son worry about such things as wheels and tires?  By the time I finish the front end on this Challenger, I may decide to let him worry about everything.............especially as we have had 26 days in a row of triple digit temps and I am not accomplishing much no matter how you slice it

[Strawdawg]

After announcing my intent...I start figuring and realized the Hotchkis bar combo from a distributor was not so bad when compared to the FF.  I like the adjustability of the Hotchkis rear as pointed out by HP2.

Ended up ordering the front and rear combo, plus strut rods, and the rear springs.

[MEK-Dangerfield]

After announcing my intent...I start figuring and realized the Hotchkis bar combo from a distributor was not so bad when compared to the FF.  I like the adjustability of the Hotchkis rear as pointed out by HP2.

Ended up ordering the front and rear combo, plus strut rods, and the rear springs.

I ordered the Hotchkis rear sway bar, and it is on it's way back. I didn't know welding was involved, so maybe you are more handy than myself.   

[brads70]

Come on up Mike! I'll weld it on for ya?

[MEK-Dangerfield]

Come on up Mike! I'll weld it on for ya?

I'm pretty sure they won't let me cross the border.