Quote:
Originally Posted by moregrip
Rob, assuming a 4500lbs DD single cab late model truck moderately lowered (2/4), with stickier rubber, would going with a 1 1/2" front sway bar and 1 1/4" rear sway bar be a wrong choice?
|
OK, I am assuming (hate to do that) that you are looking at company "X" that has these bars. These are probably a larger version of the O.E. bar (it's a guess). and they will probably help to reduce the body roll.
The O.E. has a lot of factors to cover, and their goal is to make $$ for the share holders. I didn't say 'to sell trucks' or 'to make the best product they can'. The big three are beholding to the share holder first. So, they build a vehicle that will suit the largest segment of a particular market, have some cross-over sales, and make a profit. So, they can't build the best handling truck (even if they wanted too) because too many people would be cut from the market group. - harsh ride, too low, to responsive...... So, the aftermarket is there to 'shape' a vehicle in a certain direction. - towing, performance.... ALWAYS keep this in mind.
Real swaybars are rated in Lbs force per twist amount. And, they don't all use the same scale. It could be lbs per inch (one side vs. the other) or lbs per degree of twist, some use lbs per 5 degrees. To get a grip on this you need to understand which part of the swar bar twists (like a torsion bar or spring). Three piece bars are easy to understand, that the center bar twists, and the arms are the levers to twist with. So, add this in to the equation.
Sway bars with longer 'Arms' are softer than the same bar with a shorter 'arm'.
Sway bars with a shorter center 'bar' are stiffer than sway bars with a longer center 'bar'.
With this in mind, it is easy to understand that a 1 1/2" dia bar, with a long center and long arms could yield lower "lbs/degree resistance" than a 1 1/4" bar with a shorter center and shorter arms. Or, any combination there of. Next would be mounting points, like how far out on the A arm.
