Sway Bar (for FJ)

[ONEBADBUG]

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Thought you would be interested in the sway bar on my buggy. It combines a droop limiter and a normal sway bar, for swing axles. It connects to the axles in the normal fashion, but there is an adjustable stop in the center which comes into play when both wheels are in droop.

[FJCamper]

Hi OneBadBug,

You've got a very interesting device there. Did you invent this yourself?

FJC

[sideshow]

That is one odd suspension stop, I assume it is softer than flop stops or straps?

[Ol'fogasaurus]

Did you try running it without the solid mount in the center?

Lee

[Steve Arndt]

Tell us more.
With the welding involved too bad you can't go IRS.
s

[Bruce2]

That is one odd suspension stop, I assume it is softer than flop stops or straps?

The sway bar makes it a soft hit.

[ONEBADBUG]

Hi OneBadBug,

You've got a very interesting device there. Did you invent this yourself?

FJC

Yes, I don't know if other people have done this or not. I would guess I'm not the only one to think of it.

re: running without the center. That's the idea of it, it acts as a normal swaybar until there is a lot of body roll, or roll combined with lift, like cresting a hill.

re: IRS, I kept the swing axle because I felt like I had too much power for cv joints.

[FJCamper]

Hi OneBadBug,

The closest thing I can compare what you've done is a modified DeDion and that may not cover it.

This is clever indeed. Can you give us more photos showing the linkage ends? Pull a tire off and get some light in there.

I'd recommend you patenting this, except swing axles are a tiny market and patenting costs money and time.

If you'll PM me so I can recover your mailing address, there might be a few more spare parts here you need.

FJC

[will46r]

FJ, patents aren't "that" expensive. A friend of mine has a few and when he got his first one he was dirt poor.

Besides if this is a racing application then he could possibly charge 'racing part" fees for it.

[ONEBADBUG]

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You guys are a hoot. This is the tip of the iceberg. I've done that whole invention thing before, it's too much work, and I suck at marketing. I just drilled a hole in the spring plate and used standard heim joints. The sway bar and mounts are from a Dasher, total cost: $10. It's also 20 years old, I just happened to think of it because the buggy is getting a twin turbo Subaru upgrade as we speak.

[Steve Arndt]

No such thing as too much power for CV joints. They are not the weak link.

[Ol'fogasaurus]

ONEBADBUG, was that plate welded to the bar there or did you add it?

Lee

[ONEBADBUG]

Just welded it on. My friend and I have been making sway bars for quite a while. We've been told you can't weld or bend them, but guess what?

[Ol'fogasaurus]

Just welded it on. My friend and I have been making sway bars for quite a while. We've been told you can't weld or bend them, but guess what?

That was the impression that I had; a sway bar is a spring that transmits loads from one side of the suspension to the other (basically gives you some of the benefits of a beam axle) but the plate you welded in stops that. What you have now is basically two torsion bars the second one being something that limits (somewhat) the max and min travel. Interesting concept but I don't think I would do it on an IRS... for off-road anyway.

Lee

[ONEBADBUG]

It only limits droop, has no effect in bump.