4 dollar 25mm+ rear sway bar *pics*

[own6volvos]

I just made probably the worlds cheapest sway bar. Parts cost was about 4 dollars. I used my stock 16mm sway bar on my wagon, welded on brackets, and then welded a 1" hollow bar from bracket to bracket. I will get some pictures up sunday.

I took it out for a test drive, going around many 90 degree turns.. and DAMN.. this thing has like 0 sway in turns.. much flatter than my old 21 mm turbo bar that I was using for a while. My sister doesn't even know what a sway bar is, but when she was in the car.. she could definatly feel that the car was much flatter in turns, sicne when i turned into my neighborhood very sharply, there was almost no sway.

I can't belive how well this worked out. I will be testing it out this weekend to see if I can break it. I really overdid the welds so they shouldn't break during my test runs hopefully :x: But if this works out.. u can bet that I will be showing everybody on here how to make there own rear 240 sway bars any size they want.. like 25mm-55mm :twisted: , for under 10 dollars.

I will keep all of you guys posted.

Kevin

[volvorsport]

thats exactly how i explain to someone how to make them , but you could weld your end links on with different holes , making them adjustable .

you might break welds eventually , Mild steel is the choice of steel since you high carbon steel is to brittle .

[Hank Scorpio]

Dave,

Aren't true sway bars made of spring steal? Hence thats what helps keep the sway down?

Doug

[TurboBrick940]

I have a buddy who welded up a huge rear swaybar on a VW Golf, and hasn't had any problems. I would love to see pictures!

[own6volvos]

I will have pictures up sunday afternoon, since the cam is in chicago right now. There are only a few side effects to this whole thing.. you can't install this like a normal sway bar on your car. the rear can't be held up with jackstands since they get in the way, so you have to work one side at a time, propping up the trailing arm to get the bolts for each side in.

I will copy my current sway bar, and get a better looking one that didn't have to be cut and rewelded because it was too wide to fit on :oops: If anybody wants one of these to test or something, I would be glad to make one, and I want to see how well I can get the thing to hold up. I currently have one 240 n/a rear sway bar that I could build it with, so all you would have to do is chip ina little for the parts and ****, and shipping, and I would be glad to give you one. I want to first do a little more testing to make sure nothing snaps and ****, but I should have some nice results to tell when I post the pics :x:

I plan on making a front sway bar too. I am going to try to find a place that I could rent there bending stuff.. or just give them the specs I need, and I will be able to mount the thing to the sway bar link.

I was up to 4am last night with shear joy of less sway :badboy: I can't belive how fun this is to have big sway bars :-D

[boosted]

ok.... it's sunday afternooooonnnnn....

[own6volvos]

will have pics up ina min or 2... just got back from picking my parents up..

UPDATE:
The welds really need to be ground down, since they look like ****.. and the splice I did in that bar won't be there in my final version of the bar :freak:

http://www.uwm.edu/~keobrien/sway%20bar/sway.jpg

http://www.uwm.edu/~keobrien/sway%20bar/sway1.jpg

http://www.uwm.edu/~keobrien/sway%20bar/sway2.jpg

http://www.uwm.edu/~keobrien/sway%20bar/sway3.jpg

Kevin

[Hank Scorpio]

I feel bad for any poor birds that you may run over between the wheels ;)

[own6volvos]

:rofl: can u say decapitated??? :freak:

In the final verison of the bar, the straight tube will be at the same level as the stock bar, and won't hang down as much. It will also be ground down, sanded and painted black :twisted: I can't wait till I am doing, I thinkg I might try to tweak the thing a little bit in the final veriosn by using 1/4" mild steel bars to hold on the tube instead of 1/8" bars, and really load up on the main welds, to make this thing as safe as possible.

[xshaunx]

:roll: there is no way that thing is helping your car. look close at how the stock swaybar is attached. then think hard about how the load is applied to the rear trailing arms in a turn when the body rolls and the suspension compresses on one side THINK REAL HARD but dont get hurt doing it...........

[own6volvos]

I'm not sure I am following you. The sway bar is there to keep both trailing arms at close to the same level in a turn to reduce body roll. What are you trying to sway... errr... say :-)

[lilpaz]

seems like it would work to me...

[xshaunx]

you have two thin tabs of metal hanging down then a thick bar. the thing is bending at the tabs and the bar is not doing anything. It needs to be more like the stock bar in shape. those tabs are the weak point look at how the stock bar is made and attached there is another post with pictures of double rear bars...

http://www.linkline.com/personal/dbarton/DualSways%2822mm%291.jpg

that is how to get it attached so it would work
there is no way I can expain this but I know it will not work as well as a thicker bar or double bars as pictured..

[own6volvos]

The final version that I am making will have 1/4" thick steel tabs instead of 1/8" steel. So far though, the thing has been working much better than my old 21mm bar, so it has to be doing something. Right now, all it is, is my 25mm tube and 16mm stock bar on the car, so I don't know how it isn't working :e-shrug:

Are you trying to point out a flaw that will break and harm something, or a flaw that is making my bar not workin up to its potential?

Kevin

[bitjockey]

:roll: there is no way that thing is helping your car. look close at how the stock swaybar is attached. then think hard about how the load is applied to the rear trailing arms in a turn when the body rolls and the suspension compresses on one side THINK REAL HARD but dont get hurt doing it...........

Wow! Someone tried something new! Its cheap! All of us who bought IPD bars better be real sarcastic and ****ty to someone who is experimenting with new designs.

Its attached in the same spot as the stock sway... only difference is it has a different design. If it has the same mount points, it affects the suspension in the same way. You think that normal sway bars don't bend and flex with the suspension? The only difference is how it transfers the force to the bar. And as long as that metal is thick enough not to fatigue the welds, it won't be a problem. Its already working, and working well enough for him to post wildly about it.

So how about instead of "peanut buttering" posts like these, you save the effort until you have something constructive or contributing to post... sound good?

Oh, and: :roll:

[own6volvos]

EXACTLY :-) the way the forces are acting against my 1/8" thick 1" wide tabs.. it would take about 16,000lbs to bend them in the way of twisting too much.. and i doubt my car will ever see that. the only reason I will be moving up to the 1/4" tabs is to get a setup that will hold out over time, and not rust away to nothing in a year from WI road salt :-(

[linuxman51]

[quote:2aec87251e="xshaunx"]:roll: there is no way that thing is helping your car. look close at how the stock swaybar is attached. then think hard about how the load is applied to the rear trailing arms in a turn when the body rolls and the suspension compresses on one side THINK REAL HARD but dont get hurt doing it...........

Wow! Someone tried something new! Its cheap! All of us who bought IPD bars better be real sarcastic and ****ty to someone who is experimenting with new designs.

Its attached in the same spot as the stock sway... only difference is it has a different design. If it has the same mount points, it affects the suspension in the same way. You think that normal sway bars don't bend and flex with the suspension? The only difference is how it transfers the force to the bar. And as long as that metal is thick enough not to fatigue the welds, it won't be a problem. Its already working, and working well enough for him to post wildly about it.

So how about instead of "peanut buttering" posts like these, you save the effort until you have something constructive or contributing to post... sound good?

Oh, and: :roll:[/quote:2aec87251e]


DAAAYUM :)

Actually, its fairly common practice in other automotive circles to weld pipe or bar onto a swaybar to make it thicker, We did this on an 82 honda I had and it worked damn fantastic.. then the timing belt broke :-D

[Twiggilicious]

Wow! Someone tried something new! Its cheap! All of us who bought IPD bars better be real sarcastic and ****ty to someone who is experimenting with new designs.



I bought IPD bars.. and if this is as good as he says(which it may be )... I'm the one that looks like a big idiot now.... :oops:

Props for trying that stuff..Totally cool if it works.... you must really like your welder....
:cheers: For being inventive..... and cheap :wink:

[boosted]

i will try it if when i get a 240.. if it works well, i am going to brace to entire car lol

[Chigga 744SE]

MUHAHHAHAHA

that is so ghetto.

[own6volvos]

no.. ghetto would more be like JB welded on.. or better yet.. SOLDER :rofl:

Kevin

[isaac]

Are you saying that my sheet aluminum front A arms that I took 5 hours to solder together from scratch won't work? Way to rain on my parade, #$$hole. That's it I'm through with this board and it's cheapness-bashing ways.

[own6volvos]

ALUMALOY!!!!!! :rofl:

[towerymt]

How's that low speed sharp cornering working for ya? Lifting the inside wheel yet?

[own6volvos]

I am not fully sure.. with my sister in teh car, coming out of a 90 degee turn i felt and heard a loud thump.. so that may have been :e-shrug:

[volvorsport]

Doug , yes they are , but mild steel is an acceptable alternative since it wont work harden as quickly as carbon steel ( unless your above the elastic limit) .

And its true , i always comment on people making there own anti-roll bars , so yes it is cheap .

Doug , you got my mail yet ?

[The Aspirator]

Wow, this sounds like a really cool idea and I hope it all works out. I'd love to have some bigger sways. I just measured mine and I've got dual 20mm stock bars on my 85 244 n/a, I thought they came with smaller than that. Would it be worth my while to go to the junkyard and pick up some turbo sways? I'm looking for a difference I can feel. And I can't weld but I can probably get something like these sways made for fairly cheap eh? Also, I've got stock wheels/tires so what sort of PSI should I be floating to get a sporty feel. I still need some good traction in the rain though cause my tires are pretty bad.

Is there anything else cheap and easy you all have done for a little suspension upgrade? Those dual rear bars are kinda neat, but I read that two small rear bars don't even equal a 25mm?? that doesn't make much sense but I'm no engineer either. Thanks

John

[towerymt]

Those dual rear bars are kinda neat, but I read that two small rear bars don't even equal a 25mm?? that doesn't make much sense but I'm no engineer either.

Two 21mm bars will be approximately equal to one 25mm bar.

[own6volvos]

I just finished my stress test :wave: jacked the car up from under one of teh control arms.. and watched the bar... actually barely bent at all and started to lift the other side up. Also... no cracking, snapping, or groaning sounds form the bar.. saying my welds are doing a-ok :x:

if 21+21=25... what does 25+16mm=?

Kevin

[towerymt]

if 21+21=25... what does 25+16mm=?

I'm sure there's more to it since you've introduced a hollow bar, but suppose you added a 16mm 245 bar to an IPD 25mm bar....that would be approximately equivilent to a 26mm sway bar. 1mm increase is approximately 25% increase in stiffness. Stiffness increases by a power of 4, so every 4mm is like adding a second bar of the same diameter. That is why two 21mm bars act like one 25mm bar.

[qwkswede]

I would like to hear how the cars balance is affected by this. I would think you are in danger of really having a tail happy car until you get something stiffer on the front too.

-Ken

[own6volvos]

well, so far.. the car seems really nice and neutral with my custo rear bar and 23mm front turbo bar.

[riceeating780]

oh jeez Kevin, you are so creative. wow hw handy are you to build somethign so damn amazing. That bar is so cool and so quote kevins words " rad ". I am Jeolous that I don't have one, make me one let;s see what else.....Kevin you are the best. ( Kevin paid me to butter him up on this post) Jeez maybe now you can build a bike using some extra 6061 aluminum. I have some extra easton aluminum tubes for bikes. This guy I kinda know makes his own bikes so I get aluminum scraps and have him weld for me.

[volvorsport]

Its the outside diameter that resists roll so having a tube is of no consequnce .

[own6volvos]

in the final version of my sway bar, should I try to use any little bracket that adds more support to the bar at the connection to the downtab?

Kevin

[SLO240]

Thanks to own6volvos there is a good way to reduce the body roll in the rear, how about a good cheap way of reducing the body flex that can be easily felt in the long sweeping turns, anything short of fabricating a roll cage? Sub frame bars?

[WeezilUSA]

Well, there is the lower chassis brace, and strut tower braces in the front. Those help alot.

[own6volvos]

I think I might be able to remedy that problem too with mounting diagonal 1/8" steel plate accross the underside of my car going towards different fram flex points :-D

I was thinking about doing this in the front similarly to how the lower GT rbaces work.. but take it a step further, and make zig zags going form front to back, and maybe mounting some then Aluminum sheet metal over these plates to help with drag.

Kevin

[WeezilUSA]

Just make sure you make them removable... When you swap a turbo motor and t-5 in there, you are going to need to be able to drop the driveline :wink:

[own6volvos]

which is why i shall make the mean parts welded together.. but the whole assembly bolt on :wink: This summer when I rip out my entire interior (all but dash) to fix a few rust spots.. I will be able to mount this **** in good. one of my goals would be to make a complete cover that is like a splash pan in the front.. and goes all teh way back.. and possible kidna hug the exhaust system, so I can keep all my stuff clean and salt out of chassis, and maybe get some more mpg on hwy from less underbody drag.

[Bready]

You know - I think I have to weigh in with xshaunx here - and it is not to say that everything that is inexpensive is not worthwhile - I just tend to agree with him on the design here.

The purpose of a sway bar is to put pressure on the oposite spring when it's mate is being compressed - to do that you have to be able to transfer that torque to the other side. Just looks like - the way this design is with the long tabs there it would have a hard time doing that. I would thing the tabs would tend to have a tough time transfering the torgue of the bar, especially looking at how low that bar is with reference to the springs.

Not to say that you won't see any benefits at all, but I would concur with the other post in the thread that thought if you had a full 25mm bar on the rear with the stock bar (23mm front?) - doing what it should be doing the rear end might be a little different from the neutral set-up you're seeing.

Posted this a while back: http://www.houseofthud.com/cartech/swaybars.htm

Good overview of sways and how they work.

But, that having been said, , if you are happy with a mod, cheap or not, that is what is important.

JB

[riceeating780]

Kevin, kiss my :booty: Well anywya I think that you have occupied your time very well. I am working on making a flux capacitor. Al I need is 1.21 jiggawatts.

[RollerT]

I'm afraid I'll have to be in the minority and go with xshaunx too.
When the suspension moves up and down, the ends of the swaybar act as levers causing the bar to twist, thereby doing its job. The only time the new design will twist is from front to rear motion, which is not really an issue. The improvement you are feeling is from the leverage on the flat metal tabs, trying to bend them.
My prediction is that the over time fatigue will crack the tabs right above where they are welded to the bar, and that the poor sucker driving behind you when it falls off, will be talking to your insurance company faster than you can post a reply to my comments here :wink:

I'll do almost anything to save a penny, but I wouldn't put this bar on my car..... but to each his own.

[own6volvos]

mmmm... flux + capacitor

http://www.uwm.edu/~keobrien/fan/cap.jpg

hehe

[towerymt]

Chances are good that only one side will break, so it should just dangle from the sway bar, then maybe drag on the ground for a while, and then finally the sparks and noise will attract the attention of a law enforcement officer, at which point you may be stopped and ticketed for the hanging debris.

Hardly worth worrying about, though.

[riceeating780]

towerymt- :slap:- Kevin

[own6volvos]

Well, my next design I am working on will just have the 25mm bar going side to side. I don't think I will need to put any bend in it too. Since the thing is already under the axle pipe.. and should have enough clearance by the rear axle. With the pipe welded directly to the stock sway bar ends (middle bar cut off) the thing won't have any flex that the current one has, even though I can't see the twisting forces bending the steel plate sideways :e-shrug: The way the sway bar is acting on steel plate.. the trailing arms think the bar is 1" thick in that direction. Unless the plate kinks bends that way, or the welds break, the current bar will work no matter how ghetto it looks :wink: I have a feeling the thing will snap eventually at the weld where I spliced the pipe to make it shorter. :freak: This weekend after my exams and school are over with, I will be making a support bar that will attach to the front pivot points of the trailing arm and act as a chassis brace and also be a mounting bar to hold up my aluminum aero sheets to get less drag under the car.

[Bready]

Man, you are gonna be one popular guy when all that **** comes flying off your car on the highway one of these days at 65 MPH.

Hopefully none of it will wind up in the car with you, or kill someone behind you.

...just to provoke thought not to discourage.

:wave:

JB

[own6volvos]

well.. I know it will crack one day.. but the odds of both side cracking at the same time, and the thing flying off are like 1:9999999999. And even if one weld breaks, the thing won't even touch the ground or sag.. since we are talking about a 1" tube metal pipe.. not a flacid dildo :rofl:

This thing won't be on my car long enough in its current form anyways.. so don't worry bout it :wink: I will be re making the thing this weekend in my final version. I should have pics up either sat or sun :x: in the final version while i am still testing it out and stuff.. I will be drilling a hole on each side.. and running a thin metal cord through the hollow pipe.. and have end end of that (with a wee bit of slack) welded onto each side.. so in the event that it breaks, I won't have to worry about death and all those other things that might happen if a 4 ft tube launches off from under my car at 80 mph :twisted:

Kevin

[Captain Bondo]

I could see how he would see an improvement,
I also agree that it is becuase the tabs are tying the 2 trailing arms together as a solid link, rather than applying opposing pressure via a torsional torque axially along the bar.

The gloom and doom and gory dismemberment stories, while probably accurate, do an excellent job of highlighting flaws without even the slightest attempt at any solutions.

What you want to do is increase the torsional rigitdity of the bar, not just create a solid link left-to-right where leverage is the factor keeping the car level.

We want each end of the sway to to be more resistive to rotating about the axis of the swaybar. Simply put we don't want the f'ing thing to twist so much. So how about welding flatbar along the length of the swaybar to keep it from twisting? I would do that and then triangulate the ends of the bar to somethwere on the crosspeice of the swaybar.

swaybar shaped like this:
|___________________|

add this:
|___________________|
------------------------------- <----reinforcement
then this:

|\_________________/|

to triangulate the ends.
and have this:

|\_________________/|
------------------------------

Obviously the sway is not straight, so you must cut a few straight sections of flatbar and weld them on appropriately to follow this shape.

but i mean come on it's an ACSII graphic for pete's sakes. ;-)

This should stiffen the bar and present virtually no potential for gory aftermaths.

I hope that you continue working on this as it does have merit.

[own6volvos]

anything that is cheap and gives my butt-o-meter 5 star approval i shall work on :wink:

I will draw out some plans of my final design ina cad program.. or PS.. which ever i find easyer.. and post it before I create the thing.. so I get all the little help to make this bar work good.. . Cause Hell.. we could make things that only IPD has done in the past.. for 10-15 bucks in parts and all you need is a welder.

Thanks for all your guys help... except the few that said I will kill other people and i will die because my bar will hit the ground and explode on impact cause it is lined with c4 and **** and will kill kill kill :cheers: hehe

Well.. off to have my last 2 finals of the year.. and will be back on later :-)

[Erik Halvorson]

Here is some food for thought: Typically most anti-sway bars are made from 1144 steel. First produced by the LaSalle Steel Company. The patent ran out a few years ago so now you can find it on the open market. The quality that is most desireable in this material is that you can heat the raw 1144 bar till it glows orange and then fairly easily bend it into the shape you want (with some muscle of course). Then let the bar air cool. This process can be repeated many times without degrading the properties of the bar. The strength,stiffness etc. remains the same. The Bar material is nearly fatigue proof (ha, another LaSalle product) especially in the low stress application like an anti-sway bar.

BTW, the person that refered this thread to the /cartech/sways site is right on. That is a great description of what the anti-sway bar's function is.

As far as using a tube for the torsion member of the anti-sway bar, it works great. The hollow middle does lose a little strenght/stiffness do to the loss of materail in the cross sectional area. A quick calculation will show that the moment of inertia (I) is less for a hollow bar. But the loss is less significant to the loss of weight. So increase the diameter a little, use tube to dump the wieght, fabricate very stiff torque reaction members that clamp onto the ends of the torque tube (the short arm part of the anti-sway the transmits the twisting motion (or torque) into the long center section) and you could have yourself a very nice and adjustable anti-sway bar if you think through the process correctly. This type of anti-sway bar is what is used on many race cars these days. :badboy:

[tvpierce]

Kevin,

The following is VERY much a question -- not to be mistaken as a
statement of fact:

Would it help the strength to cut a 1" hole in the flat stock, insert the pipe into it, then weld it from both sides? Or would that compromise the strength of the ends?

Jeff Pierce

[own6volvos]

Not sure.. you might end up with a slightly stronger weld, but you will compromise other things. Besides.. u realise how mucha ****ing 1" drill bit costs :wink:

[Erik Halvorson]

Putting the tube (bar) through a hole in the plate and welding both side would indeed be stronger. Buy a metal cutting hole saw.

Yep, that bar addition is a little Ghetto but I give you points for being creative on a budget. It might not be the best way to reliably stiffen up the rear end but hey, it does work to a point. Keep up the creative work since no one else seems to be doing it. I am sure IPD's first few prototypes weren't works of art either. From experience in the engineering/fabrication field, I know first hand, they never are!

[tvpierce]

Can't you cut a hole with your welder? (not pretty, but effective, no?)
Keep in mind, I know very little about welding -- barely enough to be dangerous!


Jeff Pierce

[own6volvos]

While first cutting holes might give you more surface area to work with.. it may not make a stronger weld. When welding.. you are alreading melting into the metal on both sides, and gettign penetration. The holes might help give you a stronger weld, but may weaken the bars that bolt onto the trailing arm, a big trade off. Even the IPD bars use a hollow tube in the rear, then they weld that onto the bar that bolts to the trailing arm.. no hole cut in it.

[boosted]

well i have taken your design into account and i may come up with comething by next weekend......... :twisted:

[TurboBrick940]

All this talk has made me want to make a drift/drag bar. I think I'll weld up a monster and use it at the strip (help the launch) and when spinning the ass of the car around (off public access highways, of course :-P ). Maybe something out of solid 1-1/2" rod, or a C-notched piece of 3/8" box tube.

[boosted]

well i made it... 1/4" steel tabs, welded to a 1-1/4" steel tube.. i will install it this week.. total cost less than 5 dollars

[own6volvos]

ahh.. the wonders of home improvment stores :cheers:

[780GT]

I was thinking of just welding some brackets from the trailing arms to the body. Should stiffen the ride up a little.

[own6volvos]

Yesterday after noon I did some pretty intesnse prolonged sway bar testing. Found out my car could really get some help in the shock dept and bushing dept. If I shake the steering wheel around.. if feels like my tires are gonna rip off and fly into someones lawns :rofl: But all I know right now is that this sway bar has done tons with turns. I was pushing some nice partial G's a few tims that made my fricking horn turn on. So besides heaing the slight squeal of my tires coming arounda turn.. they heard my car honk :oops: Made me look like a jackass flying through a neighborhood :roll: oh wait.. I was flying through a neighborhood :wink:

Kevin

[Gizm0]

hey owns6volvos, what are the measurements on that sway bar? i just happen to work at the familly fabrication shop. so i fabricate, machine, and weld. I was thinking of making my own. just let me know what the measurements are, and i'll take care of the rest. btw, did you stick weld that? i was gonna mig it. thanks

Jared

[own6volvos]

I am not fully sure of what the exact measurments are unless I rip the bar down from the car. I first had measured it from the original inside width of the stock sway bar.. welded onto that, then when I tried to put it on the car, the thing was too wide. Which is also why I had to cut and splice my sway bar that I made mid-job. When I take down the bar to put up the 2nd one, I will be able to get all the measurments then.

Kevin

I was mig welding it, just standard flux cored weld (don't have the $$$ to put into a tank yet)

[mikep]

This has been a very lively topic, and I must agree with quite a few of the statements (area, 4th power,etc.). One item, it does not matter where this type of bar is attached to a pair of control arms, the angularity change (twist) is the same at any point on the bar. This is different from an independently mounted bar, which can be stiffened by shortening arms. Another concurrence, about being able to reheat/forge etc. without compromising strength: One of my students and I forged different ends on a swaybar. it was 19mm, replacing a 12mm rear bar on a Miata. Email me for pics, I do not have any on the web. We have also used GM bars to make Volvo front bars, from 24mm to 28mm.
At the very least, that agricultural-looking bar under the rear of a Volvo is great for making rice boys scratch their pointy heads. A little "chrome" paint, and it might be in the bling-bling catalog soon. I like it.
Mike

[own6volvos]

For some bling bling effect, I will be grinding down the welds with a nice air grinder thingy I got. I also plan on spray painting the thing, might do it silver.. or just red or black :twisted: I can only imagine the faces of the people behind me if I drove over some roadkill.. and it started dragging on the bar :rofl:

[Gizm0]

thanks ahead of time, kevin. I was wondering about the weld, cuz i have a mig here. runs off gas, and 70s6 wire. which means every inch of weld i put down will hold 70,000 pounds of pressure. i just kinda figured that would hold.

[own6volvos]

you will probably be able to get a better holding weld than I can right now. The wire I am using in my mig is flux core wire, since I don't have the $$$ to plunk down ona tank right now.

[916volvosport]

you will probably be able to get a better holding weld than I can right now. The wire I am using in my mig is flux core wire, since I don't have the $$$ to plunk down ona tank right now.

get a chance to brew up your other design?

[own6volvos]

This weekend I seemed to catch sars Lite. I havn't been able to do much. I should be able to get it done by the end of this week if things don't get worse

[own6volvos]

well... just found out today.. ****ing sway bar broke :freak: The 1/8" steel tab on one side snapped clean in the middle. The welds held up.. along with the main bar and ****.. but that damn tab broke in half. I was wondering what was knocking around under my car :???: I think I know when I broke the thing too :twisted: I was flying around a twisty neighborhood.. and I think I felt somehitng change.. but nothing major.. didn't think anything of it. But this tells me that the sway bar won't make your car flip or some **** when it breaks... jsut gets more sway :x:

I will be working on getting another sway bar on my car in the next few days. I should be using the beefier 1/4" thick steel... and for gods sakes... PAINT any mild steel that is under your car bare!!!!!!!!!! The **** was heavily rusted over just 3-4 weeks. That may have caused part of the failure.

Kevin

[mikep]

The 1/8" steel tab on one side snapped clean in the middle.
I should be using the beefier 1/4" thick steel...Kevin

I have some 1" thick stainless plate...

[own6volvos]

that is a wee bit too thick :e-shrug: I don't even think my welder can do anything over 0.60". the stock mounting plate is a 1/2 plate.

[RollerT]

The tab broke, eh. Who wudda thunk :wink:

[own6volvos]

Closer inspection shows the midl steel I used had lots of imperfections in it and crap.. really crappy stuff :freak:

[phishie]

Dude, you have mail!

[Anonymous]

Interesting reading this tread,althougt i have something too add.

Two 21mm bars are equal to one singel 29.5mm bar.
So this will be stronger than Ipd`s.
But this will seriously reduse road grip!!!

The best grip you can get,is when you dont use swaybars at all!
But then you have to increase stiffness in shock`s and spring`s to compensate for the loss of sways.

Ps,i am from Norway,so please Xuse my English
Have a nice day.

[davidmacq]

This is idea of the year I think. I asked something silimiar in another thread and was shouted down kinda, haha.

Simplest thing would be to take 2 bars and weld them together from one end to the other. Lay them so they touch as much as possible and if you get them like one piece of steel then it's gonna be better.