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elripster · 05-09-2008, 06:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by oldgold3vze

Very well put. Anytime you preload a spring (crank up t-bars) it looses much of its small bump sensitivity and becomes very harsh. Also, the rebound force increases, this is why they don't like pot holes, they rebound so fast that your shock can't slow the rebound because it is not valved for such rebound forces.

The thicker t-bars give roughlt 1.5" of lift with the same amount of adjuster bolt exposed because the thicker bars don't settle in (sag) as much as the thinner bars. Also, what's nice is that the thicker bars can flex more because they aren't over preloaded, so you achieve much better small bump sensitivity, and the rebound forces aren't as strong allowing a stock damper (shock) to work just fine.

If you run a thicker t-bar, but keep the stock ride height you might feel like the suspension is too soft or bottoms out easily. This is because the thicker t-bars need a certain amount of preload placed on them to function properly. Just like you can overload the t-bar tension for a harsh ride, if you don't add enough preload you get a sloppy, unresponsive feel. I hope this helps.

Guys, I'm afriad this is not correct. Stiff bars equal less flex at all height adjustments.

The preload on the bar is a function of the weight of the truck and the leverage on the bar. If you just install a new torsion bar, the truck does not get heavier so preload remains the same regadelss of how much thread is or is not exposed. The bar just "feels" and resists torque. If you adjust the height upwards, the preload goes DOWN NOT UP. The fact that the a-arm is less parallel with the ground reduces torque on the bar hence why it deflects less and you feel the bump more.

This means, when adjusting in lift, you need a stiffer torsion bar even less that you *might* have needed one prior.

The size of the tire has absolutely nothing to do with making the torsion bar weak. There is no engineering related support for that claim. They do put more load on shocks, but we get off road shocks and the the problem is solved.

There is on reason and one reason only to get a stiffer torsion bar and that is if you want less flex. That's it, period.

I hope this clears things up. The relationship betweel load on a torsion bar and ride height is backwards (higher = less load on t-bar) and so therefore not terribly intuitive.

Frank