Well, I started to right a heavy rant, then i stopped, I'll save that one for later.
Lets talk sway bars. - anti-roll bars. The idea here is that this bar can add roll stiffness by transfering spring rate from the inside spring to the outside spring in a corner, without making the straight line ride harsh. For years we have said that sway bars are the best 'bang-for-buck' you can spend on suspension. - Still true. A swaybar's stiffness depends on material used, diameter/or/wall thickness for solid or tube bars, width between pivit mounts, length of the arms, and mounting link style and location. - lots of factors. It's easy to see that a thicker bar is stiffer than a thin bar, givin the same shape and material. Tube bars (hollow), are usually a better grade of alloy steel, so a 1 1/4" x .250" bar may be stiffer than a 1 1/4" solid, but not always. Manufacturers of quality bars should be able to provide sway bar "rate" info. One thing to be aware of is the sway bar link. This link connects the bar to the suspension. (this is going to get close to my rant topic) Think about the front bar on a C-10. The factory bar was connected to the arm with a bushing and strap - NO MOVEMENT. The bar pivits on an arc that moves front-to-back as it moves, and the A-Arm moves on an in-to-out arc. So, as the suspension travels, the sway bar is being pulled in and out, and the A-Arm/busing is being twisted to match the bar angle. Doesn't sound to good does it? Now, the stock pivit and arm mount bushings were pretty soft rubber, so it wasn't so bad, and it was cheap for GM. And, it was 1966 when the first oned rolled out. (bias ply tires, 8-tracks,...) Now, a lot of aftermarket suppliers have bigger 'performance' bars, in urathane bushings (stiffer) and the binding is WORSE. Making the suspension less consistant. Yes, the roll stiffness is greater, but the suspension is less consistant/predictable.
Some, are going to a link connection to the arm with two rod-ends. That is a step up, but a small one. The 'average' rod end will swing 10 to 12 degrees, thats 5 or 6 either way, so with a short link these may bind up, and this type of bind may be a worse feeling than stock, and actualy reduce suspension movement. To make the link long enough not to bind, the sway bar would need to be above the steering links. No, you cant just rotate a stock style bar ( even one set up for a link) because the angle of the end would be wrong. Why don't 'they' make a bar like this? Well, to me, it looks like even the best performance bars are a copy of the original bar, with a hole in it for a mount link. To get what we all would really want, someone will need to study, TEST, and stop copying the stocker. which takes me even closer to my original rant. You would'nt take financial advice from a homeless person, or welding tips from someone who never welded. Why are we all buying parts from someone who hasn't built/drivin/owned one of the things were building? Crap, some of the rant got out. Sorry.
