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Thu Sep 22, 2011 8:12 am

Anyone know where I can get a chrome 2 point roll bar? It will be more for looks than functionality.

Thu Sep 22, 2011 8:42 am

Why would you want a non functional roll bar..... A two point roll bar is more like the bail on a mouse trap... IF you do have a "incident" it will fold over and allow your body to have direct contact with pavement.....

Dale

Thu Sep 22, 2011 8:45 am

Lol...agreed. Was just looking into them, seen a bunch of pictures of other buggies with them and thought it looked pretty good.

Thu Sep 22, 2011 8:55 am

Four point "cage" with two additional braces looks much cooler....

And a little low speed butt pucker...

Dale

Thu Sep 22, 2011 9:05 am

The four point ones do look good. Where can I find one of those already chromed?

Thu Sep 22, 2011 10:00 am

BlUe56BuGGy wrote: Anyone know where I can get a chrome 2 point roll bar? It will be more for looks than functionality.

The answer to your question is: http://meyersmanx.com/mmstore/store-rollbar.shtml

Available in polished stainless or raw steel.

Thu Sep 22, 2011 12:00 pm

Dale M. wrote: Four point "cage" with two additional braces looks much cooler....

And a little low speed butt pucker...

Dale

Those would actually be 6 point cages on all of those cars.

Thu Sep 22, 2011 12:36 pm

shred625 wrote: Dale M. wrote: Four point "cage" with two additional braces looks much cooler....
...

And a little low speed butt pucker...

Dale

Those would actually be 6 point cages on all of those cars.

True, but the lower bends in the front legs are a weak area and make those front legs almost useless when under compression. So, in actual use they are not much more effective than 4 point cages.

Thu Sep 22, 2011 1:18 pm

Dale gave you a good answer. But "cooler" is definitely a matter of opinion.

I guess it comes down to what you're building and where you are on the form/function scale. If we're talking looks and throwback style....I like the 2 point, joke of a "roll" bar. :D Dale's correct, in that it's pretty damn useless if you were were to ever roll. But when chromed it does add an element of simple style, no fuss, doesn't get in the way, and balances nicely with the vertical line of the windshield frame.

Eventually, I'd like to have a chrome 4 point bar on my buggy. All mounts in the rear. Mine would look lame with a full cage like those other ones. But I can dig where they're coming from. Works on that style.

Thu Sep 22, 2011 1:58 pm

In my opinion, a two point roll bar can be made "safer" if you build side support around the outside of the body and have a second connection to the bar near the top of the body (similar side supprt to a full tube chassis). It won't replace a full cage, however, it will reduce the risk of the "mouse trap" affect.

Thu Sep 22, 2011 2:13 pm

I think it is safe to say that a two point bar is just a "beauty bar" and not a "roll bar". I run a beauty bar from the Manx club in my Manx and love it.

Yes, if I ever get in a incident it probably wont do me much good in the way of safety. But either will the fiberglass box I am sitting when I come up against all the Suburban SUV's in my area. I pretty much know I when I get in my buggy that I have the impact resistance of a recumbent bike surrounded by wet cardboard. So I drive very defensively and do a little prayer before I drive off...

Thu Sep 22, 2011 2:27 pm

Eryk wrote:
I guess it comes down to what you're building and where you are on the form/function scale. If we're talking looks and throwback style....I like the 2 point, joke of a "roll" bar. :D Dale's correct, in that it's pretty damn useless if you were were to ever roll. But when chromed it does add an element of simple style, no fuss, doesn't get in the way, and balances nicely with the vertical line of the windshield frame.

The Manx single loop rollbar actually has 4 mounting points.

I don't agree that they're useless. I know someone who has had at least two rollovers in a Manx and both times the rollbar held up fine and prevented injury. One of the rollovers was actually a reverse end over when he tried to climb a too steep hill.

If you're going to race it on or off the street, you should probably get a cage. If you have a cage you should also wear a helmet. But I've never seen any convertible that looks better with a roll cage.

Thu Sep 22, 2011 2:29 pm

True. Mine has 4 mounting holes. I meant 4 bars with mounts. But's nice to know that mine isn't useless in the even that I do ever roll it. Although, in my case it will more than likely be from getting hit by another car on the street.....in which case I'd be toast with or without a roll bar.

mstevens wrote: I think it is safe to say that a two point bar is just a "beauty bar" and not a "roll bar". I run a beauty bar from the Manx club in my Manx and love it.

Yes, if I ever get in a incident it probably wont do me much good in the way of safety. But either will the fiberglass box I am sitting when I come up against all the Suburban SUV's in my area. I pretty much know I when I get in my buggy that I have the impact resistance of a recumbent bike surrounded by wet cardboard. So I drive very defensively and do a little prayer before I drive off...
Hahaha. x2 on everything! I completely agree.

Sometimes these over-engineered buggy guys crack me up. I'm sure they laugh at my approach just as much. But honestly, at the end of the day it comes down to how each one of us chooses to participate in this hobby. I know I'm driving a glorified sparkly bathtub on wheels. I'm good with it. :D

Thu Sep 22, 2011 5:08 pm

shred625 wrote: Dale M. wrote: where is the video???

Dale

Those would actually be 6 point cages on all of those cars.

Thu Sep 22, 2011 7:19 pm

Q-Dog wrote: shred625 wrote: Dale M. wrote: Four point "cage" with two additional braces looks much cooler....
...

And a little low speed butt pucker...

Dale

Those would actually be 6 point cages on all of those cars.

True, but the lower bends in the front legs are a weak area and make those front legs almost useless when under compression. So, in actual use they are not much more effective than 4 point cages.

Not true, the minor angles on the front legs will not act like a crumple zone. I challenge you to find a cage in a car that does not have the forward legs bent to conform to either the door opening or body shape.

I have built a couple of cages in Rabbit ice race cars that had greater angles than that. One barrel rolled 5 times across the track and over the 4 foot snow bank at the end of the front straight and another flipped on it's side and went roof first into a plowed snow bank that was basically ice. the bodies on both cars colapsed around the cage, and the one that barrel rolled had the roof box around the windscreen completely flattened onto the top bar of the cage, in neither case did the cage colapse at any bends. We re-roofed the car and sent the owner back out the next weekend.

brad

Thu Sep 22, 2011 7:31 pm

I am not too worried about the roll bar. I really wouldn't care if it was not there. I am more concerned of someone hitting me in the side or head-on. Even a 4 or 6 or a complete roll cage is not going to save you. If you worry too much about roll bars, your buggy is going to sit in the garage. What fun is that?

Thu Sep 22, 2011 10:26 pm

This topic comes up from time to time, and it usually follows the same path as this thread. People weigh in with opinions ranging from "I wouldn't even think about getting in a buggy if it didn't have a SCORE approved cage!" to "If I was that concerned with safety, I would drive a Volvo instead.".

I fall somewhere in the middle. I'm willing to take the risk of driving a vehicle that is nowhere near as safe as a modern car, but I would like to at least give myself a fighting chance at survival or at least minimizing injury. Kinda like wearing the proper gear while riding a motorcycle instead of shorts, flip flops, and no helmet. I have a cage similar to what Dale posted. I know it will work better than a single hoop, but I drive defensively in an effort to avoid proving it. Besides, it gives me an excellent place to attach my roof rack. :lol:

If you are wondering what can happen when a buggy with only a single hoop rolls over, please see:

Thu Sep 22, 2011 10:47 pm

Here is the story that goes with the picture:

Witnesses said the driver of the dune buggy was driving recklessly in and out of traffic. Just when it passed the Highway C overpass, it switched lanes and hit a Ford Taurus, according to the Waukesha County Sheriff's Department.

The dune buggy lost control and rolled over several times and the driver was ejected, authorities said.

The 42-year-old dune buggy driver, of Oconomowoc, was taken by Flight For Life to Froedtert Hospital with serious head and possibly internal injuries.

The 58-year-old Wauwatosa man in the Taurus was not injured.

Alcohol could be a factor, the sheriff's department said.

Doesn't sound like a 6 point cage would have helped that idiot at all.

Really, unless the rollcage and chassis was built to NHRA, IHRA, or NSCA specs, had window nets and and the driver had a 5 point seat belt, a full face helmet and a HANS device, I don't see how he was going to come away from a high speed collision and multi-rollover wreck without serious injuries anyway.

Dune buggies are the safest motorcycles and the most vital piece of safety equipment is the device between your ears.

Thu Sep 22, 2011 11:41 pm

In the last Buggy I rode in with a full race spec roll cage fitted we hit a speed bump on a campground at approx. 5mph, my head made hard contact with one of the 'roof' bars resulting in a large egg sized lump on my head and a couple of hours headache. Any faster I could've been dead, killed by a profesionally designed so-called 'safety device'.

I'll take my chances on the street with my single Manx hoop and my 'Driving Miss Daisey' driving style thanks!!!

I've never been close to rolling one on the street in 40 years of driving them.

Fri Sep 23, 2011 1:22 am

slalombuggy wrote: Q-Dog wrote: shred625 wrote: Dale M. wrote: Four point "cage" with two additional braces looks much cooler....
...

And a little low speed butt pucker...

Dale

Those would actually be 6 point cages on all of those cars.

True, but the lower bends in the front legs are a weak area and make those front legs almost useless when under compression. So, in actual use they are not much more effective than 4 point cages.

Not true, the minor angles on the front legs will not act like a crumple zone. I challenge you to find a cage in a car that does not have the forward legs bent to conform to either the door opening or body shape.

brad

LOTS of Jeeps and rock crawlers have straight A pillar hoops. Bends on the upright tubes are a big no-no on a vehicle that could take an endover roll down a mountain.