Ball joint beam question...

traviswx1 · Posted: Sat Feb 05, 2011 4:05 am Post subject: Ball joint beam question...

I am in the planning stages of a cut and turn on my front end and I already have one adjuster. I was wondering if anyone has used only one adjuster and how did it work out???

I was thinking about cutting and turning the bottom tube 1/2 inch and putting the adjuster in at the top!?

I was already gonna do a cut and turn with no adjusters but I found one soo letme know what you guys think!

Thanks!

58Dub · Posted: Sat Feb 05, 2011 4:14 am Post subject:

I can't see any advantage of only one. If anything, it will throw the two preloads off....and probably cause it to ride bad or bind
_________________
58 Beetle (now just a pile of parts in the corner)
60 Beetle (2221 turbo under construction)
70 Beetle Baja project

traviswx1 · Posted: Sat Feb 05, 2011 4:19 am Post subject:

I think it would just give me less of an adjustment range..

58Dub · Posted: Sat Feb 05, 2011 4:41 am Post subject:

txdunebuggy101 · Posted: Sat Feb 05, 2011 5:25 am Post subject:

use 2 adjusters or just do cut n turn. Your plan could be detrimental to the health of your ride. ...
_________________
I NEVER KNEW I KNOW SO LITTLE, TILL NOW....

blitzschnell racing · Posted: Sat Feb 05, 2011 10:58 am Post subject:

you can cut and turn one tube hten the adjuster on the other. thatd allow you to soften the front end for street and stiffen it for off road? It would work. Some racers cut and turn one more than the other

joemama · Posted: Sat Feb 05, 2011 12:15 pm Post subject:

I would think it would work well, adjusting so the 2nd set of torsions come in later, kind of like progressive springs, start out soft, and stiffen as you come into the 2nd torsions.

traviswx1 · Posted: Sat Feb 05, 2011 1:56 pm Post subject:

petrol punk · Posted: Sat Feb 05, 2011 2:18 pm Post subject:

An adjuster on just one beam tube wouldn't give you much height adjustment, you'd just be preloading it on the other spring which would probably just change your spring rates a bit.
_________________
36hp '56 European DeLuxe oval, '70 bug 1835cc dual 36DRLA, and a '98 4x4 5spd single cab Tacoma

blitzschnell racing · Posted: Sat Feb 05, 2011 4:27 pm Post subject:

I dont use adjusters sooo I dont know. Not gona give secrets but yah you can turn one more than the other so a cut and turn on one and the adjuster on the other would work fine.....

chubby53 · Posted: Sat Feb 05, 2011 5:17 pm Post subject:

it may just be me, but wouldn't it cause the springs to fight each other? cause one set is pushing more than the other? making for stiffer ride?
_________________
My build:
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=385100

motorbreath53 · Posted: Sat Feb 05, 2011 5:52 pm Post subject:

My personal experiance (take it as you will)

Adjusters, when used on a lifted beam with stock torsions, are just not necessary.

Once they are set, you won't move them often... if ever...

If you plan on running the car hard in the dirt, cut/turn 1/4"... but that WILL make it somewhat stiff... Thats what I ran on my last BJ beam...

Go a bit less for a car that will see mostly street.

OH! and with stock leafs, preloading one set more than the other will only cause the tighter set to fatiuge faster. Cool idea... but the stock parts won't hold up that way for too long if your playing in the dirt...
_________________
Shameless buildthread plug:
..."cut n' turn in progress"...

blitzschnell racing · Posted: Sat Feb 05, 2011 6:10 pm Post subject:

Have you looked at the stock location of the torsion bars as they sit? You should tell that to VW cause there not the same setting. I dont play with my car I race it, beat the crap out of it. You can cut and turn over a half an inch and not break leafs if there real german ones. I know that turning one more than the other works cause i do, also depends on what you do as far as swapping in Sway away or thing bars to the set. Theres alot of variables, try it and see? You can get another beam if you dont like it. Adjusters suck cause when you break the adjuster bolt off your screwed and yah, usually you adjust and dont ever change it. If I had a street/play car id try cut and turn on one and adjuster on the other. Your not gona ruin anything, Ive raced the 1000 with one set completely broken and the other set holding the car up.....think outside the box, thats how 11 racers have all the tricks. And 1/4 turn is nothing on a offroad beam.

blitzschnell racing · Posted: Sat Feb 05, 2011 6:17 pm Post subject:

traviswx1 · Posted: Sat Feb 05, 2011 6:48 pm Post subject:

Ive heard (on this site) that it would be best to have the bottom bars turned more than the upper because of the ball joint placement it puts more pressure on the joints.

So ill go with 1/2 inch turn on bottom and the adjuster on top. I plan on driving the car a little on and off road but I wanna drive REAL hard when i do go offroad Twisted Evil

And id rather have it too stiff than too soft because of clearance issues aka low car!

Any more input on the amount of the turn!? lemme know..

traviswx1 · Posted: Sat Feb 05, 2011 7:01 pm Post subject:

motorbreath53 · Posted: Sat Feb 05, 2011 9:09 pm Post subject:

Like I said.. my personal experiance... "take it as you will"

Blitz- i'd put a lot more stock in your experiance with the race car...

...but my $.02, even with my 1/4 cut turn (both tubes), my car was stiff enough in front that the front end hardly compressed with me and a friend hanging on the bumper...

...and I sagged out a set of stock VW torsions in only 5 or 6 trips to the desert.
_________________
Shameless buildthread plug:
..."cut n' turn in progress"...

jsturtlebuggy · Posted: Sat Feb 05, 2011 9:59 pm Post subject:

This out of the VW "Without Guesswork booklet"
Ball joint 1966 and later
Upper beam setting 44degrees +/- 30minutes
Lower beam setting 35degrees30minutes +/- 30minutes
30 minutes is a half of degree.
They are all ready set to work progessively.
The early Select A Drop used to lower bugs before adjusters became available pulled or pushed the upper beam against the lower beam.
If you want to try it go ahead.
You may find it making the front end stiffer then you would like. That was one of the problems with the Select A Drop.
They did work great for the people that liked to Autocross, the type of racing around pylons in a parking lot.
_________________
Joseph
Fair Oaks/Orangevale, CA
Elrod Motorsports
Motion Tire Motorsports
Having fun with Dune Buggies since 1970
Into Volkswagens since 1960

KrAzY-BaJa · Posted: Sat Feb 05, 2011 10:42 pm Post subject:

I have ran a baja with a set of adjusters on the top and stock on the bottom and it just sit higher it rode fine. The PO did it. It wasn't stiff or soft it sit perfectly fine
_________________
70% of what you buy is something to start with.
ForYotaWagen: A Ford/Toyota/Volkswagen http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?p=4871576&highlight=#4871576

chubby53 · Posted: Sun Feb 06, 2011 12:38 am Post subject:

never really thought about it, but i had adjusters on my old baja. at first i would adjust here and there if i was going wheelin or not, but after a while i never touched them. The only real benefit i could see of adjusters is that once all together you can fine tune your ride height/stiffness to your liking so you don't go too much or not enough when you would cut and turn. Just my .02.
_________________
My build:
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=385100


Hello! Log in or Register \| Help \| Donate \| Buy Shirts	See all banner ads \| Advertise on TheSamba.com

	Forum Index -> HBB Off-Road	All times are Mountain Standard Time/Pacific Daylight Savings Time Page: 1, 2 Next
Page 1 of 2