[MAF]

I've done a rough sketch of a 'torsion-bar' chassis I'm thinking of building and would appreciate any comments and advice regarding its design...

Its for a car I'm currently building that will have long wheel base (100mm) and a relatively heavy resin cast body.

The idea is to try a keep the car more stable in and out of the corners. I will attempt to contruct it either from plastic or resin cast (useless at soldering

) with the pivot bar either inserted directly into a thick chassis floor or supported on pillow blocks. Due to the nature of the body I know it will never be a super fast car but I would like it to handle well and promote a slide rather than a roll. Would this type be the right way to go

Thanks,
Marlon.

 

[gascarnut]

This design of chassis works well, primarily because it uses the front wheels to keep the guide vertical in the slot.

There are a few things to be aware of:

1. Make the pivot as long as possible to minimize the amount of "droop" in the middle of the chassis that comes from any play in the pivot.
2. Make sure that the body is mounted only onto the front section of the chassis - you don't want to affect the felxibility by mounting the body on both sides of the pivot.
3. Try to make your "straps" in such a way that you can adjust the flexibility of the chassis. Some tracks and some tire types might like a more flexible chassis than others, so it's good to be able to adjust this.

Lastly, post some pictures when you're done - it's always good to see people working with different materials!

 

[MAF]

Thanks for the advice Dennis, very much appreciated, no problem on the pics, might be a while though.

Marlon.