MOTORSPORTS: GRM Car Springs

[tony barnhill]

Some of you have kept up with my GRM car leaf spring mods. First, I restacked them - eliminating all but 4 leafs - & turned the bottom leaf over thus making them lower the rear of the car about 1-1/2" & changing their arch. And as we all know, the MGB rear end design wasn't the best in the world. MG used the leaf springs to both damper the ride & locate the rear end. So, because the leaf springs can't do both, there is some 'rolling up' of the springs under the torque of a hard take off. Anti-tramp bars solve that. Unfortunately, the GRM budget doesn't allow room to purchase a set; so, my latest mod is an attempt to make the springs themselves become anti-tramp bars.

I clamped the front half of the leaf springs in C-clamps, wrapped them with metal banding straps in 4 places & then tightened hose clamps over the banding straps. When I removed the C-clamps, the front half of the leaf springs are tighter & have no space between them like the rear halfs do. I think its neat! Just like what we did when we were teenagers!

I'll still fabricate a set of anti-tramp bars later on but this'll help for the Challenge. You can read all about it on my web site.

 

[kennypinkerton]

Is there actually a noticeable difference by doing that?

 

[tony barnhill]

Kenny...if you came up here & looked at the springs you'd see the 'slack' between leafs in the rear half of the springs & how tight together they are in the front half....unfortunately I painted them black so photos don't show it....& the springs that haven't been 'clamped' have slack between leafs all along the entire length.

You only need to clamp the front half, though I wouldn't do it on a street car.

 

[kennypinkerton]

I mean, does it actually help like a tramp-bar? Stop wheel-hop?

 

[tony barnhill]

Yep...that's all Dave Headley uses on his cars - no anti-tramps at all!

 

[kennypinkerton]

And to think when I was 16 I used to drool over pictures of anti-tramp bars, and I could've had something similar - Heck I probably had enough breeze bands in the trunk to do both sides of my old 73 Buick.

 

[jlaird]

LOOK how clean his work bench is, I can no longer see mine.

 

[DrEntropy]

heh... I *think* I still have one. The "pile" hasn't shifted, so I'll assume it to still be there /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

 

[tony barnhill]

Jim...some of the guys have seen my garage so messy you couldn't get into it...about a year ago I started spending Friday's cleaning...garage is pretty nice now! I have a place where I paint, another where I take things apart, and the place in the photo where I do clean stuff....here's another shot:

 

[jlaird]

Have you considerd addoption, ME.

 

[tony barnhill]

Here, Jim, you'll like this one:

Can you name the components? I'll give you a little hint: they're hooked up to Bose speakers out in the main garage...

 

[DrEntropy]

Gawd... I feel sooo inadequate.

I had EVERY intention of finishing this B project in a couple months and policing my area to get it back to an acceptable state. That was a month short of a year ago.

The photos are inspirational though... so there is hope /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

 

[jlaird]

My goodness, looks like a tek reel to reel.

 

[DrEntropy]

Wanna take a wild stab at just WHERE and WHEN that was acquired, Jack?

 

[tony barnhill]

Its an Akai reel to reel

 

[DrEntropy]

"Roberts" by any other name /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

Vintage and pedigree?

 

[kennypinkerton]

Oh, and here I was thinking you had the bose speakers hooked up to the drill press. Love those mechanical sounds!
/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

My first tape recorder was a small reel to reel.

 

[jlaird]

I only get one guess right.........? Army Air Force Exchange Service, Vietnam. Aaaaaaaaaaaa 1972?

 

[DrEntropy]

I think that'd about do it in one, Jack... tho I'd pick earlier by a year or three.

 

[Bugeye58]

I know I sure miss my TEAC 4010S. AAFES, RVN, '67.
Jeff