Thanks for the input! I did the spacer setup mostly to see if the drip was the appropriate length and it has worked for a few small test but I want to go with a bigger rod end link and a machined tapered drop bolt or use a bigger grade 12 bolt, drill the knuckle, and use a thinker spacer setup.

 

Look, OEM is probably 60ksi yield, I could only find ultimate tensile for grade 9... It's 180ksi. I doubt yield of grade 12 (where are you buying your hardware?) is any higher. Yield is what matts when you are bending things.

This is unsafe. Put all the weit in the front of the car and put it on hot clean asphalt and turn the tires while stopped. Post a video of the knuckle and bolt. I would like to see it not flex under that load.

I will check my machinerys handbook when I am back in the office on Monday for the bolt yield values...

Edit: just checked with fastenal, grade 12 doesn't exist. http://www.fastenal.com/web/en/82/fr...sked-questions.

Another issue: when you torque the bolt to proof stress, you put the whole bolt in tension. This adds to the 450% load. Factory torque loading applies from the taper to the nut, and then the bending and shear load applies from the end of the taper to the tie rod, effectively separating the two loads. Your design combines them. This project needs to use a tie rod with no spacers or a double shear heim with no spacers. This all assumes your knuckle can handle the additional stress from having that pivot dropped down so far.

 

So your saying that the length will cause the spacer/bolt to bend or put too much stress on the knuckle?

 

Yes

 

OK I see what you mean but what about all the after market tie rods that have the drop spacer? Granted they are machined parts but the only real difference is the spacer?

 

Camber curve, not camber. It might not even be an issue. I was just asking.

 

I haven't seen all the other set ups out there. Post pics or links, I searched and didn't see much for professionally hacked up spindles. I am sure they are out there, and I bet you know where to look too.

 

I'm only talking about the tie rod ends the only knuckles I've seen for the FD are PBM and homemade ones but I have never seen any with roll center adjust!

 

That explains why I couldn't find them

This is still a taper, keepign the tension from the fastening separate from the bending stress in the "spacer". So that is one design aspect you may want to copy. They also have a pretty short spacer portion, with a decent diameter compared to the shank diameter that goes through the knuckle. You want to keep the diameter/length as big of a number as possible. This will reduce flex and stress.

Thanks for sharing the picture. I hope you find a good safe mix of the features you currently have and something like this image.

Let me know if the discussion on "keeping the tension separate from the bending" makes sense. Depending on your background, it might not make any! I can explain it with a cartoon

In the end, you can do whatever you want. I just wanted to share my thoughts. Thanks for taking them into some consideration.

 

Thanks for the knowledge! Allways looking for more!