pullbar/ torquelink

[trippywill]

Looking to buy a new pullbar/torquelink. I ran an afco 3 stage n really had no success with it. Wat is the latest n greatest on the market today? N straight rate or progressive spring.

[HEAVY DUTY]

I would say any pullbar that is stiff enough will get you in the ballpark. 1 way, 2 way 3 way, pretty soon there will be 18 ways.It is all marketing hype. They all control accelleration and decelleration. Too soft and they wont lift the car and wont have any innitial traction, too stiff and they will lift too quick and run out of traction. The so called 3 way bar is a spring with a bump stop type bushing so it gets stiffer after moving enough to hit the rubber, take the rubber out of the middle of the spring and it becomes a 2 way. No need to buy another pullbar. A rubber pullbar is more progressive than a spring and therefore gets stiffer quicker.Angles and front to rear placement is a fine tuning device. If you are in the ballpark on mounting position ( 15 to 20 degrees) and within a couple inches of centered over the top of the rear end then the spring rate is probably 80 percent of making the pullbar work. Height off the centerline of the axle and what type of suspension determines what spring is needed. Horsepower and track surface also comes into play. It is better to lean towards the stiff side than being too soft. A birdcage style floated rear needs quite a bit stiffer spring than a 3 link or clamped set up.

[racer69]

Thats some good info right there! Thanks Don! Putting my new one together. Shame it isnt a Lightning but I couldn't pass up the price!

[trippywill]

Great info thanks

[smirk]

Been racin mods for 20+yrs id say heavy duty hit the nail right on the head...great info

[TeamGRT12x]

Don covered it all. Too many people are trying to find voodoo within the pull bar. Three way six way two way... I prefer to keep it simple. One way, or Two if you prefer the spring to be utilized on braking. We have won races with the Spring Bar, Bisket bar, one way, two way, three way... The key is gonna be finding something you can count on being reliable. Listen to Don's advice, there is nothing magic in them.

[charcoal01]

I tried multiple different springs with the Afco 3 way bar, was ok with it but never found a happy medium, always felt too progressive. Try this: buy the Afco 600-2000 pull bar spring, take the bushings out of the inside and back the adjuster nut all the way off. Start with 1/4 preload if you run in the slick, 1/2 inch if your in the mud. Spring is very smooth and the harder you push the throttle the harder it seems to plant. Just keep it simple.

[trippywill]

Yea I tried 600 thru 1200 n definitely felt the stiffer was better. I also tried it bolted over the axle centerline n 3 inches in front of centerline n really didn't tell a difference. I also ran a 90/10 shock. I don't kno if I shuld try without damper shock or run a different split like 6-4 or 5-3.

[HEAVY DUTY]

Yea I tried 600 thru 1200 n definitely felt the stiffer was better. I also tried it bolted over the axle centerline n 3 inches in front of centerline n really didn't tell a difference. I also ran a 90/10 shock. I don't kno if I shuld try without damper shock or run a different split like 6-4 or 5-3.I would be careful running a long pullbar without a damper. I have seen them break, especially with swedge tubes and hurt drivers. They are like a slide hammer on the brakes, they will knock the mounts out of the car eventually. The damper shock slows down the movement and doesnt hit the brake bushing so hard.Adding any rebound to the damper will slow acceleration movement, usually slowing down traction because it takes away from the spring lifting the car and pulls down on the chassis thru the rebound valving. The stiffer the compression on the damper, the slower the pullbar moves under braking, and it keeps the spring loaded longer. If the damper has too much angle up in the front or is too stiff, it will create a third spring effect in the middle of the car, and hold the car off of the RR.