Spreader Bar - Camber Bar - Square Steel

Steve, make one, its pretty easy. I know you know how LOL

I think Hall is sold out, but looking for a used one in any case. I could make one but my hunch is that someone has one gathering dust.

Larry Stock makes his own as well; I mention this because I made my own from aluminum but bought the threaded clevis ass'y from Larry. I find occasional use for big right hand taps but left-hand 1" fine thread taps are truly a one-time-only use and are not cheap.

quote:

Originally posted by SteveBuchanan:
Please let me know if you have a steel spreader bar that is available. Poor finish is okay.

To make shipping relatively easy, once disassembled it can probably fit into a medium flat rate box (14" x 12" x 3 1/2") from USPS.

PM sent

I need one of these as well, if someone has one laying around give me a holler. I need this specific unit because the new aftermarket aluminum ones sit higher like the stock non adjustable piece, but I have a clearance issue I'm contending with. Thanks!

Hustler, I have the parts to make I can put it together this weekend and get it to you at the next meeting or sooner if you need it.

Call me Tim or shoot me an email.

Looks like there is a need for a few... I could use one also

question...
do you adjust the bar to set the upper A arm center of bolts to the frame drawing?

No- the oversized holes in the fenderwell tabs will allow the bolts to move, unless the straight bar is firmly jammed into the backside of the provided holes. You cannot tighten the bolts tight enough to keep this from happening- even gr-8 bolts will break first. I make little aluminum captive filler pieces of scrap aluminum to fill the remaining area of both sides of the holes and prevent the bolts from moving in either direction under cornering stress.

Incidently, the very same thing happens with the oversized slotted holes in the upper front a-arms that retain the upper balljoint carriers for camber adjustments. They can also be prevented from moving once adjusted, with the same type of captive filler pieces in the oversized a-arm holes. No need for complicated camber-locks, just some filing on pieces of 3/16" thick scrap aluminum.

I heard it is best if it fills the entire hole (that's what she said). Could probably be built. Someone in AZ built mine (link below). I have seen another AZ car with the exact same bar.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/...m-72157639222739254/

Jack,

How long does a spreader need to be to correctly bottom out?

If the structure has to some degree collapsed over the years, can it carefully be spread (maybe over a few days?) to the original dimension, and then the fixed spreader inserted?

Ken, that's exactly what one can do! Basically, you jack up both rear wheels and crank in "some" preload (a few turn but definitely NOT all that's needed to push things back to zero rear camber) with the spreader bar clevis. Then you lower the car and drive it for a couple of days. This lets the myriad spot-welds that make up the rear monococque readjust to the 'new' loads without buckling the fenders or cracking paint. Recheck the rear camber as before and add more preload if required. My '72 was bad enough that it took 3 tries to get zero camber with all adjustment shims removed.

An alternative is to find someone with a professional frame jig and use heat and hydraulic pressure to bend the whole rear of the car back to OEM specifications. This is much quicker but takes enormous skill to not distort the fenders. Wilkinson has a factory frame jig and there may be others. Ask around.

It's been a decade since I measured but I think if you weld in about 1-1/4" or so to both ends of short spreader bars- even aluminum ones, they will jam into the square openings provided. The thin bolt-tabs provided then only locate the bar, not attempt to transfer big cornering loads.

If you remove the rear wheels and look up there, you'll see correctly positioned spreader bar ends touch the upper rear shock absorber ends; that's what we are trying for. In an open-wheel racer, the spreader bar ends would actually bolt to the upper rear shocks AND the upper subframe.

Finally, I was at Larry Stock's Pantera Parts Connection shop in Carson City NV yesterday and he has a used Hall steel spreader bar on the shelf.... Call him.