Ladder Bars

I know this has been beat to death................but would like some input from a builder...............i have some sst tubing laying around....versis the high cost of steal .....1/8 in wall by 1" O.D. ....would like to use for ladder bars on a model A.......would this be ......mainly a driver.....not gonna drag race with it...............


Im no expert...but i did stay at a motel 6

 

depending on design of the ladder bars , and if it is actually seamless tuning , that should be fine

pete & jakes uses 7/8" OD DOM tubing with a .156 wall

 

I wouldn't suggest using stainless steel for any suspension part, you're just asking for problems. Unless you have a intimate knowlege of the material and the stresses involved, steer clear of stainless for stressed parts.

 

With the price of stainless I would probably sell the tube and buy steel or a kit. The 7/8 x .156 is used because of the capability of being direct threaded. This means you don't have to buy the threaded inserts and tig them in. If you were to buy threaded inserts for yours,I wouldn't use anything but the same stainless .I'm sure you would have a load in them.
Also ,In my opinion,installing any ladder bars that are not adjustable for pinion angle is a waste of time. Let me splain,a basic ladder bar has the tubes running at different angles to the rear. The brackets that weld on the rear end housing have holes a predetermined distance apart. This is where the ladder bar ends must be adjusted, to fit the brackets. If you decide to change pinion angle,you cannot lenghthen or shorten either the top or bottom link or the hole spaceing dimention is off.
Best of luck ,hope this helps