Speedway Batwing warning

What's wrong with Ford parts?

...Just screwing with you Larry!

 

Yeah, what Little Wing said. "Hell its there company name ,,they should be concerned,,, "

If McDonald's sold something that had potential to get somebody hurt (HOT coffee, maybe?), they'd get sued. Why should ANY vendor be automatically let off the hook just because they use outside resources? <!-- / message --><!-- sig -->

 

If it wasn't dangerous we'd all be driving PT Cruisers (air bags, emergency brakes, the whole nine yards).

The hard part of hot rodding is finding quality parts that are cheaper to buy over the counter than you can build yourself.

Speedy probably sells a six-figure dollars in parts every day, but it's just products like any Wal-Mart or Dollar Store. Each of us looks at the product and if it passes our lower limit quality test, we buy it.

Most of us aren't engineers, so when building the critical parts of any automobile (especially the front-end which determines your life expectancy) we tend to ask others who've been-there-done-that. This posting is great for pointing out a design weakness.

When I took metalshop in high school, we had a stress tester that pulled your welds apart. You welded two pieces of 1/2" steel together, put it in the machine, and pushed the go button. If the weld broke first, you had to start over. It was a true test that you learned how to prepare and weld for strength. I only bring this up, because one look at those batwings, and it reminds me of the first time I went to the stress tester and lost

 

i'm sure Speedway sells a lot of parts , but how many actually get used on a car? i bet less than 1/3 of what they sell ever sees the street. then what does get used probably most of that sees very little use. they probably did a cost/benefit analysis and determined it's not worth it making parts any better....just cheaper for them to replace the broken stuff

i'm not saying there is a valid reason to make bad parts , just a theory i have

 

Interesting thread. First off the design of this batwing is identical to the origonal Pete and Jakes 4-bar front suspension. I have one of their setups on my '32 2dr and it was bought within a couple of years after they went into business. In fact mine still has the origonal swaybar bushings that preceeded the Microflex (polyurethane) bushing that have been the standard for years. I inspect the suspension every spring before I start the driving season. After years of driving Michigan's pot hole infested roads every component is just as it was installed. I atribute this to sound design, quality material, extremely good welding. This is a fabricated part made with mild steel which is perfect for this application.
With that said, these cars are custom vehicles built to perform outside the normal parameters the standard transportation piece is subjected to so extra caution HAS to be exercised in the selection of parts, assembly, and frequent inspection to assure the integrity of everything is up to par.
Good to hear Speedway is stepping up and replacing the failed part. Just like the Heidt's controversy of a couple of years ago this won't be the last problem we see of this nature. I also like the multiple posts by admitted no/low experience members chiming in with puffed up retoric and veiled threats. The thread could be cut by 50% without this kind of input. Maybe Ryan can work on perfecting a Bullshit Meter that would automatically delete those posts. NAW!!, it wouldn't be the HAMB without the drama and hot air.

Frank

 

oops, I was fixing to eat with my fork out and bib on.

I never had a puffed up retoric before, but I'm hungry enough to eat anything right now...

 

It's SIMILAR, are you sure it's IDENTICAL?

I'd be curious to see a comparo on this. Could you possibly post a pic of your old PnJ batwing? I'm pretty sure I know what they look like, and while they were a fabricated piece too, they were more substantial, at least visually.

 

I would expect the Pete & Jakes pieces to be made of heavier material,
than the failed Speedway pieces, and better thought out to preclude stress risers.

 

Fabricated Bat Wings are nothing new.

And if they are made properly, no problems.

 

Speedway didn't make these failed Bat Wings,
and they didn't make the Corvair Pitman Arms that broke last year.


I guess, to some people, "customer service" really is more important than reliable parts.

 

Yeah, there is a 12 year old Chinese girl going to bed without supper tonight after Bill sees this thread!

 

Speedy Bill - Jedi Master

 

Just another reason to use wishbones...

 

This is not a slam on Speedway..just a funny story. A friend of mine called speedway to order some bolts and nuts. While talking to the salesperson he asked about the model a chassis kit they had. He also gave them his credit card number. The guy said, well is there a place this chassis could be shipped? i.e. a business of some sort? Would be cheaper. My friend told them where. Sooooooooo, he gets the bolts the next day and a couple days after that this paint and supply store calls him and says...Larry, you have a BIG package that came in here at the store. (When he told me this story I laughed in his face) Larry says, what? Uh, yeah, from speedway. BWAAAAAAAAAA, they put the chassis and suspension kit on his credit card. He said to me, I didn't order that! I said yeah you did, you gave them the CC # and told him where to send it! He ended up keeping it cause it was gonna cost HIM to send it back. I call his model A the credit card car. He said damn you, the credit card # was for the bolts. BWAAAAA.

 

Speedway the harbor freight of car parts.

 

Speedway = Harbor Freight = Walmart.

 

Need fabricated batwings? Two words - "Welders Series". Great stuff, great folks, they'll weld them if you want. At least you know exactly where they're made and who's making them.

 

i had an issue with speedway once where i ordered some 39-48 round back spindles and one of the spindle shafts weren't drilled for a cotter pin to lock the castle nut on... i was baffled as to how someone could've missed this..i guess chinese children don't build alot of hotrods!!!

 

Thats 3 posts now lets back off on the Chinese lil kids ...ok

lets pretend we all have some education and manners

 

as far as i understand no after market car parts are tested to any standards, i guess people who buy the parts are the one doing the "test to destruction"

 

Deuceman, though I can't test a picture, from here THOSE look like good, penetrating welds -- not surface "daubing." I've know a bunch of welders, and they take pride in their work. Since lives depended on their work, I'm sure they splet well at night.

Budd: "as far as i understand no after market car parts are tested to any standards

Just doesn't make much sense that mission-critical parts wouldn't/shouldn't be tested, so parts failing the test could never give a problem. Every manufacturing process has some "culls."

 

Does anybody know where I can find/buy a pair of these batwings?

I want to replace the scary speedway wings that I wasted my money on and am now to scared to drive my car.


thanks in advance


moe

 

Yikes is right! I'm headed for the garage to check mine even though I got them elsewhere. Gary

 

Just reread this thread for the first time since my last post. Someone asked if the P&J parts were made of more substantial material. NO, same gauge. I know this because I've got a friend with the Speedway stuff and I've still got a pair of P&J pieces here to compare. Design, material, observed quality of welds (the subject piece failed in the material not the weld), etc. appear to be identical.
So, my opinion is were dealing with mis-application, assembly, or severe usage issues here.

Frank

 

Does anyone remember the Bat Wings that were "Invented" by Pete & Jake in the 1970's? Those things were really well made.

 

Kid, look at Franks reply above.

 

I believe if you look in the Total Performance catalog you will find them. Those are what Mickey Laurie used on his T's for years and actually I think, still does, or whomever now has Total in Connecticut.

 

Dick, Speedway owns total now

 

TCI supplied the ones for my roadster and they appear to be cast.
They are also pretty darn thin with very little extra webbing/strength.

After reading the comments here I don't feel very safe driving around with such a flimsy part designed into the steering



.

 

on here? are you kidding?