SOLID BEAM SUSPENSION

SYSTEM
 When looked down on from above, Chalky’s
front suspension is shaped like the letter ‘T’.
The top of the ‘T’ is a solid axle (the red line) that
joins the two front wheels, while the upright of
the ‘T’ (green line) points towards the back of the
machine.
 The upright of the ‘T’ is a torsion tube. It is
pivoted at its base such that the wheel axle can
rise and fall, but twist (eg when the body rolls)
is resisted. That is, the torsion tube’s pivot
point is a horizontal axle (blue line), with its
axis at right-angles to the length of the car.
 To prevent the wheel axle moving laterally (ie
by bending the torsion tube), a Watts Link is
placed at the mid-point of the beam axle. This
prevents the axle from moving sideways, while
still allowing free vertical movement.
 WORKING

TWO WHEEL BUMP:

 Over two-wheel bumps (eg a speed hump), the
front wheels rise and fall together. That is, the wheel
travel and the spring travel are the same (ie a 1:1
motion ratio). The spec’d travel of the air springs is
3.6 inches (but in this front application I run them at
about 3.8 inches), so over a two-wheel bump, the
maximum front suspension travel is 3.8 inches.
 ONE WHEEL BUMP

 Because the axle is supported at the opposite

end by the other wheel, and because the spring
is mounted inboard from the rising wheel, and
(finally) because the torsion tube can twist (the
inertial mass of the rider resists being rotated,
so the torsion tube twists instead), the
compression of the spring on a one-wheel
bump is less than it would be for a two-wheel
bump of the same size.
 Therefore, compared with a two-wheel bump,
the spring rate is effectively lower, and the
maximum travel is potentially higher –
probably at least 6 inches.
 In addition to the air spring, the torsion tube
also resists the one-wheel bump (remember, it
acts as an anti-roll bar, and anti-roll bars resist
one-wheel bumps). One-wheel bumps attempt
to cause some sideways movement of the axle,
but this is prevented by the Watts Link.
 CORNERING

Characteristics :
 LIGHTNESS

 SPRING MOTION RATIO (CAN TAKE

HEAVIER WEIGHTS)
THANK YOU