i have made several pulls with mine without issues. i dont know whether their good or bad but they seem to work. i had an issue with the lock nuts when i blocked the rear end for pulling so they disappeared.
CalTracs vs Traction Bars
- Thread starter wes06dmax
- Start date
i asked a local frame guy the same question recently, he said the GMT-800/900 frames are the strongest out of their class, and when i asked him about putting shorter bars on, he said where i wanted to mount them would not be a problem at all (right where the frame bends up under the bed)
my trac bars are right at 6 ft long, 2" o.d and have 10" of adjustability, i run caltracs before and these seem to ride better and launch as good if not better
my trac bars are right at 6 ft long, 2" o.d and have 10" of adjustability, i run caltracs before and these seem to ride better and launch as good if not better
what was your difference in your 60ft time ? A 6ft bar is a good choice for a off road setup/DD or maybe sled truck but isnt worth much on the drag strip , other than to stop axle wrap .
well they have only been on for about a month now just tested them on the street...season dont open till feb hear so dont know about 60FT yet but ill let you know...im not making ridiculous power yet so im not spinning that hard!!!
eye to eye mine are something close to 80" right now, once i shorten them, they will be closer to 65". on my 2001 i am building, i am trying something else to make it work with front spring hangers made to lower the rear 3". if it doesnt work i will have to resort to caltracs as none of the organizations i'd compete in would allow a 4-link
They seem to work well even up to a 6" ProComp lift and 35"+ tires
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C-MC7VpP-yY&feature=player_embedded
They had to be lengthened but worked flawlessly. Hop in any suspension setup is bound to take out driveshafts, u-joints, ring and pinions, etc. nomatter what type of bars you have on it.
The thing I like about CalTracs is that they actually force the frontend down, whereas every other type of bar setup that angles up (even slightly) lift the front. Guys LESSEN the lifting effect by making the bars longer and at less of an angle, but then they have to run a really stout bar and they get REALLY heavy. That is less weight you can put in the front (for those that can).
The CalTracs push down on the spring in front of the rear axle (AKA pivot) and therefor provide downforce on the front.
My .02 but I'll tell you they helped me beat more powerful, better tired trucks with long bars........:thumb:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C-MC7VpP-yY&feature=player_embedded
They had to be lengthened but worked flawlessly. Hop in any suspension setup is bound to take out driveshafts, u-joints, ring and pinions, etc. nomatter what type of bars you have on it.
The thing I like about CalTracs is that they actually force the frontend down, whereas every other type of bar setup that angles up (even slightly) lift the front. Guys LESSEN the lifting effect by making the bars longer and at less of an angle, but then they have to run a really stout bar and they get REALLY heavy. That is less weight you can put in the front (for those that can).
The CalTracs push down on the spring in front of the rear axle (AKA pivot) and therefor provide downforce on the front.
My .02 but I'll tell you they helped me beat more powerful, better tired trucks with long bars........:thumb:
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Did you ever weigh those by chance? It would be interesting to see what the bars and ends weigh.
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I don't see how caltracs could provide downforce. The front of the leaf spring stops the movement and then all the force is applied to the center bolt(pivot point). That would create lift IMO. Maybe not as much as a longer bar but it would still be pushing up.
I dont think the pivot point is what stops/helps out with front end lift that pivot point was just a means to creat the design with it still being able to be adjustable and street driven IMOP, but the geomitry change with the clatracs most definatly will help , and will increase the bite of the rear tire also , something a long bar can not do and wil never due , with the leingth, angle, and mouinting position of the long bars it will not being able to move the instantant center back far enough and as a result the antisqaut ( wich i what make the rear tire bite harder ) will always be low . the reason some guys dont like the caltracs or "short " bars for sled pulling is it can make the rear tires bite too hard and can create hop .
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You are probably right, I always thought of the front spring eye as a pivot and the force exerted on the front of the spring as downforce, but maybe not. Worse case scenario though is there is a ton less leverage to lift the front of the vehicle so it is a better setup for not transferring weight.
Some people have said they "worry" about the strength of the bars and setup in truck pulling and is whey they chose the long/heavy traction bar route, but I have seen CalTracs take some serious abuse on the drag strip and that is when vehicles really hook (pavement doesn't tend to give as easily as dirt). If they can hold up to that in 6000lbs+ trucks during boosted launches, truck pulling is child's play for them. They only time I could it being an issue is with improper length bars (ie. not compensating for lift), or if the "plates" were to get comprimised due to rust/weather/elements etc.
Oh well, to each their own, and both seem to work well for keeping axle wrap under control which is probably the biggest concern, as axle wrap leads to $$$$ in repairs.
I'm pretty sure from a physics POV the end result is the same.
Caltracs use the force to apply pressure on the front of the spring to prevent it from wrapping up when the axle tries to move forward.
Bars prevent the axle from moving forward by a much simpler method, obvious by design.
I can't see there being any difference in the amount of lift the front of the truck gets. I can see that a set of bars that attach closer to the center of the frame would cause the frame to flex more, the most flex would be somewhere back of the center point because the shorter bar would be pushing up more.
Think of jacking up the truck. If you put a jack under the forward mounting point of the rear spring you wouldn't see and frame flex. If you put one halfway between the axles it would flex.
Caltracs use the force to apply pressure on the front of the spring to prevent it from wrapping up when the axle tries to move forward.
Bars prevent the axle from moving forward by a much simpler method, obvious by design.
I can't see there being any difference in the amount of lift the front of the truck gets. I can see that a set of bars that attach closer to the center of the frame would cause the frame to flex more, the most flex would be somewhere back of the center point because the shorter bar would be pushing up more.
Think of jacking up the truck. If you put a jack under the forward mounting point of the rear spring you wouldn't see and frame flex. If you put one halfway between the axles it would flex.
