Hi Nick,
Being 6'3", I've been knocking around this roll bar placement thing for
years.... My first TR 4A was IRS... a street car... but I never put a roll
bar
in because of my height and I knew it would have to be custom... so I didn't
bother. My TR 4A driver now is solid axle... but has the IRS frame. I've been
tinkering with putting a roll bar in it, just because I drive it with aero
screens
and a roll over would not be pretty. YET, my main roll bar dreams have been for
yet another TR 4A IRS, that I have in storage, that I hope to put together as a
vintage racer... so the roll bar designs keep swimming through my head....
Do I have the answer? Not really. I have mainly considered putting plate on
the
floor that extends out to where the body bolts down along the door frame... and
then diagonally back, following along the top of where the frame is... back
toward
the center and rear. From this, I was going to build up along the rear seat and
cap the edge with angle iron. So that the roll bar could sit on top of the rear
seat (deck). I wanted to avoid having tubes going down behind the seat. I
would put in diagonals from this angle iron down to the floor and/or from the
floor to the verticle plate, but it would be minimal and only where it would
not
interfere with the seat.
It all sounds rather heavy and complicated. I haven't done it yet.
Nevertheless, I think it could be done in a fairly lightweight manner. In a
hard
roll, it might tweak down a bit... but the rear deck metal, trailing arms, and
the
upper rear spring cross structure piece... would certainly hold things together.
Further, I have seen supporting diagonals go through the rear seat back...
through
the stock gas tank location... to the floor of the boot. Of course, in these
cars, the fuel tank was relocated. With the tank in place... coming up with
good ways to brace the frame are limited... (forward across the passenger's
shoulder to the bases of the dash support is the obvious)
This was not intended to be an answer, but rather... food for thought... and I
will be watching the answers of those racers that have put together their own
designs.
My main reason for replying was this: I put together a composite of TR 4A
frame/body drawings in order to provide me with a tool for designing/sketching
my
ideas. I wanted to provide the group with these. I know not everyone likes to
receive jpegs... so anyone who is interested, please send me a note and I will
send them to you. I think you will find them much easier to sketch on then a
napkin....
I will try to get them on my web page, but for now... just drop me a note.
--Justin
Malaboge@aol.com wrote:
> Fellow Triumphers-
>
> Working on the "Duke of Oil" today (so aptly named by the ever popular Ms
> Ellie (Hardy's wife)), and while everything seems fine to me, just maybe a few
> rules have changed since the last time I donned Nomex...
>
> What's the hot lick for installing a good roll bar in the independent cars ?
> Does everyone tie into the top of the rear spring carrier, or try to attach to
> some other part of the frame. There doesn't look to be much in the way of
> options back there. The bar that came with the car bolts to the frame way up
> forward on the floor section and I am too tall and need to move the seat
> further back so the bar has got to go.
>
> And how big a fuel cell is adequate in this car. Is 8 enough, or is 10 (or
> even more) a better idea?
>
> What ever happenned to "run what ya brung"?
> Nick in Nor Cal
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