Weight is the enemy of a race car. Any time you can save weight without reducing integrity or creating an unsafe situation you will benefit. Utilizing aluminum tubing for such things as control arms, Panhard bars, steering linkage, and more are all great ways to not only save weight but allow your suspension and steering to react faster to changes in the track surface, which ultimately keeps your race car’s tires in contact with the racing surface for precise throttle, braking, and steering control that can put you in the winner’s circle.
One easy way to save weight is to replace heavy wall steel suspension and steering tubes with thin wall aluminum versions that utilize a swedged end. As aluminum is lighter than steel with similar strength characteristics it is the perfect upgrade to these suspension and steering pieces when sized properly for the application. Weight savings are further realized with the thinner wall dimensions of the aluminum tube versus a comparable steel tube of the same outside diameter. Swedging the ends of the aluminum tubing shrinks the outside diameter down, which thickens the wall of the tubing in the area where threads are created for the heim joint, bushing, or clevis end piece to be installed. This critical area is cold formed, which further strengthens the aluminum tube. Swedged aluminum tubes, on average, are 30 percent lighter than their steel counterparts while meeting the same strength requirements.
We offer these super strong aluminum threaded tubes for your project in a bare finish. They are constructed from 6061-T6 aluminum with a .140-inch wall thickness and a 1.125 inch outside diameter. They are available in 35 different lengths from 13-1/2-inches to 50-inches. These natural finish aluminum tubes are threaded to accept 5/8-18 rod ends, bushings, or clevises with left-hand and right-hand threads. This allows the adjusting sleeve to be mounted between two points of adjustment, such as your frame and rear axle, among other fitment applications. Rotating the threaded tube moves the threaded ends of your choice inward or outward for adjustment. For the 5/8-18 thread ends these aluminum sleeves utilize this equates to roughly 1/8-inch of adjustment for each full rotation of the hollow threaded tube. This allows for precise adjustment of your suspension arms, steering linkage, or other chassis adjustment on your race car.
Wherever you wish to save weight by using an aluminum adjustable threaded tube in your race car, be it for a steering linkage, chassis support, or elsewhere, it is easy to figure out exactly what you need. Simply measure the center-to-center distance of your two adjustment or mounting points, subtract 3-1/2-inches for your rod ends, bushings, or clevises you choose and then order the closest length to that measurement. So, if your final measurement after subtracting the 3-1/2-inches for your ends is 18-inches, that is what you will order from the drop-down menu.
Tech Tip: When assembling a tube, each heim end adds approximately 1.75" to the overall length (assuming the heim is screwed into the tube half way.) If you have a heim on each end of the tube, the assembly will be approximately 3.5-inches longer overall.
Summary: Worked perfect on my vintage sprint car
Yes, I recommend this product.
Summary: Nice and light
Yes, I recommend this product.
Summary: Good product and received promptly.
Yes, I recommend this product.
Summary: excellent product, very high quality
Yes, I recommend this product.
Summary: Exactly what I wanted
Yes, I recommend this product.