Chassis "Band-aids" for Slicks

[Wess-RA]

Thanks Bob. So presumably PAD must have increased the wall thickness in addition to the small OD change. 1/16 per side wall thickness increase wouldn't seem enough to make a difference on its own.

[Craig245]

Interesting issue. Area Moment of inertia for a cylinder is the outer diameter to the 4th power less the inner diameter to the 4th power. So if you double the diameter the resistance to buckling is 16 times greater or if you increase it by 1.125 (1/8 inch greater than 1 inch) the increase in buckling strength is 50%, assuming similar wall thickness. So, the upgraded rods are about 50% stronger in buckling, which is the primary failure mode. Changing to steel or Chrome Moly would increase the strength 3 times for the same wall thickness, but it would weigh 3 times more than the aluminum.

Craig