Date: Mon, 28 Sep 2009 15:03:09 -0700
Reply-To: Scott Daniel - Turbovans <scottdaniel@TURBOVANS.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Scott Daniel - Turbovans <scottdaniel@TURBOVANS.COM>
Subject: Re: Science of Washboarding
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I'd say 'that depends'.
for sure, if the shocks are absorbing the many small fast pumps, and
maintaining control.............that won't hurt the suspension much at all,
if it's pretty decent to start with.
But shocks loose their effectiveness when they heat up. So maybe 10
minutes at 40 mph over severe washboard isn't so bad.
But an hour of doing that might be.
and the less the shocks, work, the rougher it is on the suspension.,
the shocks not only dampen the ride and keep the tires in contact with the
road, they also cushion the 'shock' on the suspension !
( and thus help the suspension to last longer. )
now........what tire pressure would be better for severe washboard surfaces
? more pressure than usual, or less than normal pressure ?
Scott
----- Original Message -----
From: "Jake de Villiers" <crescentbeachguitar@GMAIL.COM>
To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
Sent: Sunday, September 27, 2009 10:26 AM
Subject: Re: Science of Washboarding
> That what the 'suspension' is designed to do Mr Squirrel - you aren't
> hurting anything.
>
> On Sun, Sep 27, 2009 at 10:06 AM, Rocket J Squirrel <
> camping.elliott@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> During yesterday's exploration of local campgrounds I encountered a
>> couple
>> unpaved roads that were heavily washboarded,* some causing such bad
>> juddering that I had to slow down and creep along so the van would not
>> shake itself apart.
>>
>> On the return trip I tried going sufficiently fast (40 mph or so) that
>> the
>> tires and suspension could float a little. The ride was nearly smooth.
>>
>> Okay, this has Vanagon content because I don't want to damage the van
>> with
>> that technique. While it felt miles better in the driver's seat when I
>> was
>> going fast, I wonder if I wasn't putting a lot of stress on the tires or
>> suspension.
>>
>> Thoughts? Or even better, knowledge?
>>
>>
>> ====================
>> * I recall reading someplace how cars create washboard in the road due to
>> bouncing off some existing bump and mashing a second bump into the road,
>> which bounces the next car, creating a third, &c., until you got them
>> washboards. However, yesterday I came across a device parked on a side
>> road in the forest that appears to have been specifically designed to
>> imprint the corrugations into the road surface. It consisted of two large
>> drums, each about 6' wide and 4' high, roughly, mounted side-by-side on
>> an
>> axle. The circumferential surface of the two drums had steel corrugations
>> spaced about a foot apart all around the drum. I bet any tyro FBI
>> fingerprint student could match up with the grooves in the road. The
>> device had a trailer tongue that the front so it could be towed behind a
>> tractor or something. To make the roads into washboard roads.
>>
>> --
>> Mike "Rocket J Squirrel" Elliott
>> 84 Westfalia: Mellow Yellow ("The Electrical Banana")
>> 74 Westrailia: (Ladybug Trailer company, San Juan Capistrano, Calif.)
>> Bend, OR
>> KG6RCR
>>
>
>
>
> --
> Jake
>
> 1984 Vanagon GL
> 1986 Westy Weekender "Dixie"
>
> Crescent Beach, BC
>
> www.thebassspa.com
> www.crescentbeachguitar.com
> http://subyjake.googlepages.com/mydixiedarlin%27
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