Camber Compensator is it needed?

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Stephen Dempsey
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Re: Camber Compensator is it needed?

#31 Post by Stephen Dempsey »

I’m sorry, but I just don’t see anything wrong with Al’s response. He was stating his opinion. Come on guys. This is a car club.

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Harlan Halsey
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Re: Camber Compensator is it needed?

#32 Post by Harlan Halsey »

The camber compensator is only needed if you have the thinner torsion bars which came with it originally. Obviously, the thinner torsion bars decrease the rear roll rate, that is their purpose. The camber compensator restores the cars carrying capacity. Whether or not you like or can detect the effect of the lower roll rate is up to you. There's another use for the camber compensator: When I was vintage racing my Convertible D I ran more negative camber on the track than I wanted on the street. So even though I don't have the thin torsion bars, I set the spring plates so that I had negative camber in the lower adjustment and street camber in the upper one. Obviously, I wasn't a very serious vintage driver, few of us were in those days, or I would have had one of Vic's Z bars.

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Al Zim
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Re: Camber Compensator is it needed?

#33 Post by Al Zim »

On page 19 of the January/February 2023 Registry magazine is a statement on "TRAVERSE COMPENSATING SPRING" LUDVIGSEN has stated that his would be on all the cars with the more powerful engines. THIS DID NOT HAPPEN! My GUESS would be that someone realized that the torsion bars would have to be adjusted differently for this accessory. Then the interchangeability (i.e. factory options) would be more difficult (read COSTLY) on the production line.
REMEMBERING! What it was like to drive a speedster and to help the shop assemble a Formulae V in 1965 (58 years ago) I am convinced that nothing we did could get the car to drive correctly down a road or on a track. Many of the Formulae V shops have not learned this yet. In 1965 we had no factory tools and not much knowledge about Porsche automobiles. If you would like to discuss alignment and front end situations you are welcome to call me. 817-267-4451 al zim
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Jim Liberty
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Re: Camber Compensator is it needed?

#34 Post by Jim Liberty »

I believe you are right David. I've installed many of Vic's, and never noticed any ground clearance change. .........Jim.
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Jacques Lefriant
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Re: Camber Compensator is it needed?

#35 Post by Jacques Lefriant »

Hi Al
all the Carrera2s had this and they used the other hole for the castelated nut i guess for the increased weight. Also the 356C ones had to use the B torsion bars rather than the short C bars.
 

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Harlan Halsey
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Re: Camber Compensator is it needed?

#36 Post by Harlan Halsey »

Intereting, and logical. So there were only long low-rate torsion bars, none for the C. If anyone has a couple of the low-rate bars for sale, I'd like to try them and see.

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Martin Benade
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Re: Camber Compensator is it needed?

#37 Post by Martin Benade »

How do the standard C bars compare to the special ones? C bars are lower rate than standard B ones.
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John Clarke
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Re: Camber Compensator is it needed?

#38 Post by John Clarke »

What is Vic's 'Z' Bar ? Harlan
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Harlan Halsey
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Re: Camber Compensator is it needed?

#39 Post by Harlan Halsey »

Jay,
Vic's Z bar is the thing they are all talking about above. It is a cross car link with rigid drop links to the ends of the axle tubes. Because the links are rigid, and the bar is mounted in the middle it can push down as well as up thereby preventing rear axle tuck under. I don't think the bar affects the roll rate, but it can affect the ride height. But better ask Vic if you are interested in all the ramifications of adjusting the linkages.

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Re: Camber Compensator is it needed?

#40 Post by Mike Grant »

Martin, I don’t know this this answers your question in Post #37 above, but my ‘64 SC had what I believe are the original torsion bars and they are 553mm long and 22mm diameter. A few years ago I installed the Elephant Racing adjustable spring plate kit, which required 627mm length bars (standard for A and B cars) and I changed to 23mm diameter bars of that length. The idea was the the 1mm thicker, longer bar would have a similar spring rate compared to the shorter, thinner bar. My subjective assessment is that ride with the longer 23mm bars is noticeably stiffer than with the shorter 22mm originals.

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Wes Bender
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Re: Camber Compensator is it needed?

#41 Post by Wes Bender »

The added length was not sufficient to offset the increased torsional resistance, hence the stiffer ride. The torsional resistance changes with the 4th power of the radius of the bar, all else being equal.
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Neil Bardsley
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Re: Camber Compensator is it needed?

#42 Post by Neil Bardsley »

Camber regulator received and fitted. Pretty straight forward install. I had to put my car on ramps. Vic's instructions were clear and no dramas. Unfortunately, no test drive yet as I'm still fixing my driver's door latch.

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Re: Camber Compensator is it needed?

#43 Post by Geoff Fleming »

You will find the car feels far more 'modern' after fitting the Skirmants regulator, especially so if you also add a Wilhoit 17.5 front sway bar.

The factory compensator is fine for lifting the rear of the car but does nothing to aid handling...it was the use of milder torsion bars that contributed to the handling of the S-90s which came with camber compensators fitted.

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Al Zim
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Re: Camber Compensator is it needed?

#44 Post by Al Zim »

The Porsche Spec's 3rd English Edition Shows only the 22 MM torsion bar used on the "356C/SC" The 356C, 2000 GS/GT And the 356C GS Carrera both used 23 mm rear torsion bars. Goeff, I would appreciate it if you would take a few minutes and elaborate on how you have drawn you conclusion on the February 26th post. Thanks al zim
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Re: Camber Compensator is it needed?

#45 Post by Geoff Fleming »

I draw my conclusions from real life experience.
My former Carerra II body needed the bar to bring the rear up to a height I preferred. My subsequent C cars didn't need the compensator but one came with it attached. After many thousands of miles, I switched to the Skirmant's bar and only then was there a noted improvement in handling and overall feel to the car.
You may not believe this but I also re-built my own engine some 24 years ago, re-placed 4th gear in the trans and replaced all brake components, aligned front and rear, over-hauled the steering box, replaced the headliner and interior, etc.
The car has been to many 356 Holidays and other events, even driven up into Canada and back. Had the car on the track in Virginia some time ago and it performed just fine.
I am not a professional mechanic nor do I have specialized tools. My car tracks perfectly and if driven on a flat highway, removing the hands from the steering wheel does not result in any wandering. Impossible? No, just good maintenance and taking care in performing work. Working on a 356 is not rocket science, though some would like to give that impression.

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