Sway Bar Question about the 55/56 Wagon to Passenger Car

[Hot Rod Reverend]

Many of you have been following my front clip and body restoration of the 55 Club Sedan. I did have a question about the sway bar. I do have a very good 56 Ford Station Wagon Sway bar (obviously larger in diameter) to fit to the front end to make the handling better. This is an upgrade that many people have done. However I do not have the brackets that came with the sway bar.

Are the brackets the same? The reason I ask is that I know the rubber blocks/bushings must be different to fit the larger diameter sway bar. Also, what about the bolt kit that attaches the sway bar to the control arm... is that the same kit for both passenger car and wagon?

[Ole Don]

I think the ID of the bushings is different, but the OD is the same. I have a 1 1/8 front swaybar on my 55. It works great.

[Paul H]

I did this swap on my 56 and used the same brackets and bushings.I slit the bushing to get it on the bar and just put it together like that.After about 30,000 miles it's still just fine.Although the wagon bar is only a little stiffer,it sure makes a big improvement in the ride and handling.

[56 ford custom]

The 55 wagon sway bar isnt the same as the 56?

[Hot Rod Reverend]

I just got a reply from restoration company this morning about my question. They told me that they could not get the station wagon bushings any more and that they were drilling out the passenger car bushings to fit???

[JeffB2]

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Go over to the 52-59 Ford group,problem solved.

[Hot Rod Reverend]

And they are greasable too!!! I like that.

[blucar]

Hate to be a nit picker, I think you guys are under the misconception that the bar you are dealing with is a "sway bar" it is not a sway bar if it has movable links to the front/rear suspension. A sway bar has to have a solid connection to the chassis and the suspension.
The bar you are talking about is an "anti roll bar", the purpose being to limit body roll on turns. The larger the bar the less body roll.
A sway bar keeps the body straight with the chassis.. i.e. track bar, panhart, etc.

[Hot Rod Reverend]

I always wondered why we called it a "sway bar"... maybe "anti" would be best?

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sway%20bar

and if you check this link I guess companies use the same nomenclature.

http://www.energysuspensionparts.com...?prod=FrontSBB

[blucar]

Originally Posted by Hot Rod Reverend

I always wondered why we called it a "sway bar"... maybe "anti" would be best?

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sway%20bar

and if you check this link I guess companies use the same nomenclature.

http://www.energysuspensionparts.com...?prod=FrontSBB

You are absolutely right, most parts suppliers refer to the "anti roll" bars as being "sway bar's..
Using the wrong terminology can get a person into a lot of trouble if they are trying to control body sway, i.e. out of alignment with the chassis in lieu of body roll.
As a general rule leaf springs don't require sway bars, where-as coil springs do. Coil spring suspensions can also require sway bars as well as anti roll bars.
Ford started to use the anti roll bars on the front of the '40 Fords, adding sway bars to the rear on '47's and '48's..
The anti roll bars on the '40 Fords made them much more stable on turns/curves..
When I am looking for a roll bar and/or sway bar I always ask the vendor if the attachment to the suspension is a movable link or is it a solid connection. The majority of the time I find that the bar they are trying to sell me has flexible links, ergo a roll bar being described as a sway bar...
Foot Note;
Several years ago there was a very lengthy article in "Street Rodder" regarding the use of roll bars vs sway bars and the misconceptions that the majority of the users have for same.
Officially, a sway bar is a "tracking bar" and/or "panhard".. They have a hard, flexible connection, allowing the body to move up or down, but not side to side in relationship to the chassis and/or suspension.