Matt.......
If no-one does the axle explanation by this evening, I'll have a go......
In the meantime, the spring question is easily answered: an ellipse is
another name for an oval that has rather pointy ends. So, semi-elliptical
means shaped like half an ellipse, the usual shape of a leaf spring where
the axle attaches to the middle of a spring which is rigidly fixed at one
end but allowed to move via shackles at the other end (to take up the change
in spring length when it flattens as it goes over bumps).
Quarter-elliptic is a spring that's shaped like quarter of an ellipse. The
forward end is rigidly attached to the chassis, the other end to the axle.
Early Sprites and Midgets use this arrangement.
For obvious reasons (at least, to the best of my knowledge, there are no
"three-quarter-elliptic" springs!
Lawrie
British Sportscar Center
-----Original Message-----
From: Kulka, Matt <Matt.Kulka@hboc.com>
To: 'Oracle of MG' <mgs@autox.team.net>
Date: Friday, January 08, 1999 6:05 AM
Subject: Fractional Thoughts
>It's amazing the things you can go through life not knowing, and not ask
>because "they really don't matter." But now I too am nearing forty, and I
>find that I care a lot less about looking like an idiot and more about
>actually knowing what I'm talking about. So if I may take advantage of the
>list's remarkable tolerance for really basic questions...
>
>I've been reading about rear axles a lot. When the parts finally arrive,
>I'm going to try to replace the thrust washers in my differential. I keep
>reading how the banjo axle is semi-floating, while the tube axle is
>three-quarters-floating. If I have that backwards, it's because I don't
>know what those two concepts mean, and that brings me (finally) to my
>question. Is there anyone who would like to take the time to explain to me
>what makes an axle semi- or three-quarters floating, and maybe even why
>you'd choose one over the other?
>
>I sure would appreciate it.
>
>Matt Kulka
>Huntersville, NC
>'74 B - which was semi-floating on two jack stands just last night.
>
>(And then all those fractions made me think of semi-elliptical vs.
>three-quarter elliptical leaf springs - which I also don't understand.
>Anyone want to take a crack at that one too?)
>
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