I've been wondering if welding the ends on the FSTB (where the nuts and bolts are) would make it stiffer?

I notice that even when tightened up a lot there's still a bit of movement on the bar, hardly noticeable when moved by the human arm but under a lot of pressure from the entire front end i'm assuming the movement is more noticeable.

Just curious.

Thanks.
- Mike

P.S. On a similar note, i'm assuming the FSTB's we normally see are made of Aluminum. How good are that compared to steel/iron/alloy/titanium as far as strength goes?

 

Unless you are racing or autocrossing, for street applications, it probably wouldn't make any difference. As far as materials, again, unless you are racing, it probably won't matter. Asthetics play more of a roll here.

 

I'm sure it'll help slightly. I always notice a tighter front end everytime i tighten the bolts only to soften back up a couple days worth of driving later.

Thus why i thought maybe welding it might be a good idea.

 

have you tried thread locker or JB weld as maybe a fix?

 

many of the FSTBs actually are bolted together and are not a single piece. That sounds to me like there is tons-o-room-to-move. You are not actually conencting the towers by a rigid bar, but a bar that can pivot and deform.

To me it would make sense to at least weld the connection points, possibly leaving the middle tightening screw un-welded to make future adjustments.