Swingin' axles

[Will Owen <nashwill912@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Mr. Hertzman said:

> Won't argue, but the ghosts of some respected Alfas could say "I resemble that
> remark" - - the swing axle and transverse leaf spring were used on all of the
> 8C 2900 cars, and on the 158 Alfetta (which did go to a De Dion for the 159)...(snip)

I had one o'them despised little Triumph Heralds, and never had any
problems with the swing axle, mostly I think because its rear tires were
bias-ply snow treads (this was Alaska). Jammed into a bend, it'd start
to jack up, then it'd slip and drop, then jack up again...with a little
bit of practice you could simply ignore the bobbing and treat the
sliding as a constant. Now, if you will but recall that racing tires
used to be built for strength and durability, I think we might have a
clue as to how Alfa (and a bunch of other builders) got away with swing
axles, not to mention a lot of other pretty awful suspender systems. I'm
sure that a set of sticky radials on an 8C 2900 (or a Herald!) could set
you up for more excitement than you wanted...
> 
> Perhaps it is just that the top Alfa drivers of the era had mastered the art
> of keeping the power on?

Well, yeah, John. I believe they made a habit of it ;-)

Will Owen
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