Ok, I swear I haven't been drinking (yet). I was thinking, since all it take to stop a roll sometimes is a guy hanging on the bumper, and since COG is a product of both weight and distance, and since a wheel with a big tire on it weighs a ton - couldn't you make an anti-roll device out of a roof mounted spare? Just mount it so it swings out to either side on a six foot pole, and have some handhold straps so your spotter can hang on to add more weight. His weight plus the tire in that position is gonna be a lot more effective than him trying to hold a doorhandle or bumper.

Think about the guy that rolled off Lions Back. This would have saved him, seems like.

ummm, i dunno, i guess it would help, but why? and what if the spotter isnt there to controll it? its goona swing to the downhill side and complicate things. Also I thnk it would take whole lot of bracing to make a 6 foot pivoting arm. I dont think it would be worth the trouble, instead id say heavuier axles and tires would be better, and my approach is to minimize damage when a roll does ahppen, meaning good cage, nothing too fragile mounted on top and such. try it out and see if it works for you, but i dont think it would be worth the work

Sounds like a diamond in the rough to me. Couldn't hurt to play with it and then report back and let us all know how it worked, or didn't. And don't forget the pics! :flipoff2:

Yeh, you could make some training wheels :rolleyes: why not just learn to drive :p or you could put a big plastic bubble around your rig and look like a freakin hamster. But if a frog had wings he wouldn't bump his ass when he jumped.

you'd have to have a way to pin it down. Then when you're coming to a really tough obstacle, have your spotter unhook it and hold on. I don't really see why this would be a better option than using a long tow strap to gain leverage. The spare on top will just raise the COG.

-Steve

Originally posted by BrianR
Yeh, you could make some training wheels :rolleyes: why not just learn to drive ... So, all of the pros you see in the comps should be wearing furry suits:confused: Next you'll be telling us to put baseball cards in the rims. :flipoff2:

What 92xj is saying is that it could be a tool for the spotter to help make the job a little bit easier. Its just another way to get the ballast in the right spot. Some buddies and I made some experimental ballast transfer tubes in a 1/4 miler project. They worked pretty well and were tunable to get the best reaction. 92xj has an idea and unless you have a better idea or solution :flipoff2: listen to your momma and hush up! See you on the trail rolled or inna hamster ball. :p :laughing:

uhm?
what wrong with rolling?

I don't see how adding 200 lbs. to the top of a rockcrawler is going to the next winning modification...
Try taking 200 lbs. off the top of the rig, that might be better...

Dirtrod, as a general rule I agree with you, I don't think the roof is the best place for the spare. But when I started thinking about putting a leverage pole up there I thought it would help to have some weight on it. But I don't want to add dead weight to the vehicle, so what's something heavy I could move up there? The spare tire seemed the best answer. So the spare would stay in the bed until I went into anti-roll mode.

Offroadr, instead of a pin, I was thinking about a mechanism with 3 lock positions, with a push button release somewhere to move from one position to another. I even thought that it might be possible to have it spring loaded, so that the driver could hit a panic button if he started to go over that would swing the tire out, maybe giving the spotter a few extra seconds to climb around to that side and grab hold. (Of course, if the driver hit the left panic button when he needed the right one, he'd roll right over and probably rip the roof off with the pole.)

As for the bracing, ideally it would be tied in to an exo-cage that was designed for it, so it would have a strong mount and wouldn't be a hazard of punching through the roof if you did happen to roll on it. Failing that, a reinforced rack attachment system should work for the weight, but I wouldn't want to be inside if I rolled over on the pole when it was extended.

As for the naysayers, I don't mind, it may well be unworkable, go ahead and pick on it. You might accidentally say something useful.

And as for fcfred, mr-whats-wrong-with-rolling.....
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You got a good point! I'd far rather just put some wheels on the top of my exo-cage and keep going upside down! But everybody here says the engine won't run upside down (damn).

that would have to be one hell of a spring to snap a 100+ lbs tire around. especially if you are about to roll...the tire would have to travel up hill.

(when you werent wheeling you could use it as a skeet thrower:D )

i see where you are coming from...but really...i know most the time when i am out wheeling...when someone rolls it happens pretty quickly...dont know if you are going to have time to move pins and swing a tire around. just my thoughts...

Originally posted by 92xj
I even thought that it might be possible to have it spring loaded, so that the driver could hit a panic button if he started to go over that would swing the tire out, maybe giving the spotter a few extra seconds to climb around to that side and grab hold. (Of course, if the driver hit the left panic button when he needed the right one, he'd roll right over and probably rip the roof off with the pole.)


I think Junkyard Wars did an episode about this, they had a word for it: "Trebuchet"

I can only imaging the end of the arm accelerating a spotter towards an escape velocity as the rig goes over anyways. I think this idea has fantastic merit for entertainment. Very Monty Python...:eek: :eek: :smokin: :flipoff2:

Hey tigger4x, I'd like to see you be the one holding on to that 100+ tire on a six foot pole. When it rips your arm off and beats you with it maybe you'll see it's not such a good idea.

But I think your idea of fuzzy suits is good...... :rasta:

The Land Rover guys have an answer (http://www.fourfold.org/LR_FAQ/FAQ.6.taylorFAQ.html) to this problem:

# Are Rovers a likely to Roll over (and play dead) as Jeeps?

* Stock Land Rovers can be a wee bit tippy too. But you can improve on the design with the Rovers North Mansfield Anti Roll bar kit. It consists of 2 long rectangular bars made of some sort of heavy metal, each weighing 743lbs. They are attached to the bottom of the left and right frame rails with supplied u-bolts. This lowers the center of gravity and greatly improves the stability of the vehicle. Don't attempt the installation alone. They'e a bit awkward. Ask your wife/girlfriend to help. They aren't too expensive but the shipping really sucks. Call Rovers North and ask for Lanny. Tell him you need the Rovers North Mansfield Anti Roll Bar kit. Unfortunately it's not on special this month. [BM]

NQS

Once upon a time on the Land Rover Mailing list (Feb 1995 for those that really want to know), a newby by the name of Taylor asked a whole bunch of questions. Someone mentioned oil coolers on military Land Rovers. Taylor said that he didn't know Land Rovers were oil cooled and asked if someone could explain that. R. Pierce Reid responded with some humorous questions and answers. Then someone else made a few responses. And the rest is history....






Can young children be of assistance when driving a Land Rover?
Not when driving. They do make excellent wheel chocks when parking, though. [RS]



Can a Land Rover run on alternative fuels?
Certainly, and they often do. Many are powered by tow trucks, helpful strangers, and newfoundlands. [RS]



What is the best source for parts for a Land Rover?
Any Land Rover close enough to get there and back before sun-up, but far enough away that its owner doesn't know you. [RS]



Which is better, a Land Rover sII 109", a case of good beer, or a loving, caring, beautiful, intelligent wife?
A1: This is a tough question. Many claim the Land Rover, but there are those that prefer the beer. [RS]

A2: Actually, IF you sell your soul, you can have all three (like me ;^) ), although you want to make sure you get a loving, caring, beautiful, intelligent wife THAT WON'T drink the beer. [JH]

you get a different type of humor from the LR crowd.

Ron

PS I was thinking explosive tubes of pipe on either side. Hit 60 degrees and the charge goes off the pipe shoots out and a pin locks it in place. You then rest on the pipe rather than roll.

hey evilFJ, how many poins would teh comp. bodies add for every time that was used? plus, think about the thread a few weeks back with lance about to roll the rig(Zuk?) so instead he gassed it hard.

if there's a pole hangin off teh side and someoen gasses it to leave a roll.........ouch!

I was not really serious. Just a decent cage with enough sticking out the side to keep the truck in one piece.

Ron

It would work but for it to work well with a spare tire it would need to be a big one and as far away from the COG at rest as possible. Plus the whole system would need to be automated with loadcells at each wheel to constantly keep track of the COG as it changes often on the trail.

why not use a double ended hydrolic ram to move it back and forth with a small joystick next to the driver?

Air bags.......

Inflate the low side, drop the high side, then there is no need for the monkey.... You'll get adjustable ride hight to boot.

I know on boats they have a huge bladder up front that you can pump water into to give the boat a better wake.... you could have a bladder at each corner and pump water to each corner as needed....if you had all the time in the world before a roll....:flipoff2: this would keep your COG low as well.....

how about system so that when you are about to roll, all your gear and your passenger get violently ejected to the roll side. That should push the car back to stable kind of like rocket fuel. Think about it, if you're gonna roll, your shit's gonna end up all over the place anyway...:flipoff2:

what i have thought about doing is using a ballast system of 4 tanks of water, one at each corner. then there would be a series of relays and valves which controlled a number of pumps which pumped the water into the tank which was at the corner of the vehicle most in danger of tipping over.

you would need some damn fast pumps though :eek:

so i basically just repeated what troutbum said :rolleyes:

i like this airbag idea, has anyone done it