Godfrey DiGiorgi wrote:
On Apr 17, 2005, at 2:43 PM, Keith Whaley wrote:
Morgans use wood framing for the body panels, not the chassis.
The last I heard, which admittedly was SOME time ago, was that they used oak for the ladder frame members, or at least the interior of them, because it gave the stiffness they needed, with a suitable amount of springiness...without yield.
That's the myth, not the reality. It was never true.
Okay. Could well be.
I worked on a lot of Morgans of all ages when I worked as a mechanic for a British car specialist in the early 1970s. None of the chassis were ever made of wood, or ever had wood incorporated into them. It was the body framing and some of the body support structure that had wood framing.
Everybody admits the ol' Morgan has a STIFF chassis!
Stiff suspension, yes. The old ladder type frames are, um, springy. ;-)
Godfrey
I was led to believe it referred to torsional rigidity. Articles which discussed the Morgan's handling specifically mentioned just that. Which is not particularly applicable to suspension members. The torsion of the frame, and it's response are quite different from suspension (individual wheel) actions.
Not in any way meant to denigrate your contentions, Godfrey.
Certainly you have a far better handle than most of us here. Perhaps all of us here...
But, I guess *not* owning a 2 litre Morgan all these years must have turned my brain to mush! Tha't's realistic too, wouldn't you say? ;-)
Thanks for the comments,
keith whaley
