L66TEY Posted April 22, 2022 Share Posted April 22, 2022 Yet again Im seeking support from fellow Club members......Please could someone clarify the correct orientation of the Watts linkage "bellcrank", ie should the longer "ears" be upwards or downwards?I ask as there photos on the web with the orientation being both ways round and differences in which part connects to rear shorter linkage bar....... With thanksChris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Jonathan Kay Posted April 22, 2022 Member Share Posted April 22, 2022 Have you got the Assembly Guide that has the picture and instructions? If not and you'd like it send me a Private Mail.Watt's linkage on Wikipedia.http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/93/Watts_linkage.gifJonathan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Vine Posted April 22, 2022 Share Posted April 22, 2022 As JK says, the longer "ear" faces downwards. So, your top photo is correct. A bit more from the AG:This is from my build:JV Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L66TEY Posted April 22, 2022 Author Share Posted April 22, 2022 Thank you Gents.JK please do PM me as I've not got the Assembly Guide.Many thanksChris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leadership Team SLR No.77 Posted April 23, 2022 Leadership Team Share Posted April 23, 2022 The technical aspect is that the shorter link arm connects to the longer side of the bellcrank, the longer link arm connects to the shorter side. This allows for the tighter arc taken by the shorter link arm as it moves up/down, and the reverse for the longer link arm, if that makes sense. The correct orientation is with the longer bellcrank legs facing downwards, but if the assembly were to be fitted the other way up I'm not sure it would make a massive difference to the geometry. I swapped mine for standard radius arms ....Stu. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrettJ Posted April 23, 2022 Share Posted April 23, 2022 What are the advantages of the Watts links over the Radius arms, or vice versa? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Jonathan Kay Posted April 23, 2022 Member Share Posted April 23, 2022 As you can see in the animation above a Watt linkage gives a near vertical trajectory for the red dot. In the Seven configuration it reduces the fore and aft movement of the rear wheel compared to a radius arm.From what I can tell it was developed to reduce rear wheel steering on the track. Opinions differ on its efficacy and desirability on circuits, hillclimbs and the road.Unfortunately there's a large number of threads on the subject. I recommend starting with this one from 2011.Jonathan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L66TEY Posted April 24, 2022 Author Share Posted April 24, 2022 Watts Linkage Arms and Bellcrank (in the correct orientation) now fitted. As part of putting the rear suspension back together I'm replacing all nuts and bolts, but decided (for now) to re-use the original Bellcrank bolt, as the plain section on the new ones from CC were oddly shorter than the original ones. I'll query this with CC Parts tomorrow. Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SM25T Posted April 25, 2022 Share Posted April 25, 2022 Like Stu, I changed from Watts linkage to radius arms. No more frequent replacements of rod end bearings. Simple design and comfortable ride now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Vine Posted April 25, 2022 Share Posted April 25, 2022 Re #9:Ian, I can see the point about not needing to replace rod ends, but why would radius arms alone be more comfortable than Watts?JV Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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