<VV> weght canisters

[par429 at aol.com]

>At 03:55 hours 04/26/2005, rocky gannon wrote: 
>>I was looking at the pre puchase checklist just now and in the special >section regarding convertables there was apoint >concerning weight >canisters. Apparently they help keep convertables steady and are found at >each corner of the car, in >the trunk and in the engine compartment. I >have never heard of these before and was wondering what they looked like. 
>> 
>>I have been checking out the 64 vert of Craig Pursley on line. He has >some pictures of the trunk ..so I don't think i can see >any weight containers. 
 
> tony wrote:
>They're not weights per se. They're flex dampers. They are actually "shock absorbers" which are cylinders filled with oil and >contain spring loaded pistons which damp out harmonic body flex in convertibles. These dampers were used in late Corvair >convertibles and in first generation Camaro and Firebird convertibles which of course share a similar platform/body as the late >Vair. 
 
>They're intended to limit axial body twist/flex which can result in cracking of the A and B pillar joints which is a bit of a problem >with late convertibles. 

 
These are sometimes called "Frahms" after their inventor.  They are vibration dampers, which by changing the springs and weights can be tuned to dampen a particular frequency vibration.  By putting them in the corners of a Vair, they have the effect described by Tony above.  And don't think these are obsolete 1960s technology, they are still used today, often in helicopters, to dampen vibrations that would damage avionics and other equipment.
 
Phil