bent upper bar question

I was looking at the Aug. 07 MT tech article on STK TRUK. I see that the upper bars seem to be at maybe no more than 30 degrees of triangulation? Does the bend help for triangulation? I love that whole setup and I am also doing my upper bars in a similar fashion but I will probably only get 30 degrees of triangulation if I'm lucky, I am also mounting the ends straight to the axle and straight to the crossmember with the bars at an angle. Will this be enough to keep side movement at a minimum? I know the ideal angle is 45 degrees but with the width constraint between frame rails it seems impossible unless you make very short bars. Also my ends are from an old AIM generic four link that i chopped up. It is only 1" sched. 40, is that going to be beefy enough? Thanx again in advance Max, I owe you.

I've been asked that question more than once...

The bars can only be considered as a straight line between the points. The bend only makes room for the bags and should be as minimal as possible. If your truck will make any kind of real horsepower, I would not suggest bending the bars. The only reason that we can get away with it on a mini is because there isn't any torque.

You are right about wanting the bars at 45 deg, but that isn't always possible. You want as much angle as you can fit in the confines and make sure the bushings are tight. If the bushings are worn or are sloppy, you will end up with excess side movement. Also, larger bushings would be a good idea, not necessary, but favorable.