I've been trying to compreehend the geometry of how anti-sway bars function. With all the joints, i just can't figure out what part is supposed to act as a semi-rigid spring.

any explainations? A .gif would really help me visualize.

 

try google and ask that.

 

No gif, but simplest terms-think of the sway as a set of handlebars on a bike loose in the gooseneck. Grab the right side and pull down, the left side comes down with the same force.

Turning hard right, the right side wants to lift while the left side compresses. The sway bar connected to the left side (compressed) is being pulled down (like your hand did on the handlebars), twisting the sway bar so that the right side also goes down with almost the same (well, they say about 50%) of the strength of the left side. The twisting is allowed through the bushings in the body frame, just like the handlebar in the gooseneck. It has to have a central solid pivot point.

The more force on the right side, the more force on the left side. The thicker the bar, the more force it can apply before the bar starts to give. The car does need some give to allow bite on the road, some leaning and get some use out of a semi-independent suspension. That bite gets lost when the bars are too thick, but can be counter-acted by placing more mass to be moved (tires on the road-wider tires), otherwise, inertia wins.