I was wondering, could the length of a driveshaft change the power output?

Yes.

It will affect torque.

The longer the shaft is, the more it will lose energy by (literally) twisting. Think twizzler.

I figured there would be a loss but was unsure what kind. Thanks for the input. Is there a way to figure the actual loss?

its not about the power lost, its about the driveshaft stability.

the idea is that the unit wont bend and is 1 solid piece, thus power lost should be minimal. the reality is that the stability of the driveshaft is directly dependent on length, material, width, ect and WILL break if you apply too much energy to it.

This post was edited by PmP on Sep 26 2012 03:31pm

Well, I know that the weight of the shaft is part of the equation, just not sure how to factor it.